The present invention relates to a process for improving the overall selectivity of an EO process for converting ethylene to ethylene oxide utilizing a highly selective EO silver catalyst containing a rhenium promoter wherein following normal operation a hard strip of the chloride on the surface of the catalyst is conducted in order to remove a portion of the chlorides on the surface of the catalyst. Following the hard strip, the catalyst is optionally re-optimized. Surprisingly, it has been found that the selectivity of the catalyst following the hard strip may be substantially higher than the selectivity prior to the hard strip.