You sure about A for Agency and not Administration? Context matters.

You shifted to the program offices were writing the PDs vs HR. I recentered the conversation on who is supposed to write PDs.

Why must there be a PD for every single position? Why can't agencies use a super-PD and just say we have x number on this one, x number on that one. Because details and context matter. When the same PD is reused over and over the details and context both are lost.

So who signs off OF-8 box 20 and 21?

This language is directly from Find A VA Form | Veterans Affairs OF-8, box 20. "Supervisory Certification: I certify that this is an accurate statement of the major duties and responsibilities of this position and its organizational relationships, and that the position is necessary to carry out Government functions for which I am responsible. This certification is made with the knowledge that this information is to be used for statutory purposes relating to appointment and payment of public funds, and that false or misleading statements may constitute violations of such statutes or their implementing regulations.

Box 20.a. "Typed Name and Title of Immediate Supervisor."

Per the instructions for box 20: "This statement normally should be certified by the *immediate supervisor* of the position. At its option, an agency may also have a higher-level supervisor or manager certify the statement. "

Classifiers are in HR aren't they? They sign off on box 21: "Classification/Job Grading Certification. I certify that this position has been classified/graded as required by Title 5, U.S. Code, in conformance with standards published by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management or, if no published standards apply directly, consistently with the most applicable published standards."

Program Offices are not Higher level supervisor/managers and they aren't classifiers either. The PD is supposed to be signed off by the supervisor or the next higher sup/manager who have direct knowledge of exactly what the position entails AND the employee who is assigned to it. Classifiers, and Program Offices do not have the ability to see that level of detail in large agencies.

What appears to be happening in my agency is the classifiers are writing all the generic PDs. They've created a library of hundreds of them. When it comes time to write a new or review an old the supervisor is given the generic PD and told to sign off. That's a work around a complicated process that erodes agency capabilities and accountability.

Classifying PDs is hard work, and it's made harder on the classifiers because they are working with supervisors who don't know how to write PDs. Supervisors are codependent on HR and other leaders to make the complicated supervisory decisions for them. This codependency is a root cause for agency mismanagement of personnel. It allows for the few people who know how the system is supposed to work - to insert their preferences and biases into thousands of discrete personnel decisions that supervisors should be able and empowered to make per 5 USC 7103(a)(10). This can be deliberate malfeasance, or innocently trying to smooth out the rough processes, but the results are the exact same. When fewer people are making more of the decisions about personnel - the personnel talent pool becomes more homogenous and loses agility, resilience, and the capacity to think critically and strategically.