IMF Aiming to Recruit More Widely

The recruitment mission, led by Shirley Siegel, the head of the IMF’s Human Resources Department, will visit the two countries November 9–19.

IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn, speaking at a path-breaking conference on Asia at Daejeon, Korea, last June said he wanted to make the Fund a second home for Asia by boosting Asian representation and increasing the number of Asian staff in the institution.

The IMF comprises 187 member countries. It has around 2,500 staff, mostly based in Washington, from 158 countries.

“We want to attract qualified Chinese and Japanese economists and specialized staff to work at the IMF, and I will be sending a recruitment team to Asia in November to interview suitable candidates … ” Strauss-Kahn said. Siegel will be in Beijing and Shanghai during November 9–12, and Tokyo during November 15–18.

Moving ahead

Efforts to enhance diversity at the IMF are moving ahead in several ways. Recent recruitment activities have included missions to Africa, the Middle East, and East Asia; hiring of diverse candidates through the Fund’s midcareer interview panel, which assesses candidates’ suitability for appointments as experienced economists; and concerted outreach to...