Frequently Asked Questions Senior Executive Service

In order to be eligible for a sabbatical, SES Career appointees must complete seven years of service in SES position(s) or SES equivalent civil service position(s) (grade level above a GS-15 or equivalent), and at least two of the seven years specifically must be in the SES.  SES members may not be eligible for voluntary retirement at the time the sabbatical begins.  A sabbatical may not be granted to the same individual more than once in a 10-year period.

The basic system description does not specify requirements for how pay adjustments or performance awards are given.  The basic appraisal system description provides the tools and metrics to help rating officials and Performance Review Boards (PRB) make meaningful distinctions in relative performance.  The ratings from application of the basic system description will provide performance information to rating officials and PRB members so they will be able to appropriately apply the agency’s pay policy and recognize top performers.

Training is delegated to the agencies (5 U.S.C. 4103(a)).  Each agency is responsible for developing its own programs.  You should check with your agency to obtain information on training your agency specifically requires for SES members.  Agencies are required to develop learning programs and opportunities for the continued development of their executives. All Federal employees are required to take a set of Federal Mandatory training courses including IT Security Awareness, No Fear Act, and EEO training.  Executives are required to take Ethics Awareness training as well.  Check with your Executive Resources office for a schedule of these mandatory courses at your agency.

Yes.  SES Candidate Development Programs are competitive programs designed to develop the executive qualifications of employees with strong executive potential.  Participation in an SESCDP is not a prerequisite for obtaining an SES appointment

No. Compensatory time is a form of premium pay; SES members are not eligible.

This system was designed to appraise SES members.  Agencies may adopt or adapt the system for use with other senior employees as appropriate (e.g. senior level employees who serve as the agency’s executives when they do not have SES members).

Each performance element is appraised and assigned points according to the performance level attained, the points are multiplied by the applicable weight for the associated performance element to determine the element score.  These performance element scores are added together to determine the summary score, which yields the overall summary rating.  Consider the following example:     Critical Element Element Rating Weight Performance Element Score Summary Level Ranges 1. Leading Change 4 10 4 x 10 = 40 475-500 = Level 5 400-474 = Level 4 300-399 = Level 3 200-299 = Level 2 Any CE rated Level 1 = Level 1 2. Leading People 5 10 5 x 10 = 50 3. Business Acumen 3 10 3 x 10 = 30 4. Building Coalitions 4 10 4 x 10 = 40 5. Results Driven 4 60 4 x 60 = 240  Total   100% 400            

No. Credit hours are a form of premium pay; SES members are not eligible.