OPM Pushes Agencies to Prioritize Tech Hiring in New Workforce Planning Guidance

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) directed federal agencies to change how they plan future hiring, issuing new guidance to help agencies prepare to implement fiscal year (FY) 2027 staffing plans and detailed hiring forecasts. 

A major focus of the guidance is recruiting technology talent into the federal workforce, as agencies continue competing with the private sector for workers with expertise in artificial intelligence (AI) and other mission-critical fields.

The staffing plans are required under a workforce planning executive order from President Trump. They also come after OPM issued a proposed rule on July 2, 2026, detailing the switch from the current system to annual staffing plans and hiring forecasts.

Tech Talent, Early-Career Hiring Priorities

In its guidance, OPM told agencies to “conduct rigorous, bottom-up workforce planning that reserves billets and budget for mission-critical, technology, and early-career hires.”

Such mission critical positions include AI, data science, cybersecurity, and other digital service delivery roles.

The guidance also tells agencies to leverage hiring initiatives like the U.S. Tech Force, Scholarships for Service, and the Early Career Talent Network, saying the usage of such programs will improve the quality of hires, reduce duplication, and speed up the recruitment process. 

Agencies were also told to prioritize hiring outside of the Washington, D.C., area.

“Prioritizing hiring outside the D.C. metro area reduces payroll and real property costs, broadens the available talent pool, and strengthens agency presence in the communities agencies serve,” stated the guidance. 

Agencies must submit updates on hiring to OPM and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) at the start of each quarter.

Each annual staffing plan must also include a detailed hiring forecast projection.  

“A Centralized View”

In an accompanying blog post, OPM Director Scott Kupor said the move will provide a centralized view of hiring across the government to see “where agencies are collectively investing, where critical skills are in highest demand, and where we can eliminate unnecessary duplication.”

He said the move is “about changing how the federal government thinks about hiring.”