The Foreign Service Journal, February 2005

with 360-degree reviews would pro- vide an additional layer of account- ability that ensures that the much- touted “needs of the Service,” as well as the rights of the employee, are pro- tected. Tenuring and Promotion A meaningful tenure system is absolutely necessary in the Foreign Service. This career and lifestyle are not for everyone, but sometimes this is not apparent to employees them- selves. Is the hiring process really that reliable that the percentage of individ- uals for whom this is just not the right choice lies somewhere in the low sin- gle digits? Especially given how — appropriately — selective the Foreign Service is in identifying new hires, should it not remove the chaff after observing actual performance? After three or four years of demonstrated performance, an employee should already have proven his/her suitability and capacity for a career as an American diplomat. Somehow, how- ever, a gap persists between the poor performance of some employees and the ability of tenure boards to ade- quately perceive that performance and appreciate the implications of retaining such employees in the Service. With accurate evaluations, the department will be better able to make tenure meaningful rather than a blind grope to weed out the truly awful. Low-ranking must become mean- ingful rather than just meeting a tar- get. A quota system of identifying any subset of employees as poor perform- ers, be it 2, 5 or 10 percent of them, although required in the Foreign Service Act, represents arbitrariness rather than human resources manage- ment. As efforts move forward to lower the low-ranking quota from 5 to 2 percent, I wonder what may happen to the other 3 percent who would have been low-ranked? If their per- formance was truly poor enough to F E B R U A R Y 2 0 0 5 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 15 S P E A K I N G O U T u 2400 Virginia Ave., N.W Washington, D.C., 20037 Tel: (202) 293-2000 E-mail: leasingoffice@columbiaplaza.net Office Hours: Mon. - Fri. 8:00 AM-5:30 PM Sat 10:00 AM-4:00 PM 24 Hour Front Desk Garage Parking Avaliable Controlled Access Potomac River Views Minutes to Fine Dining Newly Renovated Kitchens Directly across the street from Main State, minutes to Kennedy Center and Georgetown Beautiful and Spacious: Efficiency$1,100 - $1,250 1 Bedroom 1,400 - 1,700 2 Bedroom 2,100 - 2,700 Utilities Included Complimentary Voice Mail Courtyard Style Plaza Polished Hardwood Floors Private Balconies Huge Walk-in Closets Capital Living With Comfort and Convenience 24 Hour Fitness Center columbia plaza apartments