NSM-3 Finance and Economic Interagency Policy Committee (IPC)

In partnership with multiple agencies, the U.S. Department of the Treasury is committed to strengthening our national security and foreign policy work force.

Background

On February 4, 2021, President Biden issued a Memorandum on Revitalizing America’s Foreign Policy and National Security Workforce, Institutions, and Partnerships (NSM-3).  In NSM-3, President Biden noted that strengthening the national security workforce will be critical to accomplishing the Biden-Harris Administration’s foreign policy goals.  It also outlined the Administration’s commitment to revitalizing our national security and foreign policy workforce and institutions, and to addressing needs into the future.

NSM-3 established the National Security Workforce Working Group (NSM-3 Working Group) to carry out this commitment and directed the issuance of an annual report on progress on this ambitious agenda.

The NSM-3 Working Group is composed of the Principal Deputy National Security Advisor as the Chair; the Deputy Director for Management of OMB, the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and the Deputy Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) as the Vice Chairs; and designees of the following departments and agencies:

  1. The Department of State (DOS);
  2. The Department of the Treasury (Treasury);
  3. The Department of Defense (DOD);
  4. The Department of Justice (DOJ);
  5. The Department of Commerce (Commerce);
  6. The Department of Energy (DOE);
  7. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA);
  8. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS);
  9. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI);
  10. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA); 
  11. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID); and
  12. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Vision and Goals

In NSM-3, five specific goals were outlined to strengthen our national security workforce:

  1. Expand the pathways to recruit and hire new employees from all segments of our society;
  2. Retain and support current employees and their families;
  3. Improve professional development to close mission-critical gaps;
  4. Recruit and retain technical and other specialized talent, and; 
  5. Remove barriers that inhibit Americans from serving their country.

 

NSM-3 also outlined three core guiding principles which each NSM-3 department and agency has prioritized through the implementation of this endeavor, as directed by the President.  These principles are:

  1. Prioritize diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA).  As a national security imperative, we must prioritize diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility to ensure wide-ranging perspectives and talents are represented and respected in the national security workforce.  Our national security workforce reflects and draws on the richness and diversity of the country it represents, both at home and around the world.
  2. Modernize public service and close mission-critical gaps.  To succeed in an increasingly competitive world, we must close mission-critical knowledge and skills gaps, compete in and win the race for talent, equip our workforce with cutting-edge technology and agile, flexible, and adaptive organizational structures, and incentivize and reward innovation across the Government.
  3. Service.  To address challenges that Government cannot solve on its own, it is imperative that we harness the ideas, perspectives, and contributions of partners, including State and local governments, universities and colleges, the private sector, and civil society.  And just as our national security institutions must serve the American public, so must we seek ways to allow more Americans to engage in public service throughout their careers.

 

Building on these goals and principles, the NSM-3 Working Group focused its efforts in the first year on ensuring that we attract and retain a national security workforce that is composed of top talent, well supported, properly compensated and rewarded, and has the necessary tools, skills, and training to deliver on the mission and realize their potential.  

NSM-3 Finance and Economic Interagency Policy Committee (IPC)

In our second year, the NSM-3 Working Group is focusing on interagency actions (such as the STEM Reserve Corps, Interagency Rotations, and Public-Private Exchanges), enterprise forecasting methodologies (to improve recruitment, development, and retention), and enterprise solutions for critical skills issues (e.g., cyber, STEM, economics, finances, etc.). In support of these efforts, the U.S. Department of the Treasury leads the NSM-3 Finance and Economic IPC.  This IPC is an interagency effort to produce recommended strategies and initiatives to recruit, retain, and develop NSM-3 workforce in positions that deal with national security and foreign economic and financial interests of the United States. The IPC meetings commenced in February 2023 and will culminate in a written plan in late 2023. Along with progress updates to the larger NSM-3 Working Group, the NSM-3 Finance and Economic IPC will also share best practices, experiences in compiling information, and cross-cutting strategies and tactics for consideration to integrate into existing workstreams or refer to appropriate councils (e.g., Chief Human Capital Officer Council, Chief Learning Officer Council, Presidential Management Council, etc.) for action, where applicable. 

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