Career Diplomacy: Life and Work in the U.S. Foreign Service

by Harry W. Kopp, Charles A. Gillespie

Overview

Former Secretary of State Lawrence S. Eagleburger praised the first edition of Career Diplomacy (2007) as "the best description of life in the foreign service--its challenges, dangers, satisfactions, and fun--I have ever seen." In that book Kopp and Gillespie, both of whom had distinguished careers in the field, provided a candid account of the foreign service, exploring the five career tracks--consular, political, economic, management, and public diplomacy--through their own experience and through interviews with over 85 current and former foreign service officials. This second edition provides significant revisions, supplemented by 20 additional interviews and addressing three great changes that have occurred since 2007: 1) the increasingly important work of foreign service personnel alongside the U.S. military in fragile states threatened with or emerging from combat; 2) the rapid growth of the foreign service in the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the close integration of that agency's budget and mission with those of the U.S. Department of State; 3) the golden moment in 2008 when Congress and the Obama Administration found common cause to improve the foreign service by adding people, training them better, and giving them more money to work with--captured in Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's slogan "Diplomacy 3.0," indicating that diplomacy, defense, and development were now equal pillars of American foreign policy. This edition also offers updated data for the 17 tables and figures covering organizational charts, salaries and pay scales, career trajectories, and much more.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781589017405
Publisher:	Georgetown University Press
Publication date:	03/15/2011
Edition description:	Second Edition
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	257,800
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Harry W. Kopp is a former foreign service officer and consultant in international trade. He was Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Trade Policy in the Carter and Reagan administrations and his foreign assignments included Warsaw and Brasília. He is now president of Harry Kopp, LLC, a consulting company. He is the author of Commercial Diplomacy and the National Interest.

Charles A. Gillespie was a former foreign service officer and was Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs; American ambassador to Grenada, Colombia, and Chile; and Special Assistant to the President on the National Security Council Staff.

Table of Contents

Preface

Part I: The Institution1. What Is the Foreign Service?

2. History

3. The Foreign Service Today

Part II: The Profession4. Form and Content

5. The Foreign Service at War

6. Politics and Professionalism

Part III: The Career7. Stability and Change

9. Foreign Service Functions — Five Tracks

10. Assignments and Promotions

Part IV: The Future Foreign Service11. Tomorrow's Diplomats

Appendices

Notes

Glossary

Bibliography

About the Authors

Index

What People are Saying About This

Ronald E. Neumann

Current, dispassionate, and accurate, Career Diplomacy is the must-read book for those seeking understanding of today’s Foreign Service. From traditional diplomacy to work in the provinces of Afghanistan and Iraq, it is all here.

From the Publisher

"Current, dispassionate, and accurate, Career Diplomacy is the must-read book for those seeking understanding of today's Foreign Service. From traditional diplomacy to work in the provinces of Afghanistan and Iraq, it is all here." -- Ronald E. Neumann, former ambassador and president, American Academy of Diplomacy

" Career Diplomacy introduces readers to one of the most interesting and challenging professions -- diplomacy -- and one that most Americans know very little about. The book is one of the few on the subject and a great resource for anyone considering a Foreign Service career." -- Susan Johnson, president, American Foreign Service Association

Susan Johnson

Career Diplomacy introduces readers to one of the most interesting and challenging professions—diplomacy—and one that most Americans know very little about. The book is one of the few on the subject and a great resource for anyone considering a Foreign Service career.

Editorial Reviews

Rare are the books that can appeal to several audiences, but Career Diplomacy: Life and Work in the U.S. Foreign Service is one of them. Former Foreign Service officers Harry W. Kopp and Charles A. Gillespie have given us a crisp, often witty, overview of the diplomatic profession, complete with a useful glossary and bibliography . . . this volume should be of interest to the general reading public, aspiring diplomats and practicing FSOs alike.

Foreign Service Journal

Career Diplomacy may not be required reading for experienced foreign affairs professionals or jaded FSO insiders. As an introduction to the profession for the layperson or for anyone considering a commitment to the Foreign Service career, however, the book is authoritative, complete and indispensable. For the rest of us, it's a delight, a stylishly told reminder of who we are, what we do and where we may be heading.

American Diplomacy

The best description of life in the foreign service—its challenges, dangers, satisfactions, and fun—I have ever seen. It paints a superb picture of life abroad and at home, including both its good and bad aspects, and does a brilliant job of pointing out how our diplomacy must change if it is to meet the tremendous changes and challenges of the twenty-first century.

Lawrence S. Eagleburger

Career Diplomacy is a fascinating and readable book about one of America's lesser known assets—the diplomatic service. As Ambassador, I recognized how critical these foreign service people are to America's place in the world. This tells that story.

James R. Jones

A clear, unvarnished look at life in the United States Foreign Service, what works, and what doesn't. Career Diplomacy should be must reading for every foreign service officer—and everyone else who represents our country overseas.

Ann Blackman

Frank, incisive, and a good read, this book told me many things I never really understood about the foreign service. I don’t know how we got along without it.

