The Foreign Service Journal, September 2011

Center, our partners in the project. We respect their significant contribu- tion and apologize sincerely for the oversight. Ronald E. Neumann, President, American Academy of Diplomacy Robert M. Beecroft, Project Director, AAD Washington, D.C. Workaholism Erodes Management In response to the May issue on work-life balance, I would point out that workaholism in the Foreign Serv- ice erodes our ability to manage. My wife (an FSO) and I (holder of anM.A. in management) have both encoun- tered the workaholic culture discussed in Shawn Zeller’s article, “The Foreign Service Juggling Act.” While management is about in- creasing productivity without increas- ing resources, workaholism is about adding more time. Therein lies a crisis and an opportunity. William Schofield’s Speaking Out column in the same issue, “Building Professional Skills,” gets to the heart of the problem. As he comments, “[Management ability takes] on greater importance in dangerous and unstruc- tured environments.” When everyone works longer hours, they aren’t man- aging the work. The Foreign Service is essentially hiring more workers but hiding the cost in another category, compensatory time. Many will argue that it isn’t always possible to increase productivity, de- spite many innovations in work pro- cesses, training and environmental en- gineering that have done just that. If workers are always willing to work more hours and managers are willing to let them, then neither group prac- tices real management. Why innovate if you can just use brute force? Innovation takes constant practice. If the cultural solution is “work longer,” then the space for new solutions never develops. This is what Mr. Schofield is warning us about. In dangerous, unstructured envi- ronments like the aftermath of a natu- ral disaster or the beginning of armed conflict, Foreign Service employees don’t have the luxury of more time. You have to work late, but working late won’t help in the race to save lives. In a crisis, you have to manage . If FSOs perennially work longer, they won’t be ready for a situation when that isn’t enough to get the job done. When success is critical and deadlines are hours or minutes away, the ability to find and implement in- novative solutions will be underdevel- oped. Further, many FSOs will be drained from having worked longer hours for the last few months or years. Developing the ability to solve problems in a “finite resources” work environment, within a limited budget and a 40-hour workweek, is a daunting challenge. But that’s what manage- ment is supposed to do. When Foreign Service officers learn to manage, they aren’t just learn- ing how to increase efficiency. They are learning how to better carry out the work of building democracies. They are learning how to save lives. Joshua Burleigh FS Family Member Consulate General Lagos S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 11 L E T T E R S