Representative of America: Creating Inclusion in the Senior Executive Service.

摘要

The Department of Defense (DoD) faces large losses in its Senior Executive Service (SES) population, primarily through retirement, but also because of other normal attrition factors. Having a diverse SES workforce is an organizational strength that contributes to DoD's goal achievement by bringing a wider collection of views and methods to policy development, strategic planning, problem solving, and decision-making. The purpose of this study is to add to the research on diversity management in DoD with an emphasis on recruitment, mentorship, employee development, and educational opportunities for minorities. In pursuit of this outcome, the study examines current and future challenges within the SES workforce pertaining to demographic composition; analyzes ideologies that influence hiring practices and how historical dynamics and racial identity in America influence those practices; and provides recommendations for senior leaders to enable minority inclusion within the SES workforce. The research effort also seeks to determine if short- term and long-term strategies can be implemented to increase minority leader representation in the workforce by the year 2020.