Choices - Make Good Ones

Redemption through remediation

An honorable retirement as a PO1 after 20 years Service.

Sailors are everything to our great Navy.  I have cared deeply for all of my Sailors, though some required some really "tough love" to see their own limitless potential and then pursue it.  The Sailor in this photo with me was one of my "tough love" Sailors.  Our best communicator at the time, he was persistently and predictably late.  Verbal counseling, threats from his Chief, written counseling from his division officer and chiding from the Executive Officer - nothing worked.  Three months from retirement he appeared before me at Captain's Mast.  All because he repeated;y chose not to come to work on time. The punishment was severe, reduction from E-6 to E-5 and a healthy fine.  20 years in the Navy and forced to retire as an E-5!

Fortunately, the story has a better ending than that.  That Captain's Mast and the personal mentoring that followed turned things around for this Sailor and others who were headed in the same direction.  The Sailor changed his behavior and became a better example for his peers and subordinates.  A week before his retirement, I reinstated him to E-6.  He earned it back and in the intervening years, has turned his life completely around.  He's Vice President for IT at one of the world's finest banks.

Captain Donald E. Elam assumes command of NIOC Maryland

Navy Information Operations Command Maryland (NIOC MD) held a change of command ceremony July 26 at Fort Meade's McGlachlin Parade Field.

Vice Admiral Michael S. Rogers, commander, U.S. Fleet Cyber Command/U.S. 10th Fleet, presided over the ceremony in which Captain Donald E. Elam relieved Captain Timothy J. White as commanding officer of NIOC MD.

General Mattis on Reading

For my protege, LCDR Christopher Nelson, at the Navy War College.

"Thanks to my reading, I have never been caught flat-footed by any situation, never at a loss for how any problem has been addressed (successfully or unsuccessfully) before. It doesn’t give me all the answers, but it lights what is often a dark path ahead."

General James Mattis, USMC

Top 50 Thinker - Liz Wiseman

When it was launched in 2001, the T50 was the first-ever global ranking of management thinkers. It has been published every two years since.

In the intervening decade, the scope of the T50 has broadened to include a range of activities that support its mission of identifying and sharing the best management thinking in the world.

That mission is based on three core beliefs:

    Ideas have the power to change the world

    Management is essential to human affairs

    New thinking can create a better future.

A friend and mentor, Liz Wiseman, aligns well with T50's core beliefs.  She has shared those ideas with many middle and senior management level leaders in the Navy over the past several years.  She's taken her "Multipliers - How the best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter" seminar to the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis and to the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California.  Hundreds have benefited from her seminar and thousands from reading her book.  I've distributed her book to dozens of senior leaders in the Information Warfare Community.

I hope some of the readers here will agree with me that she belongs among the TOP 50 Thinkers in Management/Leadership today.

You can vote for her HERE.  Liz Wiseman, President, The Wiseman Group.

Thank you for your consideration.

Wednesday Thoughts

Always bring something to the table that will make you more welcome.

Critics are good. They are the ones who show they care about what you are doing. Their criticism is affirmation that you are doing SOMETHING.

Make sure the artifacts of your life show purpose and meaning.

Benjamin Zander's rule #6 - "Don't take yourself so damn seriously".

Command is the zenith of military achievement.

Be worthy to lead. Then, lead a life of consequence.

Think as a man of action; act as a man of thought.

Honor never grows old.

The truth provides a fixed point of reference.

Audacity matters. Be audacious !

Givers, Matchers and Takers

When it comes to when and how we help others, most of us fit into one of three categories: Givers, who help others unconditionally, demanding nothing in return. Matchers, who usually only help those who have helped them. Takers, those who demand help but never offer. Which are you? From Sean Blanda at www.99u.com

Command

You may only get to do this once. Make sure you do it right. Some of your peers only want to survive the tour. Make sure you thrive in command. Make it EXTRAORDINARY !

The Importance of the Cause

“Require nothing unreasonable of your officers and men, but see that whatever is required be punctually complied with. Reward and punish every man according to his merit, without partiality or prejudice; hear his complaints; if well founded, redress them; if otherwise, discourage them, in order to prevent frivolous ones. Discourage vice in every shape, and impress upon the mind of every man, from the first to the lowest, the importance of the cause, and what is it they are contending for.”

