IV. Objective 4: Recruitment and Retention of the Most Highly-Qualified Cybersecurity Workforce Talent the Federal Government Can Bring to Bear Human Resources Strengthening Federal cybersecurity is not possible without the appropriate talent. The Federal workforce must keep pace with the growing dependence on technology for mission essential activities. A well-functioning security organization requires a blend of technical, policy, legal, and leadership resources covering multiple disciplines within cybersecurity. A focus on any one skillset without an understanding of overall organizational needs can lead to failure. The Cybersecurity Sprint identified two key observations related to the Federal cybersecurity workforce: 1) the vast majority of Federal agencies cite a lack of cyber and IT talent as a major resource constraint that impacts their ability to protect information and assets; and 2) there are a number of existing Federal initiatives to address this challenge, but implementation and awareness of these programs is inconsistent. The CSIP initiates the following actions to address these challenges in recruiting and retaining a high-quality cybersecurity workforce. These initiatives will inform a broader Cybersecurity Human Resources Strategy to be published by OMB within 6 months, which will help ensure the Federal Government can recruit, develop, and maintain a pipeline of cybersecurity talent throughout the Federal Government. a. The CSIP directs all agencies to participate in the following efforts: i. OPM and OMB will compile existing Special Hiring Authorities (by agency) that can be used to hire cybersecurity and IT professionals across government. OPM will clarify legal guidelines and provide guidance to agencies on how to increase the understanding of these Special Hiring Authorities, and how agencies should work with their human resources departments to implement them, where appropriate, and rapidly close talent gaps and accelerate hiring by December 31, 2015. ii. Agencies will participate in OPM’s existing Special Cyber Workforce Project, which provides cybersecurity job codes by specialty, so that agency leadership can identify the universe of their cyber talent, understand Federal-wide challenges for retaining talent, and address gaps accordingly. Agency CIOs, working collaboratively with Chief Human Capital Officers, should use this assessment to identify their top five cyber talent gaps, which will be due to OPM and OMB by December 31, 2015. b. The CSIP directs DHS to begin piloting their Automated Cybersecurity Position Description Hiring Tool across the Federal Government. DHS is also directed to develop and report on performance and adoption metrics so that agency leadership can better understand how to leverage the tool. Used in concert with relevant OPM Position Classification Standards, the tool will assist in the implementation of the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) Framework by consistently mapping the NICE job codes according to selected skills and KSAs (Knowledge, Skills and Abilities). The tool enhances cybersecurity workforce recruitment by decreasing the applicant timePage 18 of 21