Officer Promotion Overhaul

[bubblehead]

..and CONUS is not an option

Big load of bullsh*t... There are many CONUS MOB opportunities and have been going back at least 10 years. Coop over at NAVIFORES has been feeding people this "no CONUS MOB" bullsh*t going back 10 years.

Actually, it was briefed to me (in an auditorium) in a mobilization briefing by the GS civilian whose job is to monitor, route, and approve/ disapprove all the mob's for my community.

Completing community specific PQS as a requirement for MOB has been around since forever:
Per COMIDCRESCOMINST 1412.4, which references COMIDCRESCOMINST 1001.3B:

...completion of community-specific PQS is a requirement for mobilization and other types of Active Duty for Operational Support (ADOS) orders.

I highly encourage all new NIFR officers to read all relevant instructions and to educate yourselves: https://private.navyreserve.navy.mil/CNIRC/Training_OPS/Qualification_central/

Also note qualification times. If the instruction says you have 36 months, you are not going to win any awards or points or other accolades for finishing it in 18 months. Honestly. If IDCRESCOM wanted you to finish it in less than 36 months, they would update the instruction.

Intel/IP communities love to bang on their people to get qualified as fast as possible and to no benefit at all to the member. Yeah, you will get a nice FITREP bullet which will mean pretty much zero at your O4 selection board.

 

[IKE]

I wish people would stop saying “BLUF”. If you want to state the bottom line up front, just say it. Saying “BLUF” first defeats the purpose of just stating the main idea. Bottom line up second after a stupid PowerPoint acronym.

BLUSASPPA

I thought this was cheesy exec-speak too, until I became a hinge and lost all sense and credibility.

But seriously, I'm a BLUF convert. BLUF forces the writer to encapsulate their thoughts into 1-3 intelligible sentences and let's the leader reading the email know (or assume) he can read the BLUF paragraph, make a decision, and move on to the next 197 emails.

I don't use it all the time, but when sending an email more than 1-2 paragraphs which requires CO action, I do.

 

[Treetop Flyer]

I thought this was cheesy exec-speak too, until I became a hinge and lost all sense and credibility.

But seriously, I'm a BLUF convert. BLUF forces the writer to encapsulate their thoughts into 1-3 intelligible sentences and let's the leader reading the email know (or assume) he can read the BLUF paragraph, make a decision, and move on to the next 197 emails.

I don't use it all the time, but when sending an email more than 1-2 paragraphs which requires CO action, I do.

I’m not against the concept. I’m against the acronym which is self defeating. If you want to state the main idea up front, just say it. Don’t say “hey I’m going to state the main idea up front right after this”

Unfortunately like someone mentioned before, staff bitches work their way up and they like seeing the same stuff they came up with.

 

[robav8r]

Actually, it was briefed to me (in an auditorium) in a mobilization briefing by the GS civilian whose job is to monitor, route, and approve/ disapprove all the mob's for my community.

You're missing the point . . . . . . again.

 

[Deleted member 67144 scul]

Big load of bullsh*t... There are many CONUS MOB opportunities and have been going back at least 10 years. Coop over at NAVIFORES has been feeding people this "no CONUS MOB" bullsh*t going back 10 years.

Interesting that they say the same thing in IWC too. I'll of course sooner or later find out the whole deal with the Reserve EDO community, and I'll be sure to let you know. With respect to being told by multiple officers that OCONUS hot zones are the expected MOBs, there's some truth to it as they sure like to send EDOs through NIACT and them ship them off to Kabul. Being a potential rifleman in my mid-30s (the time around which I'll finish quals) would not exactly be my cup of mocha, but if that's the job, then that's the job.

 

[insanebikerboy]

I thought this was cheesy exec-speak too, until I became a hinge and lost all sense and credibility.

But seriously, I'm a BLUF convert. BLUF forces the writer to encapsulate their thoughts into 1-3 intelligible sentences and let's the leader reading the email know (or assume) he can read the BLUF paragraph, make a decision, and move on to the next 197 emails.

