Federal Manager's Survival Guide
Leadership in the federal government comes with unique challenges, unwritten rules, and bureaucratic hurdles that no one warns you about. Our Manager's Guide cuts through the red tape with practical advice, real-world scenarios, and hard-won wisdom from federal leaders who've been in your shoes.
From your first day as a supervisor to navigating complex personnel issues, master the art of federal management with confidence and clarity.
Your Complete Federal Management Roadmap
About Your Guide
Written by Jerin Falcon, a retired federal law enforcement executive with 23 years of service. Learn his journey from rookie agent to senior executive managing 700+ employees and his servant leadership philosophy.
Start here to: Understand the experience and philosophy behind this guide.
So You Want to Be a Manager
Reality check on federal management. Understand the difference between supervisor vs. manager, what management really means (serving your team), and assess if you're pursuing it for the right reasons.
Use this to: Evaluate your motivations and understand the servant leadership approach.
Landing Your First Supervisor Job
Comprehensive guide to federal supervisory hiring. Learn the "mirror strategy" for resumes, interview techniques, timeline realities including the "background check black hole," and negotiation strategies.
Use this to: Master the federal hiring process and land your first supervisory role.
Drinking From a Firehose
Critical actions for your first 90 days as a new federal supervisor. Build relationships, understand team dynamics, set expectations, and avoid common first-time supervisor mistakes.
Use this to: Prioritize relationship building and secure early wins.
From King to Servant
The paradigm shift from individual contributor to servant leader. Understand that management is about serving your team, not ruling over them, and learn federal vs. private sector differences.
Use this to: Embrace the servant leadership mindset essential for federal management.
The Unwritten Rules
Practical wisdom nobody teaches in training. Learn communication survival (24-hour rule for angry emails), political dynamics, professional boundaries, and the three career killers: money, substances, relationships.
Use this to: Master unofficial protocols and protect your career.
Stop the Performance Theatre
Write meaningful performance standards instead of generic garbage. Learn your hidden authority to change standards, use the SMART-F framework, and handle employee pushback effectively.
Use this to: Create measurable standards and avoid subjective metrics.
Individual Development Plans
Create IDPs that actually develop talent. Learn the difference between check-the-box IDPs and real development plans, identify actual needs, and turn IDPs into career roadmaps.
Use this to: Build meaningful development plans and succession planning.
Helping Them Grow or Letting Them Go
The delicate balance between developing struggling employees and addressing performance issues. Know when to coach, when to document, and when to take formal action through progressive discipline.
Use this to: Make sound performance improvement vs. discipline decisions.
Tough Conversations Toolkit
Scripts and strategies for difficult conversations. Learn to "lead to lift, not just correct" with sample scripts for common situations (lateness, attitude, performance) and documentation best practices.
Use this to: Apply servant leadership while addressing problems effectively.
EEO & Harassment
Co-authored with a federal EEO specialist. Covers No FEAR Act, protected classes, what constitutes harassment, and critically - how to avoid retaliation (the most common violation).
Use this to: Understand legal requirements and avoid retaliation claims.
Reasonable Accommodation
The "accommodation playbook" for disability requests. Master the interactive process, common mistakes, real examples like the $900 chair case, and legal obligations under the Rehabilitation Act.
Use this to: Navigate accommodation requests while avoiding liability.
Job Well Done
What happens when you're investigated. How to handle being the subject of an investigation, protect yourself while cooperating, and survive administrative actions.
Use this to: Navigate investigations and understand your legal protections.
Budgets for Noobs
What you absolutely have to know (and what you can let your budget person handle). Learn budget basics, what managers forget to budget for, and how to defend your budget requests.
Document Like a Boss
Master the single most powerful federal management tool. Learn the four core types of documentation, safe phrases that protect, and the difference between documenting up vs. "keeping book."
Making Recognition Matter
Transform recognition from annual theater to actual motivation. Learn the recognition hierarchy, psychological types, and the strategic power of recognition up and sideways.
Use this to: Use recognition as a strategic leadership tool.
Finally Got Approval to Hire
Your hiring slot took 18 months to get - don't blow it. Master the federal hiring process, understand veteran's preference, get the most from HR, and set new hires up for success.
Use this to: Hire the right person and onboard them effectively.
Dancing With Multiple Partners
Lead effectively in three directions simultaneously. Master managing down (your team), managing up (your boss), and managing sideways (your peers) while staying true to core values.
Use this to: Adapt your leadership style without losing authenticity.
Sailing Through the Storm
Lead through political chaos, investigations, and external crises. Navigate new appointees, congressional inquiries, EEO complaints, staffing shortages, and media storms while keeping your team functional.
Use this to: Be the steady hand when everything else is shifting.
No Handbook Section for That
Real stories and solutions for the bizarre situations only federal managers face. From workplace romances to crypto-mining employees, handle the situations that make HR say "We've never seen this before."
Use this to: Navigate unprecedented situations with confidence.
You Are Not Special
The humility check every federal manager needs. Learn why your technical expertise doesn't matter anymore, why your ideas aren't revolutionary, and why servant leadership is your only path to success.
Use this to: Drop the ego and become the leader your team deserves.