RESERVIST MAGAZINE DECKPLATE SOUNDINGS S ince taking on the role of the Rating Force Master Chief of the Machinery Technician rating almost a year ago, I’ve been made well aware of the challenges that reserve MKs encounter on a daily basis. Whether it be role clarity or career management, believe me, your voices have been heard. Within the first few days, I began receiving calls from different commands throughout the service inquiring about a course of action on how to better use and maintain the skills our reserve MKs possess. When I looked into this, I found that units such as Sector North Carolina and Base Miami Beach had already recognized and capitalized on the skills their reservists offered. Since then, both units have logged thousands of maintenance labor hours in support of a litany of Coast Guard assets with nothing but positive feedback from the operational customers. Let’s face it, there are units that exist that are able to fully employ their MK workforce in rate related tasking by the sheer nature of the unit type (maintenance and facilities engineering commands). Others exist that cannot fully benefit from the technical expertise due to the nature of the operation and the demands of maintaining and attaining qualifications. Though most MKs would prefer to be performing tasks that are rate-related, our versatility as an MK often calls for us to serve in roles in the boat forces community where the primary emphasis is maintaining operational readiness rather than MK-related tasking. How do we become even more effective within the confines of the MK force laydown? We have to improve our communication. In a world where so many methods are available to communicate, I dislike when “lack of communication” is blamed for many avoidable dilemmas. Identify who in the chain of command is able to voice concerns, advocate, and offer accurate and legitimate mentorship on service offerings. Whether this person is in the unit command, a Reserve CMC, a senior enlisted reserve advisor, on the Reserve Forces Readiness System staff, or the nearest Reserve Policy Advisor, these members are trained, have the experience and are more than willing to provide clarity on just about anything concerning the reserve workforce. Whether it’s figuring out what technical training is available or what is expected of a particular billet (competencies, qualification, training, etc.), our MKs can and will be put on the track to success. This not only provides a workforce that’s more educated on service offerings, but will aid in expectation management as well. Here at Headquarters, our reserve MK workforce advisor, Chief Petty Officer Faust Capobianco, has one task: align every MK billet with the needed competencies in order to be effective. He’s a reservist with a vast amount of field experience, including hurricane response deployments, and I have full confidence in his counsel in helping the Coast Guard build a more relevant reserve MK workforce. This includes the correct billet assigned competencies and the associated “C” schools. Though he is doing an outstanding job, he needs your help. Chief is currently reaching out to most units that have reserve MKs. He needs those MKs to work with him directly to provide feedback on what they need to be successful in their current billet. Chief and I continue to work with Cmdr. Omar Barajas, the RPA imbedded with the DCMS rating force master chiefs, and the newly established CG-R. Together, we’re developing better communication to both the active and reserve components. We want to increase proficiency for our reservists and productivity for our stakeholders, and that starts with removing the barriers created by misinformation. This team is dedicated to the success of its mission and its people. I am very optimistic about the future of the reserve MK rating and look forward to the great things we can accomplish. In closing, I want each member of the reserve MK workforce to know that I am extremely impressed with the job that you do on a daily basis, and I thank you for your service. I challenge each of you to educate the local active duty enlisted staff on the support their reserve force can offer and what the Reserve component as a whole can offer an active duty member that plans on getting out of the Coast Guard. Not every active duty member stays until retirement, and many leave without realizing the Reserve component is a viable option. Semper Paratus. Master Chief Petty Officer Josh McKenzie Rating Force Master Chief, Machinery Technician (MK) "I am very optimistic about the future of the reserve MK rating and look forward to the great things we can accomplish." Issue 2 • 2019 � RESERVIST 9
