FederalDaily - March 14, 2007
Study Highlights Differences in Military and Civilian DoD Leadership
Senior managers in the military are more respected and generate higher levels of motivation and commitment
than counterparts at DoD support agencies, according to a new Princeton University study. However,
top managers of those support agencies do better than military service leaders at managing their organizations
to meet long-term goals, the study said. Princeton researchers Paul Oh and David Lewis compared the
leadership, management and work environments of 82 top executives across DoD. One reason for the perceived
drop-off in management skills for military leaders is the culture of the services, the study said.
The military services focus on the cultivation of leaders, while support agency leaders focus on organizational
performance, the study said. The military services cultivate leaders by rotating them regularly through
positions. But short-tenure rotations hurt the management of the specific programs within the defense
bureaucracy, the study said. “Regular rotation and short tenures decreases the likelihood that
managers have a long-term perspective toward the organization’s goals,” the study said.
To see more, go to: www.wws.princeton.edu/policybriefs/Lewis_Surveys.pdf
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Grassley Lambastes FDA Over Whistleblower Stance
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa., sharply criticized Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Andrew
C. von Eschenbach for statements that the senator said would discourage FDA employees and scientists
from speaking up about problems within the agency. At issue were comments in a New Jersey newspaper
attributed to von Eschenbach in which he seemed to express an unwillingness to tolerate whistleblowers
who go outside the agency, Grassley said. “The danger is that FDA employees interpret this to
mean they can’t talk with Congress if they want to about problems inside the agency and, as a
result, those problems are less likely to see the light of day and be fixed,” Grassley said.
In a sharply worded letter, Grassley reminded von Eschenbach that interfering with a congressional
inquiry was a violation of federal law. Grassley also invited the commissioner to explain himself at
a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing where he is scheduled to testify.
To see more, go to: www.senate.gov/~finance/press/Gpress/2007/prg031207a.pdf
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Army IG Faults PDES for Lack of Timeliness
Problems with Army’s Physical Disability Evaluation System (PDES) ensnare wounded servicemembers
in a web of delays, said an Army Inspector General (IG) report that further illuminates many of the
same issues raised by the Walter Reed Army Medical Center debacle. Most items in the report, which
was released March 12, had already been raised in last year’s Government Accountability Office
report. The issues include a lack of timeliness of claims processing, differences between DoD directives
and Army policy, under-trained staff and an overwhelmed system. For example, more than 90 percent of
the time the Army did not meet its 40-day time limit for completing physical evaluation boards. And
in 43 percent of cases, the Army did not meet its 30-day goal for processing medical evaluation boards.
The report, delivered to Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Schoomaker, recommends that the Army update
regulations, improve timeliness standards, standardize training, implement quality controls and improve
computer systems to better track soldiers’ medical information and case status. To see more,
go to: www.army.mil/-newsreleases/2007/03/12/2217-army-inspector-general-details-findings-on-soldier-disability-system
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