Refocus on core responsibilities with new EPRs

  • Published
  • By Chief Master Sgt. Alan Boling
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing command chief
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  With the changes to the Air Force evaluation and promotion programs I'm often asked what it will take to succeed in the future Air Force. 

Airmen are concerned about the evaluation and promotion system changes and what it will take to be competitive for advancement. 

First of all, responsibilities of Airmen are not changing. Becoming the best professional and technical Airman is still the expectation. The change is in how we assess and advance Airmen who meet and exceed these expectations. We are fixing the tools, the evaluation and promotion systems, in order to recognize what we have always said is central to your success: being a great Airman and technical expert.

Factors that do not distinguish excellent performance are being phased out and new processes to evaluate performance are being introduced. Over the next three years, we'll incrementally remove the promotion points for time in service and time in grade. Time in itself is not an indicator of experience or performance, but what you do and how you perform during that time is and will be reflected on the enlisted performance report.

The EPR static close out dates and master sergeant promotion boards will allow commanders and board members to look at Airmen in a grade at the same time and establish the bell curve of performance. Couple these changes with point increases for the enlisted performance reports from 135 to 250 for promotion and performance in your responsibilities is now stage center.  Our tools used for assessment and promotions align better now with responsibilities of Airmen.  

These responsibilities are outlined in the Enlisted Force Structure, AFI 36-2618, and increase as you transition through the tiers of the enlisted force.  Junior enlisted Airmen performance is based on their professional and technical development of themselves such as "adapting to military requirements, achieving occupational proficiency and learning how to be a highly productive member of the US military" as core duties. 

The NCO tier takes this one step further. While NCOs continue to strive to become the technical expert in their job, performance is based on how well they develop subordinates both as technicians and as professionals.

The SNCO tiers responsibilities expand even further to "deliberately develop junior enlisted, NCOs and fellow SNCOs professionally as followers, leaders and supervisors." Again, your core duties have not changed. Developing professional and technically proficient Airmen remain central. Furthermore, if the Airman Comprehensive Assessment gives some insight to what we will see on the new EPR, the same holds true, with major assessed areas being in performance of primary duties, follower and leadership and the whole-person concept.

If you are concerned or worried about how the new evaluation and promotion systems will impact your career, move your attention back to your core responsibilities and continue to develop yourself and others as professional Airmen and technical experts.  Become an expert in your new role in the new assessment and evaluation system and be as confident as I am that these new tools will recognize your individual efforts and produce a stronger and more capable Air Force then we have ever had before.