Transitioning from a "doer" role in an organization into a leadership position takes planning, training and skill building.
At the Aviation and Missile Command's Logistics Center, the right mix of technical and management employees guarantee continued success. At AMCOM, the logistics career field involves maintenance, supply and transportation as well as numerous other skills like budgeting and contracting that are needed to support the Army's aviation and missile systems throughout the world.
To help employees manage their own career paths, ALC hosts an annual Log Career Day featuring leadership both within its organization and throughout Redstone Arsenal.
"You're the only one who can manage your career," said Mark Moe, director of ALC's Supportability and Sustainment Directorate, during the 2017 LOG Career Day Jan. 10 at the Bob Jones Auditorium.
The majority of employees within ALC are GS-11 through GS-15. He described GS-12 and 13 employees as technical professionals, the "doers" and "technical experts" who complete the bulk of the organization's work.
To compete effectively for those technical positions, employees have to have a solid understanding of the logistics profession.
"You should know the specific functions, processes and automated tools to execute the job. As a professional at the technical level, we also value those who are well educated and good communicators, and who have general skills like budgeting and contracting," Moe said.
For those who want to move into logistics leadership roles, there are additional traits that ALC desires.
"We look for breadth of experience," Moe said. "We still want you to be well educated and technically proficient, and we also want good communicators and those that have the ability to lead people and organizations. Building that breadth of experience comes from taking on new assignments, new projects, new roles and new jobs, sometimes in new organizations."
Breadth of experience may include working logistics both early in the life-cycle of a system as well as sustaining a fielded system; working multiple programs with experience in aviation as well as in missiles; learning different logistics disciplines like supply, maintenance and transportation.
"It's almost impossible to have all of those things when you apply for a leadership position, but those who have more breadth generally are more competitive," Moe said.
The ALC includes experience in its selecting criteria, and enables employees to build that experience through development assignments and canvasses for permanent reassignment. Moe stressed that Logistics Activity Career Program Managers are a resource for career advice and for developing experience.
"The way you get promoted is you produce results, you accomplish a lot of great things. Supervisors want people who get the job done," Moe said. "Your ability to get the job done, to change processes, to improve things are what matter. You've got to prove to me that you do your job well and you get results."
Employees who are team players, pacesetters and results driven, and who are known for leading change, leading people and building coalitions are successful in pursuing leadership promotions, he said.
When looking for a promotion opportunity, Moe said those who are successful tailor their resumes to fit certain job positions.
"They really invest their time and do their homework," he said. "They learn about the opportunity and they assess how they can fit that opportunity and then they tailor their resume to highlight those skills and experiences."
For very senior leadership positions, he encouraged employees to develop their resumes, build their skills, and seek out experiences and training opportunities, even if that means leaving Redstone Arsenal for a time.
"If you want to be a member of the Senior Executive Service, you have to have assignments outside of the ALC. The SES corps requires mobility and proven skills in the business functions, in leadership, and in experience and success at many organizational levels," Moe said.
Good mentors, teachers and coaches are invaluable, he said, suggesting that the first question to be answered by any careerist is, "Where do you see yourself in one year or five years? If you can't tell me where you want to go, I can't help you get there. Your road map depends on what you want to do."
ALC is home to employees in Army Career Program 13 (Supply Management), 17 (Materiel Maintenance Management) and 24 (Transportation and Distribution Management). Within the entire Army, 21,177 civilians are in CP 13, 26,457 in CP 17 and 6,133 in CP 24, for a total of 53,767 Army civilian logisticians.
"Logistics is 20 percent of the operating force in the Army. Logisticians have the greatest population in the Army workforce," said Hope Bean of the Civilian Logistics Career Management Office at Fort Lee, Va.
Bean, who represents CP 13, and her co-worker Betty Ruffin, who represents CP 17, both presented at LOG Career Day, providing information on the Army Career Tracker and GoArmyEd.
Employees are brought into Army logistics either as interns or as competent professionals with skills, knowledge and abilities.
"We work through career management professionals in the career programs to ensure an educated workforce and to provide answers to any type of training you need," Bean said. "Prior to 2010, only 40 percent of our workforce was mapped to a career program. After 2010, 100 percent of our workforce was mapped to a career program. Those career programs ensure an educated workforce that has the right tools and a career map that shows them the training they need."
During the daylong program, employees also received information on long-term training, resume writing and interview tips. At the end of the day, they asked questions during a Logistician Round Table that included ALC's acting deputy director Renee Mosher, Cynthia McCrary of the Program Executive Officer for Aviation and Mildred Blackshear of the Logistics Support Activity.
"If you see a job out there and you want it, don't be shy," McCrary told the audience. "It's your career and you have to manage it. Knock on those doors. Don't be afraid of hearing, 'No.'"
For new employees, employment is a two-way street.
"There's nothing you can't learn if you want to learn," Blackshear said. "People grow by being exposed to things. Be open minded. Be ready to learn. Don't be afraid to ask questions. Bring your experience to your new job. We can learn from each other."
Good leaders welcome employees who want to learn new things.
"No one is going to turn away someone trying to learn and broaden their horizon," Mosher said. "As you move up the career ladder, others will know if you are competent. But to climb that ladder, you have to get yourself known. Get out there and be aggressive. You have to be aggressive to get where you want to go."
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