Article

2014-05-24 Government

Veterans Administration set to investigate Veterans Administration.

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Posted by Besoeker 2014-05-24 00:00|| || Front Page|| [4 views ] Top

#1 In a further press release, the VA said they'd use the same team that was sent to Benghazi to get to the facts.

Posted by ed in texas 2014-05-24 07:34|| 2014-05-24 07:34|| Front Page Top

#2 Repeal the Civil Service Act. A least with patronage, you can directly hold your representative and senator responsible for the bureaucracy. At least hold someone responsible.

Posted by Procopius2k 2014-05-24 09:31|| 2014-05-24 09:31|| Front Page Top

#3 Holding someone responsible is fine, unless their conspiring with the DoJ or crooked politicians up on the Hill, which appears to be the case with Lois Lerner. Taking down Lerner or gov't employees like Lerner, simply makes them scapegoats for the greater ill.

Posted by Besoeker 2014-05-24 09:36|| 2014-05-24 09:36|| Front Page Top

#4 Even the one has a sizable pile under the bus. Pols are a rather fickle lot. Scapegoat is in the language for a reason.

Posted by Procopius2k 2014-05-24 11:00|| 2014-05-24 11:00|| Front Page Top

#5 ...After the fact that veterans have lost their lives while bureaucrats played games to keep their paychecks and bonuses, I think I'm almost as angry over the fact that it appears NO ONE can be fired over this - that Congress is looking into a law that will make it EASIER to fire people the NEXT TIME.

Jeebus.

Mike

Posted by Mike Kozlowski 2014-05-24 11:52|| 2014-05-24 11:52|| Front Page Top

#6 "The House voted overwhelmingly on Wednesday to make it easier to fire senior Veterans Affairs officials involved in the healthcare scandal, just hours after President Barack Obama delivered a speech that failed to satisfy those looking to take quick action against the VA.

Members passed the VA Management Accountability Act in an easy 390-33 vote the only no votes came from Democrats."

According to Juran, 96 out of 100 people are good at something. Poor performance can be because:
1. The person is in the 96% group but is in a job that they are not capable of performing (see Peter principle). Remedy: find a job that they are capable of performing and move them there. Then find a person good at the job you need done and hire them.

2. Managers own process. The best performer will fail if pushing on a rope. Remedy: Replace manager with somebody good at it.

3. Person is in the 4% not good at anything group. Remedy: Fire them and put them on welfare.

None of these remedies are available to the VA. Any questions why the VA is failing at its mission?
--

Posted by Squinty 2014-05-24 12:50|| 2014-05-24 12:50|| Front Page Top

#7 As a matter of perspective and a mechanism to fight frequent frustration, we used to euphemistically refer to Army DA Civilians as members of "B Company."

'B Company.'
Be there when you get there,
Be there when you leave.
~ anon

Posted by Besoeker 2014-05-24 13:00|| 2014-05-24 13:00|| Front Page Top

#8 Well, yes. There's nothing so uplifting as a Lieutenant Commander fresh out of Naval Postgrad, filled with ideas, who enacts major sweeping changes, and who departs eighteen months later, leaving his civilian underlings waiting breathlessly for the next vigorous stirring of the wreckage.

Posted by Pappy 2014-05-24 13:53|| 2014-05-24 13:53|| Front Page Top

#9 Breathlessly? Whahaha. Little of that would have ever happened in the Army. The civilian unions, personnel offices, and "underlings" are far too entrenched. Indeed refreshing to learn that the Navy and BUPERS sill provide some measure of flexibility and accountability to their officers and senior leaders.

Posted by Besoeker 2014-05-24 15:49|| 2014-05-24 15:49|| Front Page Top

#10 Hey, Pappy, we used to deal with the 12 month churn and burn on command rotations. Someone finally extended it to 18 months. Woot, woot. Hey, just accept the fact not everyone is going to get a command billet and screwing the rest of the organization because the HR people can't/won't do work outside of getting boxes filled and assignments checked.

Posted by Procopius2k 2014-05-24 16:01|| 2014-05-24 16:01|| Front Page Top

#11 I'll certainly agree with the futility of ticket punching, but nothing provides command turmoil and disruptions like the rigors of combat. If change cannot be effectively dealt with in peacetime, what is to happen when the shi* hits the fan ?

Posted by Besoeker 2014-05-24 16:19|| 2014-05-24 16:19|| Front Page Top

#12 JHC - more and more we're looking like some tinsel-enhanced version of a Third World Country that denies final honor to their most deserving.

Posted by Skunky and Tenille1759 2014-05-24 21:06|| 2014-05-24 21:06|| Front Page Top

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