The Foreign Service Journal, June 2020

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | JUNE 2020 23 Speaking Out is the Journal ’s opinion forum, a place for lively discussion of issues affecting the U.S. Foreign Service and American diplomacy. The views expressed are those of the author; their publication here does not imply endorse- ment by the American Foreign Service Association. Responses are welcome; send them to journal@afsa.org . expanding workplace flexibility. With a “design thinking” mindset and a recognition of the productivity savings brought about by easing the logistical burden on employees, much more can be done, even within the con- straints of government. In some cases, the greatest barrier to productivity is not the creation of new tools or processes, but their adoption. Organizational change is hard, espe- cially for an enterprise spread across the world. Yet there is also an advantage to the department’s geographic reach. Each of its more than 270 U.S. diplomatic posts acts as a laboratory of diplomacy, a place where new ideas can be devel- oped and tested before being rolled out to other posts. The challenge is identify- ing and disseminating best practices. State can embrace this challenge with open-source engagement and a willingness to elicit employee input, test and iterate. There is much to learn from the best of Silicon Valley and from the practices of well-run companies and foreign ministries around the world. Yet it is State Department employ- ees who can provide the best feedback to designers and reformers willing to listen. We have inherited this bureau- cracy, and with it the responsibility to make the State Department more agile, productive and responsive to the needs of our modern workforce. n Give your contacts, your friends & family an inside look at diplomacy with a GIFT SUBSCRIPTION to THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Visit www.afsa.org/subscribe-fsj for details and to sign up, or email journal@afsa.org Visit the online archive at www.afsa.org/fsj-archive