Sheila Clark, EEO director: “It’s critical for us to provide fast and accurate information. To do that, we need to be on top of the latest IT.”

‘People in IT don’t generally think about working for the federal government,” says Sheila Clark, equal employment opportunity programs director at the Federal Reserve Board (FRB). And that, she feels, is a big mistake.

Clark says that working for the government brings many of the same challenges as working in the private sector – sometimes more.

FRB work, particularly the issue of security, requires state-of-the-art technology, says Clark. “We transfer and acquire the data that allow monetary transactions to take place. It’s critical to our business that we provide fast and accurate information. To do that, we need to be on top of the latest IT.”

Currently, the FRB’s mission falls into four general areas: managing the nation’s monetary policy; supervising and regulating banking institutions and protecting the credit rights of consumers; maintaining the stability of the financial system; and providing specific financial services.

Each year the board’s IT department fills fifty to sixty positions, mostly in application design and development and information security technology.

Clark notes that diversity is a major hiring focus, and has been for years. “We have very good diversification, especially in the IT department,” she reports.

Federal Reserve Board www.federalreserve.gov Headquarters: Washington, DC Employees: 1,700 Annual Operating Expenses: $225.4 million Function: Independent agency in the U.S. government charged with conducting monetary policy and overseeing banking institutions

About 51 percent of FRB employees are women. The acting director of IT, top position in the department, is a woman, as are two of her four direct reports. In the past five years, the FRB has stepped up its efforts to recruit racial minorities. Employees are actively involved in college recruiting, and with organizations like SHPE and NSBE.

The FRB also supports internal affinity groups, including ones for women, Asians, African Americans, Hispanics and employees with disabilities.

Each group works on its own, and also collaborates on programs. That gives them a chance to interface with one another.

One such collaboration was a health fair with participation by all the affinity groups. A celebration of workplace diversity was another offering.

For eight years now, the FRB has required diversity training for all employees. Managers, supervisors and execs attend a class about leadership in an environment of diversity. Everyone else learns about working in a diverse environment. Both programs discuss the inclusion and contribution of all.

The FRB likes its people to participate in the community. It gives service days off to volunteers in programs like the Fed Challenge, which gives high school kids an idea of how Federal Reserve governors and member banks analyze the economy and set policies for the future.

Clark knows very well that the FRB is competing with large private-sector companies for qualified IT employees. The Board has a bagful of perks to offer, like flextime, telecommuting and help with childcare and eldercare. There’s also work/life counseling to help employees with issues that affect their work or home. The FRB, Clark says, provides these benefits to promote a stable and successful workforce.

“Because of the challenges of this business, we need employees who are the best and the brightest,” says Clark. “We have very high standards. We look for people who can work well in this culture and bring a lot to it.”

D/C