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Lisa 23
06-02-11, 08:13 AM
Re-enlistment changes coming this summer

By Dan Lamothe - Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday May 31, 2011 7:56:00 EDT


TAMPA, Fla. — The Marine Corps will overhaul its re-enlistment process this summer, introducing a new system that will give Marines more time to decide their future and allow the service to be more selective about who it keeps.

The plan comes in response to Commandant Gen. Jim Amos’ mandatethat the Corps keeps its best Marines, and not just those first to re-up. The new system will give Marines more time to consult their families, consider their options and make an educated decision, said Maj. Gen. Angela Salinas, director of the manpower management division at Manpower and Reserve Affairs.

“We want your best Marines to re-enlist,” Salinas told about 50 career planners gathered here earlier this month. “That’s the focus of our efforts this year. We want to be smart about how we do business.”

The new rules include four big changes, officials said. They are:

1. New tiered evaluation system. Commanders will have greater say in how Marines are evaluated for re-enlistment with a tiered system that debuts this summer. Enlisted personnel will be rated “eminently qualified,” “highly competitive,” “average” or “below average” on an annual basis, and counseled on how they can improve their rating. In cases where a commander decides a Marine’s low rating is unwarranted due to extenuating circumstances, such as a low Combat Fitness Test score, he can move someone into a higher category.

2. More time to submit materials. For years, Marines have had 30 days to get their re-enlistment package submitted once re-up season began. Those who didn’t risked missing out on an open slot, or boat space, in their military occupational specialty. Under the new system, Marines will have 90 days, beginning July 1, to assess their options. The Corps benefits by having a larger pool of Marines from which to choose, officials said.

3. “Quality Marine” waivers. The Corps also will debut a new wrinkle in which commanding generals can push Marine Corps headquarters to re-enlist specific hard-charging Marines in their MOS, even when there are no more boat spaces left. Waivers will be cut for some Marines only when compelling cases are made. The Corps also will continue to use the Quality Reenlistment Program, a separate system in which about 100 Marines per year are allowed to re-up in their MOS after boat spaces are gone.

4. Targeted re-enlistment recruiting. Career planners and commanders will be advised to search for Marines who could potentially serve in highly technical, in-demand career fields such as cyber, intelligence and explosive ordnance disposal, and encourage them to make lateral moves while re-enlisting. Doing so will strengthen the Corps as a whole and allow some of the service’s brightest Marines to advance more quickly in fields with faster career progression and bigger bonuses, Manpower officials said.

The changes were unveiled at the 2011 Career Planners Conference, and outlined in Marine administrative message 273/11, released May 5. What you need to know:

New evals

Historically, Marine leaders have endorsed their Marines for re-enlistment using the categories “with enthusiasm,” “with confidence,” and “with reservation.” Leaders also could recommend that their Marines not be re-enlisted and explain why.

That system will be scrapped in favor of the new four-tiered approach, addressing several longstanding issues, Salinas told career planners at the conference.

First, it will eliminate confusion by offering clearly defined reasons why a Marine should be allowed to re-up. It was sometimes difficult at headquarters to determine why a commander recommended someone with confidence, rather than with enthusiasm, she said.

The new description for Tier 1 Marines, the best of the best, is indicative. To earn an “eminently qualified” rating, Marines must do “superior work in all duties,” demonstrating “positive effect on others by example and persuasion.”

“Even extremely difficult or unusual assignments can be given with full confidence that they will be handled in a thoroughly competent manner,” the Tier 1 description says.

The Corps is in the process of developing a computer system that shows Marines how they compare with peers in their MOS who are up for re-enlistment in the same year. Commanders and other unit leaders will be able to show Marines how they stack up, giving poor performers time to shape up before the Corps considers them for re-enlistment.

The evaluation takes into consideration a variety of criteria, including professional military education and scores for the Combat Fitness Test and Physical Fitness Test. If a Marine doesn’t stack up well due to extenuating circumstances, such as an injury that dragged down a PFT score, commanders can upgrade which tier he falls in. Conversely, awards will not be a factor because not all Marines are in positions in which they can earn them, Salinas said.

“We want to make sure the commander is providing the commandant with the best advice and the best recommendations to keep our best Marines in, and it’s not always going to be about just what’s on paper,” Salinas said in an interview.

