John Sepulveda

Sepulveda brings more than 25 years of experience in leading public- and private-sector organizations, including as part of the Clinton administration. He was a key player in promoting the expansion of diversity throughout the federal government during his time in a previous job as deputy director of the Office of Personnel Management.

In His Own Words

"To better serve those who have served this country with courage, dedication and sacrifice, our veterans and their families, President Obama and Secretary Shinseki have called for the transformation of the Department of Veterans Affairs into a 21st-century organization," Sepulveda said during his nomination hearing before the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs on May 6, 2009.

"Such an organization would be completely and exquisitely focused on meeting the needs of our veterans; deploying state-of-the-art technology, efficient delivery systems and dedicated and well-trained employees to provide to our former warriors comprehensive, effective and expedited benefits, mental health programs and medical services whenever and wherever they are needed.

"Key to achieving the transformation of Veterans Affairs is the effective and strategic management and development of the department's human capital: the 280,000 employees at VA who work hard each day to serve our veterans and their families. In other words, we must make sure that we have the right people doing the right job at the right place at the right time, at all times.

" Moreover, VA must continue to strive to be a model employer of choice for veterans, people with disabilities, women and minorities. Indeed, strengthening efforts to increase the numbers of veterans employed at VA is and will continue to be a priority.

"This investment must include taking the following steps. First, increasing professional training opportunities for employees, including managers; second, greater use of automation and technology to efficiently and securely process and manage all personnel actions including hiring, performance evaluations, employee benefits and records; third, promoting new and existing work life initiatives within VA to increase productivity and morale; and fourth, expanding succession planning and executing new and creative recruitment strategies to better prepare for the large numbers of retirements that will impact the department in the coming years."

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