The Foreign Service Journal, December 2018

40 DECEMBER 2018 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL T he purpose of the FSN Advocacy Council is to work as one team, to champion and advance USAID and to model our core values for mission excellence, integrity, respect, empowerment, inclusion and commitment to learning. We intend to demonstrate these core values by promoting greater participation of FSNs through more active involvement in strategic direction and operations. The three main goals of the FSN Advocacy Council are: • Represent the prevailing views, ideas and concerns of FSNs to USAID leadership in both Washington and overseas; • Gain the confidence of FSNs worldwide, and; • Increase transparency and communication between USAID/Washington and the missions, and support a worldwide USAID community of practice. The council agenda focuses on four main areas, each with its own action plan: 1. Local Compensation Plans • Empower FSN committees to provide credible information on the Local Compensation Plan process to FSNs. • Advocate for greater transparency and FSN engagement in the annual Local Compensation Questionnaires. 2. FSN Talent Management and Empowerment • Advocate for expanded utilization of Senior FSN skills. • Improve FSNs’ professional development. 3. Communications • Increase FSN awareness of the communications channels available to them, including the role of FSN committees and the FSN Advocacy Council. • Increase the sharing of best practices by FSNs globally. • Establish regional networks to strengthen the sense of connection among FSNs. • Provide FSN constituents opportunities to offer feedback. • Increase FSN visibility in USAID/Washington. 4. Cross Cultural and Inclusiveness • Gather and centralize best practices across the agency. • Create long-termmechanisms to maintain and strengthen cross-cultural relations. • Establish a program to integrate new employees from all hiring categories into the workforce at post. USAID’s FSN Advocacy Council has many notable accomplishments, such as the following: • Each mission has an active FSN Committee, with regular elections of leadership and close ties to its regional FSN Advocacy Council representatives. This revitalization has brought new life to dormant associations. • FSNs now participate in the hiring process for selection of new Foreign Service officers, ensuring that our future lead- ers see the agency’s commitment to diversity and inclusion from day one. • Regional FSN gatherings have been held—many for the first time—allowing constituents to meet their representa- tives, share ideas and set action plans. • FSNs are now part of regional and global mission directors’ conferences, and are regularly invited to join regional mis- sion director conference calls. • Regional TDY Exchange Programs and Talent Banks have been established inWest Africa, the Middle East and Europe and Eurasia, to facilitate career development and give the agency access to short-term expertise in a timely fashion. • The council has helped increase Federal Employee View- point Survey participation from 30 percent in 2015 to about 50 percent in 2017, ensuring more voices are cap- tured in this important workforce survey that directly feeds into agency action steps. • The council successfully advocated for removal of the wait- ing period for FSNs to move from a lower grade to a higher grade if qualified and selected for the position, consistent with the rules governing personal service contracts. • For 10 years the FSN Fellowship Program has brought tal- ented FSNs toWashington to expand their perspective on the agency and professional development, while providing offices with additional technical expertise and the perspec- tive from the field. —Elizabeth Santucci, FSN Unit, USAID Human Capital and Talent Managment USAID FSN Advocacy Council