I don't use it all the time, but when sending an email more than 1-2 paragraphs which requires CO action, I do.

BLUF is the staff equivalent of starting a radio transmission with "and".

Completely unnecessary and makes you sound like a damn fool.

 

[bert]

BLUF is the staff equivalent of starting a radio transmission with "and".

Completely unnecessary and makes you sound like a damn fool.

And.... you all are missing the point. As long as you have the right cover sheet it doesn’t really matter.

I mean, you guys do know we are putting cover sheets on now, right?

 

[WhiskeySierra6]

I prefer TL: DR.

 

[whitesoxnation]

You can change officer career timing without changing the up or out system.

If I could, I'd spend another two years in my fleet squadron...go through another set of work ups, actually use this division lead qual I worked so hard to get.

Instead, I go somewhere new soon. We spend so much time and money pumping guys through pipelines to meet community timing wickets that we lose the benefits of having qualified guys to begin with.

Word. I also don’t understand the passive aggressiveness towards people that want to be a 20 year O-3 or O-4 and do nothing but fly, and be really good at it. And I don’t mean just “flying” like you’re just here to do 1v0s all day like I think some people are implying/thinking, but being good at LFE mission planning and employment, teaching, etc, as well, because those are just as important.

Other countries have that model, probably because they don’t have enough money to have poor policies and get away with it.

Do we really think that we’re so shit hot that we can get away with part time pilots flying just above opnav mins in a larger conflict where we don’t have a large qualitative advantage and may be at a quantitative disadvantage?

 

[Hair Warrior]

Interesting. If I understand correctly: Are you suggesting that a LT be able to voluntarily defer LCDR for 1-2 years, and basically guarantee an “above-zone” look? And same for LCDR who want to spend a coulle more years before their O-5 look?

 

[Brett327]

Interesting. If I understand correctly: Are you suggesting that a LT be able to voluntarily defer LCDR for 1-2 years, and basically guarantee an “above-zone” look? And same for LCDR who want to spend a coulle more years before their O-5 look?

Is that directed at me? If so, that's not what PERS is suggesting.

 

[Flash]

...Other countries have that model, probably because they don’t have enough money to have poor policies and get away with it.

It is often works in other countries partly because their militaries are much smaller and they can individually manager their folks much more easily. Read a few of the autobiographies and histories of when we didn't have up or out in the US military and there definitely are some possible minuses, and it would be much harder to manage those in a force as big as ours.

 

[whitesoxnation]

It is often works in other countries partly because their militaries are much smaller and they can individually manager their folks much more easily. Read a few of the autobiographies and histories of when we didn't have up or out in the US military and there definitely are some possible minuses, and it would be much harder to manage those in a force as big as ours.

Do we invest the same amount of resources per person managing our folks as other countries do?

 

[Hair Warrior]

@Brett327 negative sir, I was replying to whitesoxnation

 

[whitesoxnation]

Interesting. If I understand correctly: Are you suggesting that a LT be able to voluntarily defer LCDR for 1-2 years, and basically guarantee an “above-zone” look? And same for LCDR who want to spend a coulle more years before their O-5 look?

Not really, although that sounds interesting.

I was speaking more to becoming an O-3/4 and staying an O-3/4 while staying in a flying billet, for as long as is appropriate, possibly for 20+ years.

Maybe the answer isn't when you're promoted to O-3 you're forced to choose between "command track" and "flying" track. Maybe you are permitted to stay at O-3/4 in a flying position and if you choose to pursue all the PME, staff tours, etc, that are required for command, you can take the command track after staying at O-3/4 for a while. That is kind of akin to your comment.

I don't know what the answer is. Just spitballing ideas. I do think that when the economy sours there may be less of a problem on the aviation side and this discussion may go by the wayside until the next boom economy. Maybe there will be robots flying airliners and the economy will be booming w/o a military pilot shortage.