Six years ago in the passenger terminal at al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, I watched a young E-3 hospital corpsman (HN) talking to the Air Force sergeant at the counter, attempting to figure out how to get into Iraq. The sergeant couldn’t figure out by reading the HN’s orders where he was going or how to get him there. Instead, he was trying to redirect the HN to temporary berthing overnight. The HN became increasingly frustrated dealing with the complex Air Force transportation system, so I went over and asked if I could help. What I discovered was disturbing. This young man didn’t even know what country he was in.
Someone had sent him off to Iraq by himself with very lengthy and confusing orders that included several “for further assignment” clauses throughout. I had to read the orders three times myself before I could even decipher where he was going. Luckily there was an in-theater point of contact listed in the orders, buried deep in the middle of page four. I called the number. A woman answered, saying she had been just about to leave for the day, and five minutes later would have been gone. She said she actually recognized the HN’s name, and was hoping he would show up in the next few days. Then she provided information on where he was supposed to check in. After a few minutes of this purely by-chance good fortune, I explained to the HN what he needed to do. I wondered who, if anyone, was taking care of this HN at some air base in Qatar.
Great companies take care of their people, explains a Success magazine CD speaker to whom I listened recently. That stayed with me, and we need to pay attention to it. Fast-forwarding to today, Petty Officer First Class “Bob” is a real hard worker and a smart guy. I’ve known him for about two years and have seen him tackle projects with great enthusiasm. Bob is currently dealing with his detailer, who just told him orders to his next duty station had been canceled because of “issues.” Now this detailer is playing “I’ve got a secret” with all new available orders, and telling Bob that if he wants to stay in the Navy, he’ll take what he gets.
Several months ago, Bob was sent to Japan to conduct training for a few forward-deployed ships. He had to make his own hotel reservations, as do many folks, but because there was a big conference going on and his trip was a last-minute situation, there weren’t any rooms available on base. After four hours online and numerous phone calls, the best he could do was a 30-minute train ride plus lots of walking.
If I were Bob, I’d be looking for one of those great companies who take care of their people. I’d weigh my options and decide if I wanted to put up with all the baloney any longer. It’s easy to see why so many enlisted develop a negative attitude. They see themselves and their shipmates treated with little regard by all levels of their chain of command, and they leave. Then out the door with them goes that experience, expertise, and leadership that the Navy desperately needs.
I ask the leaders out there, from shift supervisor to commanding officer, recruiters to detailers, for one thing. In everything you do, take the extra minute to really make your people feel valued. Don’t just look at them as an item in your in-box to process.
This could mean that when a new check-in shows up at midnight, he or she gets driven over to the barracks and gets a hot meal rather than just having the orders stamped and being pointed to some general direction. It might involve walking someone through the steps to use a Navy website that really isn’t user-friendly. In other situations, it could mean you make a really big deal at quarters about a letter of appreciation that one of your sailors receives from a civic organization. However you do it, put meat on the concept of taking care of your people. Otherwise, all the Petty Officer Bobs are going to go looking for one of those great companies.