USAID is a sh!#show

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m surprised OP seems to be complaining about Power — she seems to me actually highly qualified and like a do-er not a talk-er. Really, I think that’s the best political appointment one could hope for.

That was my impression, too.

LOL. Check the Agency handle. Its all about her.

And really, its a terribly dysfunctional place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m surprised OP seems to be complaining about Power — she seems to me actually highly qualified and like a do-er not a talk-er. Really, I think that’s the best political appointment one could hope for.

This is her third high-profile position as an appointee. What has she done? Any accomplishments?

[Anonymous]

LOL. Check the Agency handle. Its all about her.

And really, its a terribly dysfunctional place.

Couldn't agree more. The most dysfunctional and unprofessional place I've ever worked at. Doesn't help that it's perpetually understaffed and there are too many incompetent politicals full of themselves

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's a makework place for elites to dump their dumb kids for babysitting.

This is so funny, but sadly true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yikes!! That used to be my dream job growing up and in college. Career veered in a diff direction so I always wonder what could've been. This makes me glad life took me on a different (more lucrative) path.

You should leave OP! Find something that brings you joy.

+1 I thought I wrote that. Sometimes I still wonder, but I won't wonder anymore.

[Anonymous]

Sounds like you need a union.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

LOL. Check the Agency handle. Its all about her.

And really, its a terribly dysfunctional place.

Couldn't agree more. The most dysfunctional and unprofessional place I've ever worked at. Doesn't help that it's perpetually understaffed and there are too many incompetent politicals full of themselves

The politicals ruin the Agency. They all believe they invented the sun.

[Anonymous]

The politicals are the worst.

[Anonymous]

Someone told me that for every dollar USAID contributes to countries in need, $4 is spent on compliance to ensure that dollar is spent just so. Is this true?

[Anonymous]

Try being an implementing partner on the outside. Nothing with the agency is transparent. It’s all arbitrary, chaotic, and contradictory. The procurement process has grown worse and worse over the years. A handful of contractors who know how to work the system thrive while others struggle to make any headway. It’s all wrong.

[Anonymous]

Pp - yes. But at least you are on the outside

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's a makework place for elites to dump their dumb kids for babysitting.

💯

[Anonymous]

Oh no. My husband accepted a job there…waiting for his clearance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m surprised OP seems to be complaining about Power — she seems to me actually highly qualified and like a do-er not a talk-er. Really, I think that’s the best political appointment one could hope for.

That was my impression, too.

No, not at all. Power is part of the problem. She is all show, her priority is self promotion. She thinks in TED Talk sound bites and buzzwords. For ex, “Progress, not programs”, nobody knows what that means. She would fit perfectly in Silicon Valley or at McKinsey, anywhere they love buzzwords more than real work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Someone told me that for every dollar USAID contributes to countries in need, $4 is spent on compliance to ensure that dollar is spent just so. Is this true?

I could believe it. But the USAID OIG is a mess as well so nobody’s counting. There are other threads about the OIG.