PD_GSA_Administrator

Position Description

ADMINISTRATOR, GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

Overview

Senate Committee

Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

Agency Mission

The mission of the General Services Administration (GSA) is to deliver the best value in real estate, acquisition and technology services to government and the American people.

Position Overview

The administrator oversees this federal agency with responsibility for purchasing, procurement, real estate management and IT solutions across a broad range of the federal government.

Compensation

Level III $165,300 (5 U.S.C. § 5314)¹ _{The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017 (Public Law 115-31, May 5, 2017), contains a provision that continues the freeze on the payable pay rates for certain senior political officials at 2013 levels during calendar year 2017.}

Position Reports to

The President of the United States

Responsibilities

Management Scope

GSA is a 12,000-person agency with a $27 billion annual budget. The agency manages $500 billion in federal assets, including 8,600 government-owned or leased buildings, 482 of which are historic properties, and 208,000 vehicles.
Responsibilities
® Directs the Federal Acquisition Service (both as a direct purchasing arm and as the standard setter for other governmental agencies and departments) and the Public Buildings Service (management of thousands of government properties and the disposal arm for unused/underused real estate)
® Supports disaster recovery and continuity planning, including the provisioning of alternative recovery sites
® Serves as a key leader in improving the delivery of IT across the federal government
® Advocates for digital government service delivery and builds the mechanisms and systems necessary to make it possible
® Continually assesses the performance of federal services (e.g., buildings, acquisitions, IT) and works with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to develop and refine policies to maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of those operations; where there are defined opportunities for savings, develop services to capture them
® Engages with agency leadership across the administration to inform them of efficiency opportunities, and work with OMB to create policy and resource pressures for agencies to adopt them
® Communicates internally to staff and externally to various stakeholders (e.g., Capitol Hill and the media) about the goals and work of GSA to inform and encourage adoption of its recommended practices

Strategic Goals and Priorities

[To be completed by the incoming Administration]

Requirements and Competencies

Requirements

® Demonstrated experience in managing the infrastructure of a large organization
® Understanding of the range and nature of services provided by GSA
® Understanding of federal acquisition and federal budget processes; prior government experience (strongly preferred)

Competencies

® Strong communication skills
® Change agent mentality in both identifying and implementing new approaches to enhancing federal services
® Ability to understand and assess operational systems, and evaluate relative performance of services
® Process orientation
® Clear sense of ethics

Past Appointees

Denise Turner Roth (February 2015 to 2017): Deputy Administrator, General Services Administration; City Manager, City of Greensboro, N.C.; Special Assistant for Legislative Affairs, District of Columbia Mayor Anthony Williams
Daniel Tangherlini (April 2012 to February 2015): Chief Financial Officer, Chief Performance Officer, and Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Management, Department of the Treasury; City Administrator, Washington, D.C., under Mayor Adrian Fenty
Martha Johnson (February 2010 to April 2012): Vice President of Culture, Computer Sciences Corporation; Vice President, SRA; Member, Advisory Board, Office of Government Commerce in the British Government
Stephen Leeds (Acting, December 2009 to February 2010): Senior Counselor to the Administrator, General Services Administration; Founding Partner, Rogers & Hardin LLP
Endnotes
This position description was created with the help of Heidrick & Struggles, a global executive search firm.
The Partnership’s Center for Presidential Transition helps ensure the efficient transfer of power that our country deserves. The Center’s Ready to Govern· initiative assists candidates with the transition, works with Congress to reform the transition process, develops management recommendations to address our government’s operational challenges, and trains new political appointees.