The Foreign Service Journal, May 2006

Readiness Initiative of the past few years brought with it was restoration of the “training float,” which increased overall staffing to the point that many FS personnel could take long-term training instead of doing direct transfers between posts. But in an increasingly austere budget cli- mate, few observers expect current levels of funding for State to continue, threatening those gains. The CDP cable for Office Management Specialists (State 9014, sent Jan. 18, 2006) explicitly acknowledges widespread concerns about “time for training, schedul- ing training at times other than home leave, and who’d pay for commercially provided training. We’ve heard you loud and clear on these and will work on these issues during the implementation phase. [We] recognize that most specialists, and especially OMSs, have had a hard time getting training. This has been shortsighted on the part of the department. By underlining the importance of training, the CDP will induce needed change. In regard to the costs of training, it was never our intention to push the costs of required training onto employees. FSI is our pre-eminent training facility, with an ever- increasing number of innovative courses and online coursework. If more is needed, we will ensure that the required training is available.” Still, even if funding remains robust, many respon- dents to our survey expressed the concern that unless language proficiency is made mandatory for promotion, rather than remaining an elective, specialists will contin- ue to sit at the bottom of the priority list for FSI instruc- tion. Caryn Cornett, an OMS in Nicosia, asks: “Will we actually receive the full six to eight months of training time needed to get a 2/2 in any language, or will those bidding on those types of jobs be passed over for not having the language? Will early departures or late F O C U S 24 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / M A Y 2 0 0 6 Foreign Service specialists work in U.S. government posts around the world. As of Dec. 31, 2005, there were over 4,700 specialists in the employ of the Department of State, as well as much smaller numbers in the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Foreign Agricultural Service. Wherever they work, Foreign Service specialists do a great variety of jobs — some highly professional, like doctors and psychiatrists, and others more technical and administrative (like the many who keep computers and communications equipment running). By far the largest categories of State Department specialists are Diplomatic Security, Information Management and Office Manage- ment. USAID Foreign Service specialists include econo- mists, contracting officers and lawyers; those employed by the Foreign Agricultural Service are veterinarians. As part of its Diplomatic Readiness Initiative, the State Department for the past five years has emphasized recruiting, both of Foreign Service specialists and gener- alists, above attrition levels to make up for severe hiring shortfalls in the 1990s. The State Department employs 20 categories of spe- cialists, but only recruits for 19 because information technology managers are promoted from within the department. In addition, there are a number of “miscella- neous” employees who perform similar functions. They are usually limited, non-career appointees (LNAs); they are not part of the Foreign Service and are not included in the career development structure. Specialist Skill Group Total Financial Management Officer 176 Human Resources Officer 99 General Services Officer 197 Information Management Specialist 762 Information Management Technical Specialist 153 Information Technology Manager 301 Diplomatic Courier 88 Psychiatrist 16 Diplomatic Security Special Agent 1,384 Security Engineering Officer 195 Security Technical Specialist 89 Construction Engineer 72 Facilities Maintenance Specialist 166 English Language Officer 23 Information Resource Officer 27 Medical Officer 46 Medical Technologist 10 Health Practitioner 79 Printing Specialist 5 Office Management Specialist 845 Total 4,733 Foreign Service Specialties