Courtesy Photo | Cpl. Alicia Crump and Spc. Maurissa Shaffer, both financial management technicians...... read more read more
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By Staff Sgt. Jeff Hansen
366th MPAD
FORT MCCOY, Wis. - As an Army Reserve unit with multiple deployments and an important mission, soldiers with the 368th Financial Management Support Unit find annual training a vital time to hone their skills as a unit.
The availability of finance-related training exercises is, unfortunately, very limited. That’s where Diamond Saber comes in, a large-scale financial exercise designed to bring the active and Reserve/Guard finance community together to practice real-life scenarios.
The 368th, currently underneath the 451st Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), has been taking part in Diamond Saber since 2003, and they have seen improvements during the last 10 years.
“It’s gotten better every year,” said Sgt. Johnathon Clark, a unit-disbursing agent from Wichita, Kan.
Clark is part of the team that handles the physical money during deployments, one of the many aspects of an FMSU. The disbursing team handles cash handouts for casual pay, vault security and accountability and sustaining distribution activities at the physical location in theater.
As Sgt. 1st Class Tyler Groth, internal controls noncommissioned officer in charge explains, Diamond Saber assists the 368th to simulate, to the best of their abilities, the unit’s mission in any theater of operations.
Groth ensures the 368th’s multiple detachments are following standard operating procedures, verifies money amounts, and ensures unit operations are running smoothly. He said he is happy with the unit’s performance during the exercise, adding that they were “taking care of business” with the various tasks assigned.
Taking care of business may be more important than first expected. The 368th is taking the exercise seriously, as a portion of them is slated for a deployment in the near future. So validating the skills of the unit and individual soldiers is more important than ever.
“This gives the commander an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of his unit,” said Sgt. Maj. Frankie Murphy, senior financial management noncommissioned officer for the 368th. “It tells him what we need to work on when we get home.”
Murphy added that 2013 was the first time three detachments of the 368th had been on the exercise at the same time, which has greatly improved the efficiency and effectiveness of the training.
With a total of five detachments serving nearly constant rotations for deployments, getting the entire unit together is a monumental task, she said.
On top of performing day-to-day financial operations in a simulated theater environment, the 368th also took the opportunity to improve on their individual job skills by taking classes.
Things like producing a DD Form 214 (certificate of release or discharge from active duty), soldier education benefits, and how to distribute casual pay are all being taught within the unit. The soldiers take pride in being able to teach themselves, as it then becomes a learning experience for all involved, including the instructors.
It also seems to improve overall job performance, according to Cpl. Alicia Crump, a financial management technician with the 368th.
“This [exercise] has been more productive than I expected,” she said. “We’ve gotten a lot done so far, which is nice.”
Spc. Maurissa Shaffer, a financial management technician who taught a class on soldiers’ education benefits, said it was a nice change for her to see everyone filling multiple roles during the training.
“Everyone has their role,” she said. “And we’ve been able to get a lot done in a short period of time.”
Murphy said she and her staff are proud of their soldiers, and that they are performing as well as the command expected. After attending this exercise for several years, she knows that an annual training can be draining on soldiers, but she is happy with how things have been going.
“They’ve done excellent here,” Murphy said. “Morale is high, and the soldiers are excited about their training.”
| Date Taken: | 08.21.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 08.21.2013 16:32 |
| Story ID: | 112337 |
| Location: | FORT MCCOY, WI, US |
| Hometown: | WICHITA, KS, US |
| Web Views: | 263 |
| Downloads: | 3 |
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