The system is designed to give a chance to Tier 3 and Tier 4 Marines and to those who have a nonjudicial punishment or some other mistake on their record, but don’t have a long track record of misconduct.

“We don’t want to be zero-defect,” Salinas said. “Not everybody is going to get a chance to stay a Marine, but we have to make sure there is a difference between being immature and a character flaw.”

More time to submit

The expanded re-enlistment submission period should ease pressure on Marines who are considering re-enlisting but have options outside the Corps to consider as well asfamilies to consult, Manpower officials said.

Beginning July 1, Marines will have 90 days to get their package in to Marine Corps headquarters, changing the outlook on how Marines in fast-filling specialties such as motor vehicle operator can approach the re-up process. The extra 60 days will allow more Marines to submit packages, giving the Corps a bigger pool of Marines to choose from.

That will make the process more competitive, but it also will increase opportunities for good Marines who struggle to get packages in during the 30-day window.

“By default, it allows us to pick from the very best of the best Marines,” said retired Maj. Rick Spooner, deputy branch head of Manpower’s enlisted assignment branch. “A lot of people think that whoever re-enlists first, we’re going to give them the first shot because they came in first. What we want to convey is, ‘No, we’re letting more Marines submit, we’re going to hold these cases and we’re going to let Marines compete.’”

Historically, the Corps cut off re-enlistment submissions each summer after the 30-day window closed, and if there were more submissions than boat spaces, a board would convene to decide which Marines got to stay in their MOS, said Lt. Col. Mike Landree, head of Manpower’s enlisted retention and counseling section. Those who didn’t make the cut could either leave the Corps or make a lateral move into another field.

‘Quality Marine’ waivers

The new Quality Marine Identification program will add another option for the Corps to keep good Marines who slipped through the cracks. Beginning this summer, commanding generals will be able to request a waiver from Marine Corps headquarters to re-enlist key Marines in their MOS, even if no boat spaces are left.

It’s uncertain how many QMI waivers will be granted. Commanding generals will approach Salinas for them, Spooner said. QMI will be a “silver bullet” that generals can use to save good Marines when nothing else works, Salinas told career planners.

“If all else fails, they’re still going to be able to pick up the phone, and if the boat spaces are closed, we’re going to get that boat space for that young Marine to be re-enlisted,” she said.

The Corps will continue to use the Quality Reenlistment Program, which was established in 2001 to consider re-enlistment requests from exceptional Marines who did not receive a boat space in their specialties. Once an MOS closes, first-term Marines can still apply to re-up in those fields through the program, with 100 additional slots typically available per year.

To be considered, Marines must have pro/con scores of at least 4.5/4.5, current first-class scores on the PFT and CFT, no assignments to the Marine Corps Body Composition and Military Appearance programs, no non-judicial punishments, courts-martial or criminal civilian convictions, and at least one letter of recommendation from an officer or staff noncommissioned officer in their chain of command.

Re-up recruiting

The Corps will change the way it fills high-demand fields such as cyber, explosive ordnance disposal and intelligence. In addition to offering big bonuses, career planners, commanders and other Marines with influence over promising junior enlisted Marines will be directed to seek them out and recruit them to swap fields.

Marines will be screened for the jobs based on scores already in their record books such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, Marine officials said. If they appear to be capable of taking on a more technical MOS, they’ll be approached about alternative options to re-enlisting in their own field.

“When you’re assessed as a brand-new Marine, you might have wanted to be a grunt, but things can change,” Landree said. “We can say, ‘We’re offering you an opportunity to move into a career that will help you with promotions, help you with career advancement and has bonuses. These are things the Marine Corps needs, and we’re seeking you out for these lateral moves.’”

Marines who are identified as good candidates to swap fields won’t be required to do so. However, the new mindset is to approach them as early as two years before their initial active service time is up and ask them to consider swapping.

told career planners that the new emphasis on recruiting for high-demand specialties will fall largely to them.

“You’re going to have to go to these young people and say, ‘You’re perfect for these jobs,’ and we’re going to start working with them at the end of the second or third year,” she said. “If they want to re-enlist early, we’ll let them do that, we’ll get them into our schools and we’ll meet the needs of the Marine Corps.”

http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2011/05/marine-new-rules-reenlist-053111w/