John R. Galvin

This book is a gem, a one-stop shop for citizens, U.S. officials, foreign diplomats, and prospective American foreign service officers who want to understand how American diplomacy and foreign policy are organized and conducted. This carefully structured and well-written volume features rich and balanced insights into the foreign service, and sheds a clear light on its three core functions of representation, overseas operations, and policy. Essential reading on the culture and institutions of American diplomacy and on the ins and outs of working in a foreign service career.

Chester A. Crocker

Harry Kopp and Charles Gillespie have produced an insightful and comprehensive response to the questions, 'What is the foreign service and why do we need it?' This is a required read for anyone contemplating a career in the foreign service.

Stephen W. Bosworth

Career Diplomacy is an informative, entertaining, and inspirational read. Intended as a guide to the United States Foreign Service for the interested layman, the book is equally useful to individuals considering careers in the foreign service; to policy professionals who need to know how a critical component of government functions; or to citizens simply wanting to know how they are served by the professionals who represent them overseas, carry out foreign operations on the ground, and advise their government on foreign policy. Within ten crisply written chapters the authors illuminate the purposes, history, structure, and future of the foreign service. They do so with insight and charm, drawing heavily on the experiences of dozens of foreign service women and men. Reading this book will inspire young people to yearn for a foreign service career; will generate collegial confidence among policymakers in other government branches; and will assure citizens that their foreign service tax dollars are well spent.

Louis W. Goodman

"Rare are the books that can appeal to several audiences, but Career Diplomacy: Life and Work in the U.S. Foreign Service is one of them. Former Foreign Service officers Harry W. Kopp and Charles A. Gillespie have given us a crisp, often witty, overview of the diplomatic profession, complete with a useful glossary and bibliography... this volume should be of interest to the general reading public, aspiring diplomats and practicing FSOs alike." -- Foreign Service Journal, reviewing a previous edition or volume

" Career Diplomacy may not be required reading for experienced foreign affairs professionals or jaded FSO insiders. As an introduction to the profession for the layperson or for anyone considering a commitment to the Foreign Service career, however, the book is authoritative, complete and indispensable. For the rest of us, it's a delight, a stylishly told reminder of who we are, what we do and where we may be heading." -- American Diplomacy, reviewing a previous edition or volume

"[ Career Diplomacy] is the best description of life in the foreign service -- its challenges, dangers, satisfactions, and fun -- I have ever seen. It paints a superb picture of life abroad and at home, including both its good and bad aspects, and does a brilliant job of pointing out how our diplomacy must change if it is to meet the tremendous changes and challenges of the twenty-first century." -- Lawrence S. Eagleburger, former Secretary of State, reviewing a previous edition or volume

" Career Diplomacy is a fascinating and readable book about one of America's lesser known assets -- the diplomatic service. As Ambassador, I recognized how critical these foreign service people are to America's place in the world. This tells that story." -- James R. Jones, former U.S Ambassador to Mexico and chairman of the World Affairs Councils of America, reviewing a previous edition or volume

"A clear, unvarnished look at life in the United States Foreign Service, what works, and what doesn't. Career Diplomacy should be must reading for every foreign service officer -- and everyone else who represents our country overseas." -- Ann Blackman, author of Seasons of Her Life: A Biography of Madeleine Korbel Albright, reviewing a previous edition or volume

"Frank, incisive, and a good read, this book told me many things I never really understood about the foreign service. I don't know how we got along without it." -- John R. Galvin, former Supreme Allied Commander in Europe and former commander-in-chief, U.S. European Command, reviewing a previous edition or volume

"This book is a gem, a one-stop shop for citizens, U.S. officials, foreign diplomats, and prospective American foreign service officers who want to understand how American diplomacy and foreign policy are organized and conducted. This carefully structured and well-written volume features rich and balanced insights into the foreign service, and sheds a clear light on its three core functions of representation, overseas operations, and policy. Essential reading on the culture and institutions of American diplomacy and on the ins and outs of working in a foreign service career." -- Chester A. Crocker, James R. Schlesinger Professor of Strategic Studies, Georgetown University, reviewing a previous edition or volume

"Harry Kopp and Charles Gillespie have produced an insightful and comprehensive response to the questions, 'What is the foreign service and why do we need it?' This is a required read for anyone contemplating a career in the foreign service." -- Stephen W. Bosworth, dean, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, reviewing a previous edition or volume

" Career Diplomacy is an informative, entertaining, and inspirational read. Intended as a guide to the United States Foreign Service for the interested layman, the book is equally useful to individuals considering careers in the foreign service; to policy professionals who need to know how a critical component of government functions; or to citizens simply wanting to know how they are served by the professionals who represent them overseas, carry out foreign operations on the ground, and advise their government on foreign policy. Within ten crisply written chapters the authors illuminate the purposes, history, structure, and future of the foreign service. They do so with insight and charm, drawing heavily on the experiences of dozens of foreign service women and men. Reading this book will inspire young people to yearn for a foreign service career; will generate collegial confidence among policymakers in other government branches; and will assure citizens that their foreign service tax dollars are well spent." -- Louis W. Goodman, dean, School of International Service, American University, reviewing a previous edition or volume

From the Publisher