The Foreign Service Journal, October 2012

46 OCTOBER 2012 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL to promoting creativity. The reality of strict operating hours for consular sections or other offices serving the public, or indeed the rest of the organization, will inevitably collide with the ideal of being able to shape one’s own schedule. Fortunately, good- faith efforts to accommodate that preference, while still respect- ing the constraints of time zones and Washington’s needs, will go far to motivate newer Foreign Service members. Connectedness. Veteran Foreign Service officers may not be aware of the extent to which Millennials and Gen Yers are con- nected in real time via e-mail, Facebook and other social media, and are prepared to share their impressions (good and bad) of Foreign Service life and work instantly with wide audiences. A supervisor who unloads on a Millennial may find him or herself being flamed across a slice of the Foreign Service blogosphere (and beyond). Likewise, a Millennial may not comprehend the conse- quences, both in the workplace and in terms of security, of laying one’s life or opinions out on social media, where nothing is private. A-100 orientation classes could consider creating case studies of good and bad examples to get at this before the new Foreign Service member learns the hard way. What Veteran Employees Want Commitment to the job. Younger employees inevitably have to adjust expectations, learn to sacrifice for others, and sometimes just do the job to gain the necessary experience for success. After all, we diplomats may promote democracy, but bureaucracies aren’t paradigms of participatory democracy. While the Foreign Service has gotten better at promoting a healthy work-life balance, nothing may impress a more senior Foreign Service member as much as the sight of a younger col- league electing to invest an evening on a priority mission project with a firm deadline at the cost of a social engagement. (Several mid-level FSOs who were asked to comment on an early draft of this paragraph expressed dismay and disbelief that this might still be true—a good illustration of the generational gulf.) Recognition of experience. Veteran employees have accrued hard-won professional knowledge and real-world experience, FOCUS THE NEW FS GENERATION Smart managers tell their subordinates how their contributions advance American foreign policy goals.