To build the agility and resilience of its workforce, the CECOM Integrated Logistics Support Center offers regular ‘Lunch and Learns’, virtual sessions pertaining to specific issues that are important to the everyday life of the Center’s employees. From wellness and safety to payroll and clerical topics, Lunch and Learns run the gamut to make sure that all pertinent areas are accounted for. And while the ILSC employs a great number of Subject Matter Experts, it has been expanding its horizons by inviting outside authorities to speak on specific topics in their fields so that the ILSC workforce can gain an even deeper understanding. Presenters have come from other organizations across Aberdeen Proving Ground, elsewhere in the Army, and outside of the government entirely, echoing the ILSC’s mission to present its workforce with the best information available.
One such example was the recent Lunch and Learn on 22 May that was organized by the ILSC Safety team on the topic of “Healthy Eyes in the Workplace: Vision, Comfort, & Efficient Office Setup”. The ILSC turned to Navy Commander Dr. Kyle Dohm to present on this subject. Dr. Dohm and other members of the Tri-Service Vision Conservation and Readiness Branch at Defense Centers for Public Health – Aberdeen are experts in the field of vision, and they were able to effectively teach ILSC attendees about refractive error, reducing glare, proper lighting, and best practices for setting up a workspace.
Workforce Development and Training Team Program Analyst Ms. Adena Meninger, who facilitates Lunch and Learns for the ILSC Headquarters’ Mission Resources Division, feels that this platform is especially suited to engaging with experts outside the ILSC. “Advice and guidance from outside experts broadens our knowledge base in ways we may have never expected. Oftentimes, subject matter experts are required to keep pace with modern technology and research, and the Lunch and Learn program offers the opportunity to gain access to that knowledge before it becomes commonly known, giving the CECOM ILSC workforce an upper hand,” said Ms. Meninger.
The ILSC holds at least one, and frequently multiple, Lunch and Learns per week, with various branches of the Mission Resources Division often presenting topics or supporting the speakers and directorates who lend their expertise to a session. Moreover, they have made it a priority to bring in outside speakers, experts who can bring a unique experience and knowledge set to a topic that the workforce is hungry to learn more about. It all begins with leveraging existing connections that ILSC team members have made throughout the course of their own professional experience, and then contacting subject authorities either directly or through a mutual connection.
Over the past year, ILSC Wellness Coordinator Ms. Linnea Tober has put an emphasis on enlisting specialists to speak on topics related to health and wellness. Guest speakers have included APG Employee Assistance Program Coordinator Dr. Jenise Bryce and Ms. Lynda Janet of the Alzheimer’s Association, with more professionals in the field to follow. For Ms. Tober, Lunch and Learns like these aren’t just informational, but transformational. Said Ms. Tober, “As a local yoga instructor and reiki practitioner, it is truly an honor for me to reach out to my local wellness community contacts to bring other experts in to share knowledge and expertise for the ILSC wellness Lunch and Learns. Our workforce can look forward to many more interesting topics such as healing with color therapy, herbal remedies for stress-relief, and living with Celiac Disease and serious food allergies.”
Mr. Scott Ritz, Acting Chief of MRD’s Professional Development and Career Management Branch, is fairly new to the ILSC after almost 15 years at Army Test and Evaluation Command. The Lunch and Learn program impressed him immediately. “The Lunch and Learns we host bring such great opportunity for the entire ILSC to learn about a wide variety of topics. Everyone can get a little more knowledge that can help them in their professional development or just give them a few more tools to use that they might not have had before, making their lives easier. With the feedback we get from our attendees, we hope to continue to grow the list of Lunch and Learns to make an impact with the program,” said Mr. Ritz, whose team is always exploring new avenues to enrich the lives of the ILSC workforce.
The robust Lunch and Learn program at the ILSC drives at the heart of the organizational goal to stay agile, innovative, and resilient in its approach to all things, keeping the Center aligned by engaging its employees and providing them with all of the resources they need to support the Warfighter. Most importantly, the Integrated Logistics Support Center acknowledges that it is not an island, and it leverages partnerships to bring in the best experts and speakers available to share their wisdom and best practices with an ILSC team that is willing to adapt and hungry to learn.
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