–– GEN George Washington

U.S. NIOC YOKOSUKA Change of Command

R 190200Z JUL 13
FM NAVIOCOM YOKOSUKA JA
TO COMTENTHFLT
CTF 1070
INFO CNO WASHINGTON DC
COMNAVCYBERFOR VIRGINIA BEACH VA
CENINFODOM CORRY STATION PENSACOLA FL
COMNAVNETWARCOM VIGINIA BEACH VA
NAVIOCOM FT GEORGE G MEADE MD
NAVIOCOM MEDINA TX
NAVIOCOM HAWAII
NAVIOCOM FT GORDON GA
NAVIOCOM BAHRAIN
NAVIOCOM MENWITH HILL UK
NAVIOCOM MISAWA JA
NAVIOCOM DENVER CO
NAVIOCOM PENSACOLA FL
NAVIOCOM WHIDBEY ISLAND WA
NAVIOCOM SUGAR GROVE WV
NAVIOCOM SAN DIEGO CA
NAVIOCOM SUITLAND
NAVIODET KANEOHE BAY HI
NAVIODET SEOUL KOR
NAVIODET SAN ANTONIO TX
NAVIODET GROTON CT
NAVIODET YAKIMA WA
NAVIODET ALICE SPRINGS NT AS
NAVIODET DIGBY UK
COMFLEACT YOKOSUKA JA
ALL TENANT COMMANDS FLEACT YOKOSUKA JA
NCTAMS PAC HONOLULU HI
NAVCYBERDEFOPSCOM VIRGINIA BEACH VA
NAVCOMTELSTA FAR EAST YOKOSUKA JA
COMNAVPERSCOM MILLINGTON TN//PERS472/PERS455//
NAVIOCOM YOKOSUKA JA
BT
UNCLAS
SUBJ/ASSUMPTION OF COMMAND
MSGID/GENADMIN/-/JUL/-//
REF/A/DOC/SECNAV/16SEP1990//
REF/B/MSG/COMNAVPERSCOM MILLINGTON TN/051316Z DEC 12//
NARR/REF A IS U.S. NAVY REGULATIONS, REF B IS BUPERS ORDERS 3412//
POC/TEWS, J/LT/COMM: 011-81-468-16-7655/DSN: 315-243-7655//
RMKS/1. EFFECTIVE 0200Z, 19 JULY 2013, CDR MICHAEL C. ELLIOT, USN, RELIEVED CDR MICHAEL L. DOUGLAS, USN, AS COMMANDING OFFICER OF UNITED STATES NAVY INFORMATION OPERATIONS COMMAND YOKOSUKA JAPAN.

ALL COMMAND DIRECTIVES AND INSTRUCTIONS REMAIN IN EFFECT UNTIL CANCELLED OR SUPERSEDED.//
BT

Change of Command - NIOC Menwith Hill

ON THURSDAY, 18 JUL 2013, CDR CLARENCE FRANKLIN JR., USN, RELIEVED CDR MUSSELWHITE, USN, AS COMMANDING OFFICER NAVIOCOM  MENWITH HILL.

ALL ORDERS, DIRECTIVES, NOTICES AND INSTRUCTIONS PREVIOUSLY ISSUED REMAIN IN EFFECT UNTIL CANCELLED OR SUPERCEDED.

U.S. NAVIOCOM YOKOSUKA JAPAN Change of Command

Very proud that Commander Michael C. Elliot (my Ops officer when I was CO of NSGA Yokosuka) assumes command of our former command today on Friday, 19 July.  He relieves Commander Mike Douglas.  Another former JO, LCDR Andrew T. Reeves is the Executive Officer.  A former PO3 has returned as the Command Master Chief - Cedric Rawlinson.  What an awesome opportunity for all involved.  Looking forward to EXTRAORDINARY things from this team.  BZ!!

Freedom to act based on responsibility

“I am free, no matter what rules surround me. If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them; if I find them too obnoxious, I break them. I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do.” 

- Robert A. Heinlein

Navy Grade 36 Bureaucrat offers some thoughts on Reducing Administrative Distractions

Goto this LINK.

CHANGE OF COMMAND Center for Information Dominance Unit Corry Station

Commander Chris Bryant assumed command of CID Unit Corry Station on 11 July 2013.

Some Naval officers - afraid to lead?

This may seem like a odd statement to some in the Navy; but it really is not strange at all to some of those in leadership positions and others who are selected to fill significant leadership positions.  Many Naval officers actually fear selection for senior leadership positions.  And later in their careers, they literally live in fear while serving in significant positions of leadership and this fear is sometimes paralyzing to them.

Of course, this is not true of all officers.  Those who are true leaders realize it is their responsibility to lead and to fully develop the leadership skills of all the Sailors in their organizations.  Exceptional leaders focus a great deal of their time helping the Sailors on their team develop leadership skills.  Some weak Commanding Officers seemingly go out of their way to suppress the leadership aspirations of the Sailors they lead.  They do what they can to keep their Sailors from developing leadership skills because they fear that those Sailors may prove to be more effective leaders than they are themselves.

