The Foreign Service Journal, November 2004

NOVEMBER 2004 • AFSA NEWS 3 N ow that the summer transfer season is over and every- one has settled in, work requirements are set in stone and the DCMhas hosted all the welcome parties for newcomers, it’s time to share AFSA’s rules for being a suc- cessful supervisor. This is especially pertinent for new prin- cipal officers and DCMs, although any section chief could profit by studying these rules. And since you are all probably wanna-be DCMs and POs anyway, there’s no time like the present to learn of the pitfalls. The department runs a course for outgoing DCMs and POs, an intensive three weeks where students are put through the FAM wringer. Issues covered include personnel, budget, ethics, management of entry-level employees and other super- visory issues. All these issues land on the DCM’s desk. Last year, AFSA asked to speak to the fledgling class and a brown bag was sched- uled. We didn’t use the FAM as the takeoff point for our tips for success: We used the AFSA case files. We had checked to see how DCMs and POs get into trouble, so we could teach the newbies how to avoid it. We didn’t do a brown bag this year, perhaps because of the unpopularity of our first rule. Our first rule: No sex! Ever! DCMs should assume that everyone in the mis- sion is in their chain of command. This is not restricted to American employees and includes everybody down to and including the contractors who cut the grass and guard the warehouse, as well as the char force. No sex with anybody in the chain of command, regardless of gender and even if they have achieved the age of majority and consent. It’s a simple rule, just two words. NO SEX! Our second rule: Never assume you are lovedby everyone. You are not. There is always someone whom you’ve offended or who has a gripe. If the dislike becomes intense, the employee may be watching to see if he/she can pick up the waste, fraud and abuse hotline to report you. Never willfully misuse a government vehicle. The punishment for “willful- ly” misusing a U.S. government vehicle is an automatic 30-day suspension. This is not the department’s rule; it’s the law. Asking AFSA to help you argue miti- gating circumstances won’t be very helpful. It’s hard to explain away having the official vehicle pick up the kids at school, take Junior to his karate class or a date to the ballet. So, how does the department learn of such misuse? See Rule Number Two above. Never cover up. AFSA notices that sometimes officials believe they are help- ing someone by not reporting a breach of the rules. Whatever the merits of your motive, the responsibility for the coverup will be yours and you may very well be the person disciplined rather than the miscreant to whom you were being kind and charitable. If your kind gesture is interpreted as favoritism, see Rule Number Two above. Take care of your troops first! Of course you want to see your son graduate, but be sure everyone else’s leave requests are accommodated before you take off for graduation. This is especially true at unaccompanied posts, of which there are now 15, and whose number will undoubtedly increase. This is the Foreign Service equivalent of the military rule that the lieutenant is the last to eat. AFSA believes that if you follow these rules, you will be a successful leader of Foreign Service men and women. ▫ * Sage counsel and wise career advice from the AFSA case files V.P. VOICE: STATE  BY LOUISE CRANE NO SEX! ... EVER! * reality.” His views proved prescient and the basic strategy he put forwardwas later adopted. Craig Hall won the Harriman Award in 2001 for his willingness to criticize the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees’ handling of the crisis inWest Timorwhile serving as a junior officer in Jakarta. Hall, nowposted toCanberra, is quoted as stat- ing, “WhentheDepartment of State speaks, it speakswithone voice, by necessity. But it has beenmy experience that, in the for- mation of policies and positions, there is in the department a culture of vigorous debate andexchangeof ideas ... a give-and- take where a range of perspectives is not only encouraged but solicited.” AFSA is asking you to help us honor those willing to take a stand for what they believe is right. Please send us proof that this “culture of vigorous debate and exchange of ideas” still exists. AFSA wants to recognize and honor members of the ForeignServicewhohave demonstrated courage and risk-taking by daring to challenge the system fromwith- in, byquestioning the statusquo, orby their willingness to take anunpopular stand for what they believe. Help us keep the tradi- tion of intellectual honesty and vigorous debate alive by sending a nomination for the 2005 AFSA Constructive Dissent Awards. For further information about AFSA’s Constructive Dissent and Exemplary PerformanceAwards, pleasego toourWeb site, www.afsa.org/awards, or contact Barbara Berger, Coordinator of Profes- sional Issues, at berger@afsa.org or (202) 338-4045, ext. 521. The September 2004 issue of the AFSANews featured this year’s winners at the June awards ceremony. If you have not yet seen this issue, you can find it posted in full on theAFSAWeb site at www.afsa.org/news. Th eir courage and determination to do what they believe is the right thing cannot helpbut inspire you to do the right thing. Look for the official call for nomina- tions— including details on how to sub- mit a nomination — in the December AFSA News . ▫ Awards • Continued from page 1