Provider warrants host colleagues for professional development session

Photo By Capt. Monika Comeaux | Chief Warrant Officer 4 David Hunt, a senior automotive maintenance officer and the senior ordnance logistics officer of the 13th Support Command (Expeditionary) support operations section, talks to fellow logistics warrants about promotion rates on Nov. 13. It was the first time Hunt participated in the post-wide logistics warrant officer professional development session, which is organized quarterly by the 13th SC(E). He obtained the promotion statistics from the warrant officer branch managers at the U.S. Army Human Resources Command. The statistics included data about promotion selectees' deployments, duty stations and civilian schooling, amongst other statistics.  

KILLEEN, TX, UNITED STATES

11.13.2013

Courtesy Story

13th Armored Corps Sustainment Command (13th ESC)

FORT HOOD, Texas -- Logistics warrant officers from the 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) hosted more than 100 of their fellow warrants for a post-wide logistics warrant officer professional development session Nov. 13 at the 13th SC(E) Soldier Ministry Center.

The goal of this quarterly occurring meeting, lead by the senior logistics unit on post, is to share experiences, best practices, lessons learned and allow logistics warrant officers to network.

Participants discussed the results of recent warrant officer promotion selection boards, touched on the maintenance and supply aspects of the Global Support System-Army and saw an overview on the battery maintenance management program.

The results and statistics of the warrant officer promotion boards and warrant officer career progression attracted the most questions, and created the most discussion. Chief Warrant Officer 4 David Hunt, a senior automotive maintenance officer and the senior ordnance logistics officer of the from the 13th SC(E) shared some of the U.S. Army Human Resources Command-established trends and statistics from the board file of warrant officers selected for promotion to chief warrant officer-3, -4 and -5.

According to HRC, the "majority selected had well-written, clearly delineated reports that included strong, concise and stratified senior rater comments." They also had two or more combat deployments, hand an updated photo and had higher levels of professional military education (PME) and civilian education.

"Assignment locations do matter," said Hunt. "It may be an indication that you are not well-rounded, if you hung around the same post a lot...If you are a (chief warrant officer-3) and you have been here for five years or six years, you may want to look at being sent somewhere else."

Hunt, who himself was selected for promotion to chief warrant officer-5, also mentioned that chief warrant officer-4s selected for promotion averaged five above center mass officer evaluation reports out of their last eight.

The most senior warrants attending the session encouraged all younger warrants to have a mentor or multiple mentors and to stay current in all facets of their careers. This includes GCSS-Army. As Hunt and some of his fellow presenters explained, they read manuals for weeks to understand how the new system works and they are still learning new things every day.

Although he is not a logistician, Chief Warrant Officer-4 Derrick Edwards, a network management technician and the senior warrant officer of the 11th Theater Tactical Signal Brigade said he found the session very useful. He will take his notes back to his unit and will share it with his fellow warrant officers.

"I thought today was very interesting, Edwards said.”I come from an era where for all of the warrant officers on the installation it is customary to get together, share ideas, share knowledge. That way we have a residual knowledge base on the installation on various subjects. I think that it is very important. Our younger warrant officers are growing up in an era where the cool thing is to talk via text, or all the social media, and I think you can compartmentalize yourself and it is a bad thing for business."

Edwards plans to attend future sessions and hopes to see a presentation on the evolution of what the Army expects from today's warrant officers, into the future of the Army 2020.

The next quarterly logistics warrant officer professional session is scheduled to take place Feb. 12, 2014, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the 13th SC(E) Soldier Ministry Center.

• Date Taken: 11.13.2013
• Date Posted: 11.18.2013 13:08
• Story ID: 116940
• Location: KILLEEN, TX, US