Change comes to enlisted reviews

  • Published
  • By Chief Master Sgt. Richard Tallman
  • 660th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  One thing that we all know for sure is that change is inevitable and constant.

The time has come for one of the larger procedural changes to occur and it is one that most have been rallying for and waiting on: the evolution to the Enlisted Evaluation System. Most importantly, this change will ensure that job performance is a priority. 

As most leaders have acknowledged, the previous system had a tradition of being overinflated and failed to identify the true top performers. This system had a long-standing tradition of a "firewall five" mentality. Not receiving this rating meant the end of someone's hope of promotion or oftentimes could be considered career ending.

Unfortunately, leaders found themselves stuck between putting top performers in the same bucket as an average performer in order to save the career of the lower performer which dis-incentivized the higher performers. This placed a huge strain on our system and rewarded mediocre performance rather than living up to our core belief in excellence in all we do. 

The time has come for a more accurate system of performance measurements and accountability standards and we all must be ready for this change. We must prepare our Airmen as well as ourselves to embrace what will inevitably become a much more accurate evaluation system. 

With a change of this magnitude, there will likely be some resistance and pushback, but the best way to combat that is through strategic change management and feedback. Specifically, we must prepare the expectations of the force for what the performance should be at all levels through thorough and constant feedback.

In doing so, Airmen will better understand what is expected and will be motivated to improve in order to meet and exceed expectations. If ever there is a time to be more strategic thinking and promote comprehensive feedback, it is during times of change. 

One of the largest change hurdles we will face is providing accurate information on the evaluation system. As leaders, we spend too much time battling misinformation overload with numerous social media outlets, unsanctioned periodicals and the ol' reliable "dorm lawyers," possibly leading to crisis management.

The way to battle this is to be familiar with official Air Force sources, like MyPers, Air Force Portal and www.af.mil.  Once you're educated, be the advocate, talk at roll calls, mentor when possible and become the system matter expert. 

This sounds simple and my intent is not to insult your intelligence, but this new system is here.  We must be proactive, educated and consistent in our promotion of this change. We must continue communicating with our Airmen to ensure understanding.

This is a necessity and an aspect of leading our Air Force into the future.  Do not lose sight that we have been asking for this system and a culture change for many years and now we have it. Go forth and make it happen.