Dive Brief:

• The federal government is struggling to attract cybersecurity personnel, a new memo from the Office of Personnel Management revealed on Tuesday, according to a NextGov report.

• The memo, authored by Beth Cobert, acting director of the Office of Personnel Management, said that in the federal government cybersecurity remains an "at risk" career field.

• Other "at risk" occupations identified include economists, HR specialists, auditors, acquisition and functional areas in STEM. 

Dive Insight:

Cobert said agency experts and chief human capital officers will work together to develop a strategy "to address the root causes for why an occupation has been deemed "at risk,'" according to the memo.

The memo calls on agencies to develop four-year and 10-year plans for narrowing the skills gaps in those areas.

Earlier this month, the Department of Homeland Security revealed it is having a difficult time recruiting cybersecurity experts. Though DHS has the authority to hire up to 1,000 cybersecurity workers by June 30, the department is struggling to attract qualified workers.

Cybersecurity experts are in short supply in the private sector, too. According to Bob Melk, president of Dice, "It’s more and more difficult for CIOs to find talent with skills in key areas such as cloud development, data science (and) security."