Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas -- SEAC Ramón Colón-López, Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, returned to his Air Force roots with a recent visit to the Air Force’s Personnel Center here, Feb. 9, 2022.
Meeting with senior leaders, business process owners and action officers across the spectrum of human capital management, the SEAC heard first-hand what AFPC is doing to care for Airmen, Guardians and their families.
“We all hear about the ‘broken narrative’ when it comes to personnel programs like Talent Marketplace and EFMP (Exceptional Family Member Program),” Colón-López said. “I’m here to get the history of these programs and a good gauge on where we are and how we can [use technology to] catch up with the times.”
Two programs in the digital transformation area that piqued the SEAC’s interest were myFSS and MyEval. Previously briefed on these topics by Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force JoAnne Bass, Colón-López is a proponent of the Air Force’s evaluation system transformation.
The current enlisted performance report format reminds him of being on “Wheel of Fortune buying vowels” to understand a member’s accomplishments. The new narrative format in MyEval will not only make it easier to understand an Airman’s accomplishments, but will also link it to the Airman Leadership Qualities.
Team AFPC also briefed the SEAC on directorates’ various projects and mission sets and provided deep dives into Wounded Warrior Program, Survivor Continuum of Care, Enlisted Assignments, Talent Marketplace and the new centralized Exceptional Family Member Program.
Noting that “issues never go away,” the SEAC shared in his role as the principal military advisor to the Chairman on all matters involving joint and combined total force integration, utilization, health of the force, and joint development for enlisted personnel, he tackles one “pain project” a year from cradle to grave to make things better for the total force.
Colón-López credited AFPC on embracing telework and remote work with its civilian workforce while retaining the talent needed to accomplish the mission.
“The workforce is shifting,” the SEAC said. “Our team members need more flexibility to be creative and sometimes working from home or an alternate duty location provides a quieter, more focused environment. I like to say there is a time to internet and a time to interact. Finding this balance is key.”
Closing his engagement with senior staff members, the SEAC stated he would share with the Joint Staff and others that “AFPC is working to make life better, not harder, for people.”