3206-0253 Leadership Assessments Statement A

Leadership Assessment Surveys (OMB No. 3206-0253)

SECTION A. JUSTIFICATION:

1. Explain the circumstances that make the collection of information necessary.

Human Resources Strategy and Evaluation Solutions (HRSES) within the US Office of Personnel Management performs reimbursable assessment work for Federal Agencies. These surveys are necessary for measuring leadership competencies. As part of this collection, OPM is requesting approval of the OPM Leadership 360™, Leadership Potential Assessment, the OPM Personality Assessment for Leaders (OPM PAL), The Leadership for Engagement Survey (L4E), the Leadership for Inclusion Survey (L4I), and the DEIA Pulse Survey (DEIA Pulse). HRSES’ OPM Leadership 360™ assesses the 28 leadership competencies that comprise the five Executive Core Qualifications and Fundamental Competencies in the OPM Leadership Model. The Leadership Potential Assessment assesses a subset (10) of these same competencies using similar items, in addition to items on motivation and personal factors critical to leadership success. The L4E and L4I assess 30 leadership behaviors related to engagement and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA), respectively, and supplement that information with a 20-item assessment of employees’ perceptions of their work unit related to engagement and inclusion, respectively. All of these surveys use a multi-rater methodology, so some respondents could be non-government employees. The DEIA Pulse Survey supports Executive Order 14035, “Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in the Federal Workforce,” by providing leaders with information related to the demographics of their workforce, perceptions of the leader’s policies, procedures, and practices related to DEIA, and attitudes toward working in the leader’s organization. The OPM PAL consists of 236 items and measures five major personality traits (also known as the “The Big Five”). It is unlikely that the OPM PAL would be administered to a non-Federal employee but is included here should the necessity arise.

HRSES is generally authorized to collect this information by Sections 4702 and 4703 of Title 5, U.S.C. Various agencies may have policies or regulations requiring periodic leadership assessments. Other agencies request these Leadership Assessment Surveys on an ad hoc basis to address specific agency needs.

2. Indicate how, by whom, and for what purpose the information is to be used. Except for a new collection, indicate the actual use the agency has made of the information received from the current collection.

HRSES has administered the OPM Leadership 360™ for agencies since 2003. The survey includes standard, benchmarkable items that ensure broad coverage of core leadership competencies. On rare occasions a client agency may add agency-specific competencies to the assessment. Agencies and individual participants use the OPM Leadership 360™ to obtain feedback on leadership effectiveness that is otherwise unavailable. Based on the results, participants may target individual development efforts, while agencies may target agency-wide improvement efforts, such as training, that will result in more effective management and service to the public.

HRSES has administered the OPM Leadership Potential Assessment (LPA) for agencies since 2012. The LPA survey contains a variety of items that cover a broad range of core leadership competencies and motivational/personal factors. As with the OPM Leadership 360™, these items are standardized and can also be used for benchmarking purposes. Agencies and individual participants use the LPA to obtain information on leadership potential/effectiveness that is otherwise unavailable. This information can then be used by participants to support individual development, and agencies may use aggregate-level data to inform strategic human resource decision making (e.g., succession planning).

HRSES has administered the OPM Personality Assessment for Leaders (OPM PAL) for agencies since 2012. The OPM PAL survey contains items that cover five major personality traits (also known as the “The Big Five”). Individual participants use the OPM PAL to obtain information on their personality traits/preferences and how they relate to leadership behaviors. This information can then be used by participants to support individual development.

HRSES has administered the Leadership for Engagement Survey (L4E) since 2019 and the Leadership for Inclusion Survey (L4I) survey since 2022. The L4E and L4I assess 30 leadership behaviors related to engagement and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA), respectively, and supplement that information with a 20-item assessment of employees’ perceptions of their work unit related to engagement and inclusion, respectively. Individual participants use the results to target individual development efforts, while agencies use the results to target agency-wide improvement efforts, such as training, that will result in more effective management and service to the public.

The DEIA Pulse Survey is a new survey and has not yet been administered by HRSES. The DEIA Pulse Survey supports Executive Order 14035, “Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in the Federal Workforce,” by providing leaders with information related to the demographics of their workforce, perceptions of the leader’s policies, procedures, and practices related to DEIA, and attitudes toward working in the leader’s organization. Leaders can use the results to better understand the diversity of their organization and how their policies, practices, and procedures affect the DEIA climate of their organization.

3. Describe whether, and to what extent, the collection of information involves the use of automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

These assessments are administered electronically. HRSES does not publicly post the surveys or results online because the surveys belong to individual participants and their agencies.

4. Describe efforts to identify duplication. Show specifically why any similar information already available cannot be used or modified for use for the purposes described in Item 2 above.

There is no source for this information except direct contact with participants and their raters. We will ensure that no survey or data collection effort approved under this generic clearance duplicates another.

5. If the collection of information impacts small businesses or other small entities, describe any methods used to minimize burden.

These data collections will not involve small businesses.

6. Describe the consequence to Federal program or policy activities if the collection is not conducted or is conducted less frequently, as well as any technical or legal obstacles to reducing burden.

HRSES generally administers Leadership Assessment Surveys on an ad-hoc basis in response to agency needs, timing of training courses, and other factors. Participants are not asked to complete an assessment more than once a year. When re-administration is possible, doing so at longer than annual intervals may mean changes in leadership competencies are not assessed in a timely manner.

7. Special circumstances:

None: this data collection is consistent with 5 CFR 1320.6.

