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and swiftly.
3.42. This means having a variety of options available. The main ones will be:
'buying-in' knowledge through ad-hoc appointment of specialists; or
increasing the degree of specialisation, through personnel management and training, among members of the FCO/DS; or
interchange with other Government Departments, the private sector or the academic world (Section F below).
There may also be some increase in the scope for contracting-out specialist work. Traditionally confined to support activities, contracting-out is now permitted by the Treasury for professional and specialist services. However, where continuous advice to policy departments is required and/or the subject matter is highly classified, this option is likely to prove unworkable.
3.43. We believe that, judiciously used, buying-in expertise provides a useful and flexible source of additional manpower in specialised areas. This can also be done by commissioning one-off studies. The present use of ad hoc appointment should continue, in both DS and HCS grades, wherever adequate in-house expertise is neither available nor likely to be cost-effective to develop (eg very specialised IT, purchasing, advice on areas too specialised for RAD such as the polar regions). Under the arrangements outlined in Part II it will be for AUSS to consider where such ad hoc appointments are necessary. We
so recommend.
3.44. Turning too readily to outsiders with specialised expertise will, however, remove the vital incentive to train FCO/DS staff to be as widely deployable as possible. Whenever a new type of expertise is required, the first question should be whether a serving member of the generalist staff can provide it, or realistically be trained to do so. The changes to recruitment patterns recommended above should help as some DS9s will come in with work experience which can be drawn and built on in their early postings. So will the changes resulting from the 1991 Muir Scrutiny of training which called for intensive pre-posting training, and courses to build up core competences among staff.
3.45. More is required. PMD encourages officers to develop one or two specialisms on top of any hard-language training which they may have. But the boarding and postings system
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