The Foreign Service Journal, May 2010

M A Y 2 0 1 0 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 27 agencies, increasingly outsourced a range of positions. Now it is experi- menting with “insourcing” jobs, es- pecially those seen as “inherently governmental,” such as supervising or hiring federal workers. Says Lussier, “We’re taking a ho- listic and strategic look at it, to make sure we haven’t become over-reliant on contractors.” In addition, the Obama administration is placing greater emphasis on certain strategic priorities, such as global health, climate change, food security and energy. While the Office of Recruitment, Examination and Employment has not emphasized recruiting candidates with experience in those fields, the department is finding that its priorities are very much in line with the interests of new ELOs. Says Hurst, who specializes in working with entry-level generalists, “We’re getting graduates in their 20s and 30s, and because these areas are exciting, they are coming in with a lot of experience in environmental issues, food se- curity and health. “When we put a job on the list, saying you’re going to work in a bureau on this kind of issue, we’ve got five or six people who already have written dissertations on it. It’s not hard to find them.” In addition, in specialized areas such as science, “we hire expertise where we need it.” That may be through limited- termCivil Service appointments, science fellows or Sched- ule D employment. At the same time, State is working to improve diversity andminority representation in its work force. But progress has been slow and uneven. One HR officer tells the Jour- nal , “On gender diversity and Asian-American hiring, the statistics are very positive. When it comes to African-Amer- icans and Hispanics, it continues to be a challenge. [But] it’s not for lack of effort.” According to State Department statistics, hiring of African-American andHispanic Foreign Service candidates in 2009 was only slightly higher than the proportions of those ethnic groups already in the department. For exam- ple, 5.5 percent of newly hired FSOs were African-Amer- ican, versus 4.8 percent of the current work force. For Hispanics, the parallel figures are 5.0 percent and 4.1 per- cent. The one notable exception to this pattern is in the Civil Service contingent, where almost 30 percent of current employees are black. For that sec- tor, though, the trend is reversed: Only 15.5 percent of new Civil Serv- ice hires are African-American. Among State Foreign Service generalists, 42 percent of 2009 hires were women, versus 39 percent of the current work force. The Other End of the Pipeline Recognizing that strong recruitment can be offset by too many departures, department leaders and HR also keep an eye on attrition. A key ingredient for family morale is employment of Foreign Service spouses. The department is enlarging its Expanded Professional Associ- ates Program, which provides professional work opportu- nities for eligible family members. According to HR, over the past year State has increased the number of EPAP po- sitions by 55, to around 160 worldwide. The department also uses its student loan repayment program to keep resignations to a minimum. Says an HR officer, “We use it very strategically.” For example, those in hard-to-fill posts may get more generous repayment of- fers. Overall, State has one of the lowest attrition rates among federal agencies, about 4.5 percent per year. In 2009, with the sagging economy, the rate was even lower —about 3 percent. The rate in the federal government as a whole is 8 to 10 percent. And according to a survey by the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service, State came out among the top five in employee satisfaction among 32 gov- ernment agencies. Still, current trends in Foreign Service deployment do give cause for concern about retention. As Amb. Mar- quardt notes, “the main reason that people leave is con- flict over spousal lifestyle and employment. And in the last decade, with Iraq and Afghanistan, we’ve seen a pro- liferation of unaccompanied posts that have put more pressure on this aspect. Nonetheless, I have personally observed a surprising number of young officers — even some with families — who expect, seem to accept, and often seek out assignments in high-profile unaccompa- nied posts, because they are drawn to the importance of these missions or see them as career-enhancing.” Senior work-force planner Philippe Lussier confirms that the number of unaccompanied positions has gone from 200 before Sept. 11, 2001, to more than 900 today. F O C U S State has one of the lowest attrition rates among federal agencies, about 4.5 percent per year.