The Foreign Service Journal, May 2010

28 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 1 0 But he says that “there’s no statistical evidence that this change has had an effect on retention. Of course, that could reflect the recession, as well.” In addition, Lussier says, new For- eign Service recruits expect this to be a way of life. Beyond that, some HR staff do wonder whether new officers are likely to follow traditional career tracks. Says Cathy Hurst, an experienced FSO, “Most of them don’t have the same ideas a lot of us did, that we would do this until we retired. Younger people who think about quitting come to us and say, ‘I’ve got this great idea to start a company.’” D 3.0 — The Good and the Bad The Diplomacy 3.0 program plays out in interesting and complicated ways for those entry-level officers who are experiencing the hiring surge. In addition to being brought more swiftly than normal through the hiring process, they face some unusual situations in their first tours. For instance, a number of them are filling jobs that would normally go to far more experienced officers, simply because there’s a surplus of new entrants and a shortage of mid-level officers. It is also increasingly common for ELOs to serve their first tour in Washington, something that used to be a rar- ity. One FS-5 officer fresh out of A-100 was assigned to a position that is supposed to be filled by an FS-2. Says the young man, “I wasn’t thrilled about it, but I think it will be beneficial for my career. I’m in a position that normally requires seven to 10 years’ experience. “It can seem daunting at first, but I do have the sup- port I need from my supervisors. They were just very glad to have someone come in and fill those portfolios.” At the same time, he acknowledges, “The best way to train an officer is on-the-job. I’m not sure it’s the best way to conduct foreign policy.” Another concern is that new FSOs may not be getting the supervision and mentoring they need to learn the ropes. Phil Lussier of HR says the current crop of ELOs “has put some strain on our top management. They’re really in charge of a huge amount of mentoring.” Mindful of this, Lussier notes that the Office of Ca- reer Development and Assignments is working to in- crease mid-level mentoring, despite the deficit in mid-level officers. “One thing that will help us over the next few years is that [those who entered during] the last hiring surge, with DRI, are now moving into junior mid-levels, the FS-3 range,” he observes. “So we’ll now have some fairly junior mid-level people who can start to become mentors for the second hiring wave.” Overall, though, the Service finds itself with a shortage of experienced officers. At this point, 25 to 30 percent of the active-duty Foreign Service corps has less than five years experience, and 50 percent of them have been in for less than 10 years. As one HR officer says, “That’s not the ideal configuration. If we could wave a magic wand, we’d have a lot more people in their 30s and 40s with ex- tensive experience in conflict management or civil re- construction, with lots of technical skills.” Or as FSO Cathy Hurst puts it, “Mid-level officers are not only stretched numerically, but also in their experi- ence. They’ve become mid-level a little too quickly.” For the new officers, there is one bright side to the Foreign Service’s imbalance: the likelihood of quick pro- motion. Amb. Marquardt has an analogy for the current ELO career track: “It’s more like an elevator shaft than a cone.” But for now, Erin Robertson, who came through the 145th A-100 class last spring, is dealing with another concern: Like 15 of her 94 classmates, she’s spending her first tour in the department, something that disappointed her at first. “During A-100 all of the training was oriented to what life was like in an embassy, and how to deal with living abroad. [Then] we show up at State, and it’s nothing like our training. You feel like such a small fish in a massive, crazy pond.” In all, there are about 50 to 70 ELOs at Main State, Robertson estimates. Beyond that, she says, “I don’t think they’ve developed a way to welcome” those of us in this situation to Main State, “though my boss has worked with me to make my job more fulfilling.” Robertson adds, “My colleagues and my boss have really made a difference for me.” Clearly, it is far too soon to draw any definitive con- clusions about whether Diplomacy 3.0 is working as en- visioned — much less its long-term effects. But at a minimum, it is safe to expect that the Foreign Service of the future will be significantly different from today’s in- stitution. ■ F O C U S There is some concern that new hires may not be getting the supervision and mentoring they need.