The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has now set its focus on USA Hire as part of its HR modernization strategy. The agency intends to upgrade the platform to improve federal hiring efficiency, assessment quality, and candidate experience. USA Hire serves as a core tool in assessing talent across many job series, and this update aligns with the government’s goal of merit-based recruitment.
OPM has already made progress consolidating over a hundred HR systems across the federal government. Now, USA Hire will receive attention through a new modernization effort. The agency issued a Request for Information (RFI) on October 7, 2025, and concluded it on October 21, 2025. The RFI sought input from vendors on modern technologies that could enhance assessment delivery, candidate evaluation, and scoring automation.
USA Hire currently provides assessments for more than 800 job series and grade levels. These assessments evaluate skills such as writing, project management, supervisory ability, and data analysis. Agencies can choose from prebuilt assessment batteries or request custom options tailored to specific needs. Applicants may take assessments online, in proctored centers, or via remote proctoring. The system supports computer-adaptive testing (CAT) and linear-on-the-fly (LOFT) formats. OPM expects the upgraded system to score both closed-ended and open-ended questions automatically and handle complex mathematical formulas when necessary.
As part of the modernization, OPM plans to introduce features such as asynchronous unproctored testing, online video interviews, and AI-assisted scoring. In addition, the agency seeks seamless integration with other HR systems, including staffing, onboarding, and applicant tracking tools. These improvements are central to OPM’s broader HR modernization strategy for the federal government.
In fiscal year 2024, USA Hire assessments covered roughly one million applicants and over 20,000 job announcements. This volume demonstrates its crucial role in federal hiring. High demand, particularly from large agencies like the Transportation Security Administration, led OPM to raise the USA Hire contract ceiling by $182.7 million, increasing the total to about $395 million. This funding reflects the urgent need for an updated, scalable, and efficient assessment system.
Reducing time-to-hire is another key objective. The Merit Hiring Plan emphasizes efficiency, fairness, and merit-based recruitment. By improving assessment tools and integrating them with HR systems, OPM hopes to accelerate hiring while ensuring higher-quality candidate selection.
The modernization effort also addresses challenges faced by agencies that do not currently use USA Hire. These agencies often struggle to integrate assessments with existing HR systems. The new system may allow third-party assessments to connect with OPM tools, improving flexibility without sacrificing merit-based hiring standards.
Beyond USA Hire, OPM’s HR modernization strategy focuses on talent acquisition, performance management, and workforce planning. The agency is also enhancing USA Staffing, USAJOBS, and USA Performance platforms. It plans to establish a cloud-hosted core HR platform that integrates onboarding, assessment, classification, and personnel data. This central platform would provide a single source of truth for federal HR operations, improving transparency and efficiency.
OPM aims to provide secure, modern, and flexible assessment tools that meet agency needs for entry-level and specialized positions alike. The HR modernization strategy ensures competency-based assessments, predictive scoring, and standardized testing while reducing inefficiencies.
In conclusion, OPM’s HR modernization strategy now targets USA Hire as a key initiative. By leveraging modern technology, ensuring integration across HR systems, and supporting the Merit Hiring Plan, OPM seeks to transform federal hiring. As agencies face growing hiring demands, the upgraded USA Hire platform will become a cornerstone of a modernized, efficient federal HR system.
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