Sunday, November 21, 2010

Do you know this guy?



He walks with the Admirals, yet keeps the Sailor's touch.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

The MCPON?

Mike Lambert said...

anon 7:11

Right you are.

Anonymous said...

I have heard a lot of discussion lately regarding the role of the CMC in the Navy. On the enlisted side, I have heard Master Chiefs question whether the CMC is a worthwhile position. On the Officer side, I have heard Officers belittle the counsel a Master Chief may offer. No matter what your position, I think it is a worthy discussion. Master Chiefs play an incredibly important role in our Navy and are often held as accountable in the success or failure of their command as the CO and XO.

Anonymous said...

Hope the same is true with each Force and Fleet Master Chief.

Mike Lambert said...

You can't have a great command without a great Master Chief. A good command, sure. But not a great one. The CO/XO/CMC have to be in synch for a command to get to the next level.

Anonymous said...

anon 5:07pm said:

"On the Officer side, I have heard Officers belittle the counsel a Master Chief may offer..."

Well this may because you can't tell a JO anything and a CDR or CAPT that doesn't realize the worth of the CPO Mess will fail...JOs think that because they have a degree they are somehow superior to enlisted...however JOs fail to realize that the experience a MCPO has gained over 20-30 years of service cannot be giving through osmoses.

Degrees have little worth other than a decoration on a wall, unless it is combined with experience.

John Byron said...

Two points:

1. The origin of the command master chief predates even having master chiefs (1958). It comes from the role and prestige of the submarine Chief of the Boat, the COB. Creation of the CMC is based in an attempt to bring successful submarine ways into the main Navy.

2. The success of that effort is as dependent on command receptivity as it is on the character of the CMC herself.

Many years ago as a brandy-new ensign, I was the only submarine-qualified officer in the commissioning wardroom of a CG. The captain-to-be called me aside one day to discuss emulating the submarine COB approach to command leadership by redesignating what would have been the Chief Master-At-Arms as "Chief of the Ship." That's what he did when the ship went into commission.

It was miserable failure, part because the Master Chief Boatswain Mate in the job was unable to understand the job, but more because his chain of command couldn't either. He had no power with the captain, the XO, the wardroom, or even his fellow chiefs.

We've moved downstream from that, but even now the effectiveness of a command's CMC is still potentially constrained when the command or its skipper are unwilling to turn loose the CMC to do what submarine COBs have always done: represent the command to the crew and the crew to the command.

Anonymous said...

I think the Senior Enlisted can offer valuable insight and can truly make or break a command. Unfortunately, I've seen too many Chiefs these days more than happy to wear the uniform but not accept the responsibility.

While it's easy to take swipes at JOs, their enthusiasm shouldn't be taken for granted.

As a senior O6 said to me once, "If you are having a bad day just make some rounds and talk with the Division Officers. Your outlook will be refreshed."

Anonymous said...

Rubber Ducky,

Having been one of those COB's on a Submarine for 6 deterrent patrols I found it very gratifying that the Captain and the Executive Officer, both on a number of occasions, would take my advice on problems that evolved , they asked for my advice and this was a pleasant experience for me. In the 3 years that I spent onboard that Submarine we ended up with only 2 mast cases and my advice to the Captain, which he asked for, was followed in each of those cases.

The Captain and the Executive Officer were probably very aware of a number of problems that I solved myself without any non-judicial action taking place. It was not within the UCMJ that I operated when it came to taking care of problems, that would normally have been resolved by the UCMJ. I actually felt that as long as I was allowed to handle things in my own way and the Captain and Executive Officer were not plagued by my decisions, then what I was doing was assisting our administrative staff of the Boat.

The Captain of this Submarine (Commander Larry Vogt) made it readily apparent to me at the termination of each patrol period that he was satisfied with the efforts I extended to assist in the Submarines mission, and he never failed to thank me for, as he would say, "Making this another successful patrol".

As you said Rubber Ducky the endeavor of the COB was" to represent the command to the crew and the crew to the command". I am happy to think that I performed in my function as COB and did those very things that you stated.

Very Respectfully,
Navyman834

General Quarters said...

If you doubt the need for a CMC, work for a while in a large corporate bureaucracy. You'll miss it when you don't have it.

Anonymous said...

When you have a Triad (this seems to be the way the Navy is going) it makes the CPO Mess obsolete.

CMC's now a days seem to spend way to much time in the Ward room...

I have read many an article from the MCPON, he seems to be very articulate... Lets hope he puts he words into action, so far that does not seem to be the case.