The Coast Guard has released a strategy for revolutionizing how we build, develop and manage our tremendously talented force in the coming decades. Ready Workforce 2030 (RW30) challenges the service to be inspiring, agile, adaptive and efficient as we strive to maintain our competitive edge in an increasingly dynamic labor market.
“Change must be revolutionary, pervasive and transformative,” Adm. Karl L. Schultz writes in the new strategy.
The strategy calls for more career flexibility, training and learning options. The primary lines of effort are:
- Transform how we recruit, hire, and retain our workforce
- Modernize training systems and delivery
- Provide world-class member support
“Conditions of service that I accepted 41years ago when I entered the Coast Guard Academy are no longer acceptable to our workforce,” said Vice Commandant Linda Fagan. “We must take decisive action to think differently and redefine our assumptions to transform our talent management system so there is more flexibility built in to make it easier for those who want to serve.”
Adm. Fagan, Vice Adm. Paul Thomas and Command Master Chief Jahmal Pereira joined Adm. Schultz this week to share the plan with leaders from the enlisted, officer, and civilian workforce programs.
They made clear that the Coast Guard can change as quickly as service culture will permit. “This is going to take cultural change,” Fagan said. “It’s going to create some discomfort. But RW30 will help us create the workforce we need.”
Fagan emphasized that our core values will remain our greatest strength. “The sense of belonging, the team, the camaraderie – that's what we offer as an employer.”
Potential RW30 initiatives include:
- Assignment or billet-banding management processes to increase career growth and flexibility.
- Programs to promote and reward talent development
- A “no-penalty opt-out” for consideration by a promotion board for members in the process of changing specialties or addressing acute work-life issues
- Non-monetary, incentives-based reenlistment alternatives similar to those available in the private sector.
“We’re building and revising policies for OUR Coast Guard,” Fagan said. “We’re all invested.”
As RW30 planning gets underway, MyCG will share regular updates along with opportunities for you to help shape the transformation.