Best Practices in Talent Management: How the World's Leading Corporations Manage, Develop, and Retain Top Talent

COMPANY BACKGROUND AND CURRENT LEADERSHIP ENVIRONMENT

The Internal Revenue Service was established in 1862 by President Lincoln and Congress to help pay for the Civil War. It is the largest tax administration agency in the world with the following stats:

• 2007 total federal tax receipts: $2.7 trillion;

• 79,000 full-time employees (101,000 during “filing season”);

• 8,760 managers in 2008;

• 260 executives;

• 1,897 senior and department managers; and

• 6,603 front-line managers

The IRS operates in a fast-paced, highly regulated environment as it collects the nation’s revenue. For example, in 2008 an unprecedented economic stimulus package impacting nearly every taxpayer was passed by Congress. This occurred in the middle of tax filing ...