The Foreign Service Journal, December 2022

22 DECEMBER 2022 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Speaking Out is the Journal ’s opinion forum, a place for lively discussion of issues affecting the U.S. Foreign Service and American diplomacy. The views expressed are those of the author; their publication here does not imply endorsement by the American Foreign Service Association. Responses are welcome; send them to journal@afsa.org. The self-evident response is: How can we afford not to? Consider, too, that State’s Fiscal Year 2022 budget proposed an additional 500 positions for the Foreign and Civil Service. If we genuinely aspire to achieve the diversity, equity, inclusion, and acces- sibility (DEIA) goals articulated by the Secretary, it follows we must do every- thing possible to make sure these new hires (and those in the years ahead) are the most diverse and qualified possible. Move the Needle D-MR’s email noted that in the past year, the department conducted more than 3,000 recruiting activities, including more than 900 events specifically target- ing diversity prospects, which engaged 15,000 individual prospects. His email also touted the department’s new 500-person Volunteer Recruiter Corps who participated in 150 events. Though impressive sounding and well intentioned, I fear these initiatives alone are unlikely to move the needle. During my final year as a recruitment director at TFA, I and my colleagues met one-on-one with 50,000 individu- als. Through in-person and online group information sessions, we collectively engaged with another 150,000 prospec- tive candidates. Our Salesforce entries helped us document who these applicants were and their motivations, interests, and barriers to applying. Importantly, it also helped us tailor our follow-up to encourage the most promising prospects to apply, including by connecting themwith cur- rent corps members or alumni who had a shared profile or interests. We should be doing the same with prospective Foreign and Civil Service applicants. Convincing someone to apply for a position within a given organization is, at its core, about influencing and moti- vating (something we diplomats get paid to do), identifying barriers, and knocking them down. Our data-driven approach at Teach For America also helped us stay accountable. A First Step Adding 42 officers to the Diplomat in Residence roster will help, but that is only the first step to “winning the competition for talent.” Equally imperative is setting our new DIRs up for success by giving them extensive training in professional recruitment practices, providing them with tracking tools and administrative support, and ultimately holding them accountable for the successful applica- tions (and profiles of applicants) they generate. DIR assignments should no longer be viewed as low-key sabbaticals or pre- retirement tours. We also need to make sure the most effective DIRs are incentiv- ized (and recognized) when it comes to promotions and onward assignments. Promisingly, the department’s current leadership is genuinely committed to increasing diversity within the Foreign and Civil Service. However, a trap we must all avoid is spending too much time talking about the problem and not enough time solving it. It is time for action, and revamping and expanding the DIR programwould be a good place to start. n