Federal Managers Association

In the News

• OPM Director Berry Offers Inspiring Address During FMA’s 100th Anniversary Gala – March 16, 2013

• Remarks of OPM Director John Berry

  March 6, 2013

  As prepared for delivery

  I want to congratulate you on your 100th Anniversary. A century of leadership and management in the federal government – that's something to be proud of.

  The perspective you get, when you look back across a century, shows you just how much has changed. Back in 1913, suffragettes marched through Washington, DC, and the unruly crowd that faced them had to be subdued from horseback. This year, more Senators are women than ever before – twenty in all. Technology marches at a pace that would make our grandparents' and great-grandparents' heads spin.

  The perspective of a century also shows just how much does not change, when it comes to good leadership. A leader must both inspire and manage their team, and all the more so in hard times.

  I received an email the other day from a federal employee who has served nineteen years in civil service and more than twenty years in the armed services. He asked me, Why are these cuts hitting federal employees?

  His email struck upon what is my greatest fear: That the indiscriminate nature of these cuts will hurt individuals like you so greatly that public service will no longer appeal. Cuts to wallets are bad, yes – but they heal far faster than cuts to hearts. We must not let that happen.

  To read Director Berry's comments as prepared for delivery, please visit: http://www.opm.gov/news/speeches-remarks/federal-managers-association/

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