Employees Move Up Career Ladder With Advice From Leaders

REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. -- Seeking out career opportunities and promotions are always in the realm of possibility within the Aviation and Missile Command's Logistics Center.

Even in times of tight budgets, a government employee who is an asset to their organization, and who has the experience and education to back up their capabilities can find ways to move up the career ladder.

That's the message that AMCOM Logistics Center employees received from their leaders during the ALC LOG Career Day Sept. 22. The day of activities -- including presentations on the Army Career Tracker, the Total Employee Development program, the Leader Investment for Tomorrow, Continuous Process Improvement and Resume Writing -- was aimed at assisting ALC employees with their career progression.

"What does it take to get promoted? Put yourself in the shoes of your supervisor. What do you want? Who do you promote? You want to promote technical employees who understand processes, automated systems, budgets and contracting, and all those things associated with technical roles," said Mark Moe, director of Supportability and Sustainment for ALC.

"You have to be a good communicator and team player and be well educated. There needs to be a breadth of experience of aviation and missile commodities. Leadership really values these kinds of things."

That breadth of experience should include employment diversity that shows an employee's flexibility and capabilities.

"You need to have diversity to be really competitive," said Bill Andrews, ALC deputy director, even if job opportunities take an employee outside their career path. Andrews, who is a CP-13 careerist (Supply Management Career Program), has also held CP-17 (Materiel Maintenance Management Career Program) positions in the course of his career.

Both Moe and Andrews said that long-term employees will hit lulls or periods of frustration in their careers. Those are times when they should be looking at taking on developmental assignments and other broadening experiences.

"When should you move on? When you are the person in the office who everyone comes to and asks. 'What's the best way to do things?' When you are the go-to person in your office," Andrews said.

But an employee who tries to move on without a mastery of technical skills will not get far.

"The first thing you want to do is build technical depth," Andrews said. "That's your base, your bench. We expect you to be technically proficient in your job."

While developmental assignments are good for exploring different career opportunities, taking a promotion or lateral move to a new position provides better opportunities for growth and breadth of experience.

"With developmental assignments, it's a position created out of opportunity but not necessarily focused on an organization's core mission," Andrews said.

"A supervisor will select you for promotion because you are really competent as a technical person and you can master new things. We assess your potential to take on new responsibilities."

Based on the ALC selection matrix format, supervisors critique employees on team playing attributes, communicator abilities, champion pacesetter roles, results driven activities and business acumen.

There are about 2,000 employees within ALC, with about 500 of those working outside Redstone Arsenal at locations such as Fort Campbell, Ky., Fort Rucker, Ala. and Fort Eustis, Va. There is a broad base of GS-11 and GS-12 ALC employees, and the larger those bases are the more opportunity there is for career movement. Currently, about 20 percent of ALC employees are eligible to retire, with retirements opening new employment opportunities.

But the field of opportunity does narrow substantially beyond GS-12 career opportunities and, often, movement beyond GS-12 requires taking on opportunities at the Army Materiel Command, the Pentagon or at a program executive office, Moe said.

Once an employee does reach the GS-13 level and above, it can take years to master the job.

Regardless of where an employee is in their career path, their overall impact on the organization will determine future growth potential.

"Leaders get paid to achieve results," Moe said. "If you get things done well and you get along well with others -- those are the two things we are looking for. You want to achieve results because results are what everybody is looking for."

Promotable employees within ALC need to have success at leading change, leading people and building coalitions; need to have key functional knowledge skills; need weapon system support expertise and must have significant accomplishments in their career field.

"You are responsible and accountable for your career," Andrews said. "Know the basics of how to apply for a job. Find mentors and teachers who can uncover your blind spots. Be open to feedback and always search out feedback. You want to get better, to learn. You want to give yourself the opportunity to improve.

"Building your career from a wholistic standpoint involves building relationships, communicating with leadership and understanding leaders."

During the Logistician Round Table at the end of the career day event, ALC's David Roden, Sheryl Ford, Charles Reeves and Marsha Bailey shared their career progression with the career day attendees before answering questions. Each began their federal government careers through an intern program.

In determining the right education and employment opportunities, an employee should, first, have a good understanding of their desired career track.

"What is it that you are targeting? You've got to have some targets. You've got to understand what you are trying to do," Reeves said. "What is it you want to get out of your career? What are your targets?"

Even though skills and experience are essential to future leaders, those who don't communicate well, who aren't approachable, who don't provide counsel to their employees and who don't talk over individual development plans with their employees are missing the mark, Ford said.

"Leaders need to be able to relate to employees. They need to be empathetic. They need to communicate and listen to their employee's voice," she said.