The Foreign Service Journal, June 2022

26 JUNE 2022 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL If you also recognize that those who get those jobs come from a pretty narrow band of folks who’ve had the “right” jobs, who’ve done the seventh-floor jobs, worked in this particular mission, or know that person in that position, and you don’t have the same access to it, you understand that greater transparency is going to help you. of course, the president came out with his executive order that called on every federal agency to set up a process for improving diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility. I had a strong mandate within the organization itself from our leadership, from the president and from the workforce itself. I cannot tell you howmany times people have reached out to me to say what high hopes they have for what this office will help our organization do. It does take a lot of effort to move this great machinery that is the Department of State, but I believe we have the pieces in place for that. To the second part of your question, we started with three things that I spoke about before I rejoined the department, and that is intentionality, transparency and accountability. Those are the three things I believe are integral to not only success but lasting change. So, intentionality . Not nibbling around the edges, but actually looking at things through a DEIA [diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility] lens. Who is at the table? Who is not at the table? If they’re at the table, do they have the expectation that they should be speaking up, that their views, their insights, are going to be welcomed and valued and added to the whole? Again, it’s about how we’re treating our workforce internally, but also how we’re doing our jobs overseas, where our programming is, whether we are reaching every part of the population in our host nation. As you know, the department and AFSA negotiate new Foreign Service core precepts every three years. The precept dedicated to DEIA that goes into effect starting with the 2022- 2023 rating period is part of that intentionality. We’ve had a lot of questions about it. The Foreign Service Journal had a great article by one of my senior advisers [KimMcClure] giving som e excellent concrete examples of what is expected of us now as an organization. And that, frankly, boils down to treating each other a lot better than we often do. We’re a highly competitive group of people, but that inclu- sion piece is a must. Are we reaching out, not just to the people who look like us, with whomwe’re familiar or comfortable, but also making sure that those who are underrepresented feel welcome to speak up, to become truly a part of the whole? Are we making sure that they have a clear and open progression to reach their full potential in the orga- nization?That’s what these precept changes will do, ensure that all of us understand it is all of our responsibility and we are going to be judged on it. That’s what we learned from the private sector: If you value it, you judge it, you reward it. Key to transparency , of course, is the data. We all know we are a highly skeptical bunch. We don’t believe anything unless we can see numbers to support it. One of the first things I did in setting up the office was set up a DEIA Data Working Group— this in addition to pulling together a crackerjack staff. The people who are working alongside me are extraordinary warriors who love this organization and want to see it at its best. Led by the deputy CDIO and one of our senior advisers, the DEIA Data Working Group, which includes data experts from key partners within the building—Management/Strategy & Solu- tions, the Bureau of Global Talent Management and the Office of Civil Rights—meet weekly to gather and analyze the data so that we can see who we are, where we are, and where we need to go. The group has established a Demographic Baseline Report for the department—and it’s already on our website—that shares that information for the first time in a disaggregated fashion with our entire workforce. It will allow us to judge our progress. The Department of State is so serious about this that we have commit- ted ourselves to no longer hiding. We’re putting our numbers out there for all to see. The final thing is accountability , and that is rewarding people who are doing this important work. With regard to the precepts, you get promoted if you can put in those concrete examples, not just that you support DEIA, but what you are doing to forward it.