8. If applicable, provide a copy and identify the date and page number of publication in the Federal Register of the agency's notice, required by 5 CFR 1320.8(d), soliciting comments on the information collection prior to submission to OMB.

On November 27, 2020 a 60-day Federal Register Notice was published at 85 FRN 76116. There were no comments received.

On January 2, 2025 a 30-Day Federal Register Notice was published at 90 FRN 121. No comments were received.

9. Explain any decision to provide any payment or gift to respondents, other than remuneration of contractors or grantees.

No payment or gift is provided to respondents of these voluntary surveys.

10. Describe any assurance of confidentiality provided to respondents and the basis for the assurance in statute, regulation, or agency policy.

HRSES collects rater names and email addresses for addressing correspondences, but only the participant’s (the individual being rated) name is retained in the data to personalize reports. Other identifying information, such as Social Security Numbers and IP addresses, is not captured. The surveys are voluntary and there are neither rewards for participating nor sanctions for not participating. HRSES reports the results to agencies only in aggregate, so that no individual can be tied to his or her particular responses (exception: in individual reports, supervisor ratings on the OPM Leadership 360™ and LPA necessarily identify the supervisor).

Respondents are told:

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. § 552a(e)(3), this Privacy Act Statement informs you of why OPM is requesting the information from you.

Authority:

OPM is authorized to collect the information requested pursuant to 5 U.S.C. § 4702 – Research Programs.

Purpose:

OPM is requesting this information to improve methods in Federal personnel management, workforce effectiveness, and/or agency effectiveness. OPM will use this information to assess the participants’ leadership behaviors, identify leadership strengths and challenges, and identify strategies that will help the participants improve their leadership.

Routine Uses:

In any public release of survey results, no data will be disclosed that could be used to match your responses with your identity. The information requested may be shared externally as a “routine use” as specified in the system of records notice associated with this collection of information, OPM GOVT-6, Personnel Research and Test Validation Records, OPM GOVT-6.

Consequences of Failure to Provide Information:

Providing this information is completely voluntary and there is no penalty if you choose not to respond. However, maximum participation is encouraged so that the data will be complete and representative.

11. Provide additional justification for any questions of a sensitive nature, such as sexual behavior and attitudes, religious beliefs, and other matters that are commonly considered private.

No sensitive information is being collected for any of the survey efforts.

12. Provide estimates of the hour burden of the collection of information.

The exact number of surveys and respondents will vary based on agency needs. The estimates below are based on past experience where it takes on average 15 minutes to complete the OPM Leadership 360™ and LPA, 45 minutes to complete the OPM PAL, 20 minutes to complete the L4E, 20 minutes to complete the L4I, and 10 minutes to complete the DEIA Pulse Survey.

Form Name	Form Number	No. of Respondents per year	Avg. Burden per Survey (in hours)	Total Annual Burden (in hours)
OPM Leadership 360™	n/a	4,000	.25	1000
Leadership Potential Assessment	n/a	3990	.25	997.5
Leadership Profiler	n/a	10	.75	7.5
Leadership for Inclusion Survey (L4I)	n/a	100	.33	33
Leadership for Engagement Survey (L4E)	n/a	100	.33	33
DEIA Pulse Survey	n/a	100	.17	17
Total	n/a	8,300	.35	2,088

13. Provide an estimate for the total annual cost burden to respondents or record keepers resulting from the collection of information.

The only cost to respondents is the time taken to complete a survey. The wage rate used below is the BLS statistic for all occupations of May 2023.

Form Name	Average Hourly Wage Rate	Total Annual Respondent Cost
OPM Leadership 360™	$31.48	$31,480
Leadership Potential Assessment	$31.48	$31,401
Leadership Profiler	$31.48	$236
Leadership for Inclusion Survey (L4I)	$31.48	$1,039
Leadership for Engagement Survey (L4E)	$31.48	$1,039
DEIA Pulse Survey	$31.48	$535
Total	n/a	$65,730

14. Provide estimates of annualized costs to the Federal Government.

The only expected non-labor costs are for administering approximately 500 paper surveys each year, at an annual cost of $3,000.

15. Explain the reasons for any program changes or adjustments reported on the burden worksheet.

Three new surveys are being added to this collection: The Leadership for Inclusion Survey (L4I), the Leadership for Engagement Survey (L4E), and the DEIA Pulse Survey. For the remaining three surveys, the following updates have been made:

The OPM Leadership 360™ survey content was reviewed and some changes were made, including refreshing some items to update the language and/or better reflect current terminology, revamping the response scale in an effort to increase response variance, and changing some item language to make it more gender neutral (e.g., updated language such as “he or she” to “they”).

For the Leadership Potential Assessment, some item language was changed to make it more gender neutral (e.g., updated language such as “he or she” to “they”).

Minor changes were also made to the instructions of the Leadership Profiler to match our new survey platform.

None of the above updates constitute any significant change in hourly burden, which is why they have remained the same. However, due to inflation and rise in cost since the last request for approval, some program adjustments have been necessitated and reflected in the cost burden.

16. For collections of information whose results will be published, outline plans for tabulation and publication. Address any complex analytical techniques that will be used. Provide the time schedule for the entire project, including beginning and ending dates of the collection of information, completion of report, publication dates, and other actions.

OPM will not publish results of these surveys because the data belongs to HRSES’ clients and participants and is considered sensitive.

17. If seeking approval to not display the expiration date for OMB approval of the information collection, explain the reasons that display would be inappropriate.

We will show the number and expiration date.

18. Explain each exception to the topics of the certification statement identified in “Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions,”

There are no exceptions.