New, Obscure Federal Agency Works With Poorest Countries in the World

The human resources director for a new and different federal organization says that this new agency is different than many agencies and “on the cutting edge of international development assistance.”

by

Douglas G. Fehrer

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I am writing as the Managing Director for Human Resource at the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC).

Given the high level of interest about MCC, as one of the newest U.S. agencies, I have taken the liberty to write a few words about our organization for FedSmith readers.

I joined MCC in May, 2004. MCC is designed to work with some of the poorest countries in the world and was established in January 2004. MCC was created to provide international assistance based on the principle that our assistance is most effective when it reinforces good governance, economic freedom and investments in people. Our mission is to reduce global poverty through the promotion of sustainable economic growth. It is an approach that is unique from other types of U.S. Government assistance and that is already producing positive results on-the-ground in our partner countries.

Before a country can become eligible to receive assistance, MCC looks at their performance on independent and transparent policy indicators. MCC selects eligible countries to receive compact assistance.

MCC is a young federal corporation and it is an exciting place to work. You can feel the energy when you walk through our doors. We have a small workforce — less than 300 in our DC headquarters — that is highly professional, energetic, and very motivated by the agency’s mission. At MCC, you will be hard pressed to hear "we do it this way because that is the way we have always done it."

This is the place to work if you want a fast paced career that allows you to work "outside the box" in the federal career space. We currently have grant agreements, or compacts, in 16 countries with limited MCC staff in each compact country. Our headquarters in located in the heart of DC less than a block from the McPherson Square Metro stop.

MCC has a high percentage of staff who come from the private sector with specialized skills that meet the corporations varied needs. On the program side of the house we have international economists, environmental impact assessors, international attorneys, infrastructure specialists, and agriculture and land use experts, just to name a few. We also have a full range of administrative positions. We are a hands-on agency, our staff has very broad performance responsibilities and they rise to this challenge.

Every day I am impressed with the dedication of our staff and the quality of our new hires. MCC is on the cutting edge of international development assistance. We welcome inquiries about MCC and are always looking for high quality professionals ready to help us achieve our mission of poverty reduction through growth.

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Since May 2004, Doug Fehrer has served as Director of Human Resources at the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC). Doug has more than 25 years of work experience in the public and private sectors. Prior to joining the MCC, he worked within the Federal human resources community at several departments and agencies as well as the US House of Representatives.