Bill Emslie posted on January 01, 2009 21:45
January 2009 NRA News
by CAPT William A. Emslie, USNR (Ret)
I want to thank you and the thousands of other Navy personnel who are serving this great country. Not a day goes by that I do not think about your service and what it means to this nation.
If you are one of the thousands who have served as an Individual Augmentee (IA), upon your return from active duty, you will have a Fitness Report from your active duty commander which rates you against your active duty peers. How does such a report affect your competitiveness when you return to your Navy Reserve unit and go before your Navy Reserve promotion selection board?
I want to spend some time this month addressing this question as some have suggested there may be both positive and negative impacts of IA duty on promotion. I recently had the privilege to interview RDML John Messerschmidt, who became Commander, Navy Reserve Forces Command on 6 November 2008. The purpose of the interview was to provide for you the very latest thinking on several critical professional development topics.
Let us start with the promotion selection board precepts. You can find these at for the FY-10 Navy Reserve Rear Admiral Line Promotion Selection Board http://www.npc.navy.mil/Boards/Flag/. Select Precepts, then 07 Reserve Line. Read Appendix B. Preference is given to quote “those best and fully qualified.” “Officers fully qualified for promotion demonstrate an appropriate level of leadership, professional skills . . . and resourcefulness in difficult and challenging assignments.” They “must be capable of performing the duties of the next higher pay grade.”
As a fully qualified officer, the board will “recommend for promotion the best qualified officers within their respective competitive category.” Among the best qualified, there are two important core considerations. “Proven and sustained superior performance in command and leadership positions, as well as in difficult and challenging joint and in-service assignments is the ultimate test of fitness for promotion. This is the number one factor that should guide your recommendations. Furthermore, successful performance and leadership in combat conditions demonstrate exceptional promotion potential and should be given special consideration.” The second core consideration is education and professional development with favorable consideration to the PME Continuum which includes Advanced Education, Navy Specific Professional Military Education (NPME), Joint Professional Military Education (JPME), and Leadership Development.
IA duty fits this definition, but so do CO, XO, and related difficult and challenging jobs. Recognizing the importance of IA assignments, the Secretary of the Navy added more to these precepts in order to give “favorable consideration to those officers who have displayed superior performance while serving in IA assignments in direct support of the Global War on Terrorism and in particular those assignments that are extraordinarily arduous or which involve significantly heightened personal risk.”
So, does this mean if you serve as an IA, you should be promoted above your peers who have not had such duty? No, not at all. One IA FITREP should not drive your overall chances for selection in either direction.
Some have also expressed concerns about IA FITREP written by a non-Navy reporting senior. Here is what the precepts say about this. “Due to operational demands, IA/GSA assignments may result in an officer missing a community-recognized milestone or career gate. Additionally, officers may not be competitively ranked against other officers of the same competitive category, and the officer may be rated by a reporting senior unfamiliar with the officer’s occupational specialty and the Navy fitness report system. Therefore, special attention must be taken in reviewing these officers’ records.” Your promotion selection board recognizes that IA FITREPS from non-Navy reporting seniors may write Navy fitness reports differently than we do. The promotion selection boards know this and take this into consideration when reviewing your record.
So what should be the focus? To quote RDML Messerschmidt, “The board looks for sustained superior performance in difficult and challenging assignments. This is the cornerstone, the bedrock of the record. Whether it’s a promotion selection board or an APPLY board, the board is looking at the entire record, most particularly the last 5 or 6 years. One particular fitness report, one way or the other, is not going to drive the decision.” So what do the boards look for and what does “special consideration” mean? Admiral Messerschmidt continues, “Special consideration means that in a tie breaker, it will bump you up. Six months of IA duty will not erase a pack or pack-minus record. We are now at a point where a significant portion of our force has mobilized or been on IA duty. When someone has a strong record of sustained performance in difficult and challenging jobs; when they have mobilized or had IA duty; and have PME, whether it’s a graduate degree or JPME, these three achievements are the “Triumvirate.” Those who hit on all three of these cylinders are going to be extremely competitive.”
In summary, be wary if someone tells you that IA duty hurts your chances for promotion. If you hear this, dig deeper. I bet you will find other problems with that person’s record. Are they a leader? Have they completed JPME? Are they pack or pack-minus ranking against their peers? Do they have experience in a joint environment? Remember, the board follows the precepts. Read them and decide for yourself. The board is objective. The precepts are clear. Your overall performance, leadership, and Professional Military Education all play a critical role. Excel in these areas and you make yourself very competitive for promotion. While nothing is certain, those who perform well in the “Triumvirate” metrics are more likely to end up on top. You can reach me at bill.emslie@usnr.org.