7th SFG (A) career counselor best in USASOC

By Sgt. Kyle Fisch, USASOC Public AffairsMay 24, 2016

CCOYC
1 / 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Special Operations Command Career Counselor of the Year candidates; Staff Sgt. Gwen E. Vanetten, U.S. Army Special Warfare Center and School career counselor (left), and Sgt. 1st Class Jill D. Thompson, 7th Special Forces Group (A) Group Su... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
CCOYC
2 / 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Special Operations Command Career Counselor of the Year candidates; (from left to right) Staff Sgt. Gwen E. Vanetten, U.S. Army Special Warfare Center and School career counselor, Sgt. 1st Class Jill D. Thompson, 7th Special Forces Group (A... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
CCOYC
3 / 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. Army Special Operations Command Career Counselor of the Year candidates competed on Fort Bragg, N.C., Jan. 26, 2016. The competition is an annual event that gives career counselors across the Army an opportunity to compete against their peers to... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
CCOYC
4 / 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Col. Miguel A. Correa, U.S. Army Special Operations Command Chief of Staff, presents Sgt. 1st Class Jill D. Thompson, 7th Special Forces Group (A) Group Support Battalion career counselor, an Army Commendation Medal after naming her the winner of thi... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT BRAGG, N.C. -- The 2016 U.S. Army Special Operations Command Career Counselor of the Year Competition named Sgt. 1st Class Jill Thompson, Ontario, California, a career counselor assigned to 7th SFG (A), representing 1st Special Forces Command, as the winner.

The competition was held January 26-28, and led by Command Sgt. Maj. Robert Abernethy, USASOC command sergeant major.

"The competition consisted of four graded areas, the submission packet, an APFT, a 50-question exam tailored to Army retention which must be completed within one hour, and the board interview," said Sgt. Maj. Mark A. Thompson, USASOC command career counselor. "Our board was made to mirror the secretary of the Army CCOYC, which is the next step for the winner of the USASOC-level competition."

"It came down to only 0.65 on a 100 point scale separating the winner and the runner-up," said Sgt. Maj. Thompson.

Surpassing her fellow competitors by a small margin, Thompson notes that she is honored to represent 7th SFG (A), 1st Special Forces Command, and USASOC at the Secretary of the Army level career counselor of the year competition.

"This competition is an opportunity for me to [also] represent my battalion, USASOC, and the career counselor field to the best of my abilities in a competitive, professional setting," she said. Thompson is assigned to the Group Support Battalion, 7th SFG (A).

The CCOYC is an annual event held Army-wide to give Army career counselors a chance to prove they are the best-of-the-best at what they do.

Candidates for the CCOYC must study the Army Retention Program and be knowledgeable on current policies in place concerning Soldier reenlistment and education in order to stay abreast of the needs of this ever-changing career field.

"There is a lot of prep-work, because there are a lot of policy changes occurring at any given time, you have to try and stay current as these policies change," Thompson said. "Not only for this competition but so that you aren't giving Soldiers erroneous information."

In addition to the CCOYC, USASOC career counselors also took part in quarterly training where they were taught about current VA benefits and options, details regarding the Post 9/11 GI Bill, as well as changes to the U.S. Army Noncommissioned Officer Evaluation Report.

"Quarterly retention training is vital to the continued success of retention's mission accomplishment. Given the constant changes that come up, taking the time out of career counselor's days to focus on training to identify those changes, and how they will impact the command they support, is necessary for them to successfully retain essential personnel and meet the Army's retention requirements," said sergeant major Thompson.

Sgt. Maj. Thompson also noted that career counselors are the subject-matter experts of much more than reenlistments and extensions. Adding that career counselors are responsible for military occupational specialty (MOS) reclassification, education incentives for Post 9/11 GI Bill- regarding the transfer of education benefits from the Soldier to their dependents, and ETS matters.

"We also handle career development for Soldiers. What that means, is that we are able to tell Soldiers what is required and what they need to accomplish in order to remain competitive among their peers regarding promotions."

While retention is a unique job by itself, USASOC's unique attributes, processes, and programs make it even more so.

"We're the only Army command (ACOM) that creates, grows, and sustains specific career management field (CMF) military occupational specialties (MOS's) such as 18, 37, and 38 series. Therefore our retention mission is a little more complex than typical ACOMs in the Army. But if you pull back all the complexities of this unit, USASOC does really well with its retention," said Sgt. Maj. Thompson.

As more and more stories surge on television and newspapers regarding the Army's planned troop drawdown, some may be wondering how it will affect USASOC.

"Currently the Army's drawdown is not affecting USASOC, and that's something that Army leadership has already put out," said Sgt. Maj. Thompson. "Even though the requirement for regular Army forces in deployed environments is slowly dwindling, the requirement for Special Operations forces is actually increasing."

Sgt. Maj. Thompson also points out that- "The Chief of Staff of the Army's number one priority is readiness. Well, the Army can't be ready without a quality force, and retention is the 'spearhead' for maintaining a quality force."

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