Usually, these Commanding Officers experience these fears because they have not received adequate leadership training, or they worked for weak or ineffective Navy leaders themselves.  A surprisingly high number of those promoted into these significant leadership roles have had no formal leadership training or coaching.  Some in the Navy actually believe the myths about leaders being born and don't take the time or make the effort necessary to create and nurture leaders.  Some of our Commanding Officers find they have to take on the responsibility of command with only a vague idea of what is expected of them.  In these cases, the Commanding Officers experience the fear of being held accountable or of not meeting expectations.  It paralyzes them and they fail to lead their commands at the very high levels of performance required of "extraordinary commands".

CTT1 Steven Daugherty - Gone SIX years now - NEVER TO BE FORGOTTEN

CTT1 Steve Daugherty, one of our students at NTTC Corry Station, Pensacola Florida while I was Director of Training, was killed in Iraq on my daughter's birthday. Steve and I shared birthdays - 16 May.  Recognized by NSA as a cryptologic hero - HERE.

The information below is from his FaceBook site-maintained by his family. Click on his gravestone (to the left) to go to his FaceBook page.

CTT1 (Cryptologic Technician Technical First Class) Steven P. Daugherty, born in Apple Valley, California, was killed in action July 6, 2007, in Baghdad, Iraq, by an improvised explosive device (IED). He was once student of the month at Barstow High School and made the honor roll at Barstow Community College. After graduating with an associate's degree in liberal studies, Steven enlisted in the Navy, where he worked with elite Navy SEAL teams, providing critical intelligence support to troops on the ground.

On that fateful day in July, Steven and his team were returning from a highly sensitive Joint Task Force operation in direct support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, when their vehicle struck an IED, killing him and the two other members of his unit. According to the National Security Agency, it turned out that the work he and his team performed earlier that day played a decisive role in thwarting a dangerous group of insurgents who were trying to kill U.S. and Coalition forces. Today, across from our nation's Capitol, Steven rests in peace in the sacred ground of Arlington National Cemetery.

Steven was respected by his peers as a professional and dedicated cryptologic technician, and his work was vital to the success of important combat missions. He was a decorated Sailor, having been awarded a Bronze Star (with combat "V"), Purple Heart, Combat Action Ribbon and other medals and commendations. His name is inscribed on National Security Agency's Memorial Wall, "They Served in Silence." Steven is only the second recipient of the National Intelligence Medal for Valor.

Steven was a loving 28-year-old father to an adoring 5-year-old son. A loyal brother to three fellow warfighters - two Airmen and one Soldier, Richard, Robert, and Kristine. And a faithful son to his parents, Thomas and Lydia.

Most of all, Steven P. Daugherty was a patriot who gave the full measure of devotion defending America's freedom.

In naming this important building to honor the sacrifice of Steven P. Daugherty, the Navy dedicates to him the latest addition to the nation's premiere Joint Warfare Assessment Laboratory at the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Corona Division. The Daugherty Memorial Assessment Center will stand as an ever-present reminder of Steven -- and to every Sailor, Marine, Soldier, and Airman who has given their life in defense of this country. This dedication also commemorates the groundbreaking work NSWC Corona is doing to support the Joint IED Defeat Organization in its mission to combat the threat of IEDs against our Armed Forces.

In addition to supporting needed counter-IED efforts, the Daugherty Memorial Assessment Center greatly enhances NSWC Corona’s ability to support key national missions. With it, NSWC Corona can provide Strike Group interoperability assessment needed to certify ships for deployment; provide critical flight analysis for all Navy surface missile systems; provide performance assessment of Aegis and Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense ships throughout their entire lifecycle; and finally, NSWC Corona can centralize, process, and distribute the Navy's combat and weapon system data on one of the largest classified networks in the Department of Defense.

The Daugherty Memorial Assessment Center is a state-of-the-art analysis and assessment asset that gives the nation extensive capability to protect our Armed Forces, our country, and our freedom.

Happy Independence Day - May God Bless America !!

NIOC COLORADO Change of Command

Commander Mark Ratkus assumed command of Navy Information Operations Command on 3 July 2013.

The making of a cryppie

"...If you desire to be a really great cryptanalyst, being a little bit nuts helps. A cryptanalyst, from those that I have observed, is usually an odd character..."

Captain Joseph J. Rochefort, USN

CO NAF El Centro fired

The commanding officer of Naval Air Facility El Centro, Calif., was relived of his duties on 1 July 2013 — the third straight week that’s started with the firing of a shore-based Navy CO.

Captain  Devon Jones, who assumed command in August 2011, was fired by Rear Admiral Dixon Smith, head of Navy Region Southwest, “due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command,” according to a Navy Region Southwest news release.

The Navy would not release the full details of Jones’ alleged actions at this time because the case remains under investigation, said Commander Brad Fagan, director of public affairs at Navy Region Southwest.

Sailors - Integrity

Assume your Sailors are performing with integrity, then validate that assumption. It’s not an insult to expect exceptional performance– its an insult not to.

From JO Rules