Jeff Tien Han Pon

American businessman and government official (born 1970)

Jeff Tien Han Pon
Director of the United States Office of Personnel Management
In office
March 9, 2018 – October 5, 2018
PresidentDonald Trump
DeputyMichael Rigas
Preceded byBeth Cobert
Succeeded byMargaret Weichert (Acting)
Personal details
Born (1970-03-09) March 9, 1970 (age 54)
San Francisco, California, United States
SpouseGillian
Children2
EducationUniversity of Southern California
California School of Professional Psychology

Jeff Tien Han Pon (born March 9, 1970)[1] is an American human resources professional who is a former Director of the United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM).

Career

Pon previously served as chief human resources and strategy officer for the Society for Human Resource Management, a non-profit professional membership organization. He was also chief operating officer for Futures Inc., an organization that helps transitioning military members find civilian careers. Previously, he was a principal at Booz Allen Hamilton and served as the United States Department of Energy's chief human capital officer.

Director of OPM

Pon was the deputy director of eGovernment at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, where he helped to develop human resources shared services centers, payroll modernization, and the USAJobs website.[2][3]

President Trump nominated Pon for the Director of OPM position. Pon's nomination to OPM was supported by the Senior Executives Association, a nonprofit that advocates for top federal government officials. Newsweek wrote that Pon "could be a key player in reforming" the federal bureaucracy and "in keeping the president's campaign pledge to 'drain the swamp.'"[4] He was confirmed in March 2018.

Pon served in the position for seven months before being removed in October 2018.[5] President Trump reportedly fired Pon because he resisted the administration's plan to dismantle the agency and farm out its functions to other departments, including the White House.[6]

References

  1. ^ Bewig, Matt (September 13, 2017). "Director of the Office of Personnel Management: Who Is Jeff T. H. Pon?". AllGov.com. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  2. ^ "President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Personnel to Key Administration Posts". whitehouse.gov. September 2, 2017. Retrieved October 13, 2017 – via National Archives.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. ^ Mazmanian, Adam (September 1, 2017). "GSA, OPM get new chiefs". Federal Computer Week. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  4. ^ Lucas, Fred (October 17, 2017). "Who Is Jeff Tien Han Pon, Trump's Swamp Drainer in Chief?". Newsweek. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  5. ^ Yoder, Eric; Rein, Lisa (October 5, 2018). "Trump abruptly replaces federal personnel director after just 7 months". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 8, 2018.
  6. ^ Federal personnel chief quits abruptly amid coronavirus planning for the workforce of 2.1 million