lessonslearned Help Wanted
A young Navy officer whose first assignment has him wearing both food-service-officer and stores-officer hats learns the importance of making do with what he has.
I
n early 1979, as a newly commis- sioned limited duty supply corps ensign in the Navy, I received an as-
signment to the submarine tender USS Orion (AS-18) in Charleston, S.C. My primary job was food-service of-
ficer, responsible for ensuring a crew of approximately 1,200 sailors was fed adequately. My secondary job was issu- ing food stores to submarines assigned to Submarine Squadron 16. Previously, as an enlisted servicemem-
ber, my experience was as a storekeeper, so learning the nuances of food service was, for me, a full-time job. The USS Orion subsequently went
to the Charleston Naval Shipyard for a nine-month overhaul in preparation to be forward-deployed to La Maddalena, Italy, in 1980. The stores officer at the time had been
transferred because he had too little time remaining on his enlistment to finish the nine-month-long period and make the transit to Italy. As we no longer were feeding the USS
Orion crew members, my supply officer, then-Cmdr. Chuck Stone, USN, assigned me to be both the food service and the stores officer. Suddenly, I found myself responsible
for the renovation of the galley spaces and all food storerooms, as well as the store- rooms of the 22 general stores. My staffing subsequently was cut by
66 percent in both my S1 and S2 divi- sions. When I questioned this, I was told
7 2 MI L I T A R Y O F F I C E R AU G U S T 2 0 1 0
staffing would be restored when we ar- rived in La Maddalena, where personnel staffing would be back to 100 percent. Toward the end of the USS Orion’s
overhaul, I was tasked to start load- ing the storerooms with food stores as well as general stores. I worked hard to schedule cranes, trucks, and material- handling equipment with my short per- sonnel staffing levels. Overwhelmed by the magnitude of the
job’s responsibilities, I asked my supply officer for assistance. I explained to him I needed three things to accomplish my job: more people, more equipment, and more money. His response was, “Paul, if you had all of the personnel, equipment, and money you needed to do your job, I wouldn’t need you to be a manager.” He delivered the message in a humor-
ous manner, but at the same time, I could tell he was serious. I understood his message loud and clear. On that day, my supply officer shaped my work ethic as a young officer. With his words ringing in my ears, I re- ally learned for the first time in my newly hatched officer career what it meant to be a naval officer, a leader, and a manager. I carried his words with me on subse-
quent assignments and passed them on to my subordinates, when needed. MO
— Paul L. Klump is a retired Navy lieutenant commander. He lives in Watkinsville, Ga. For submission information, see page 20.
IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK
Share your serssons related adventures ( profserie) by e-mail tg or
bore@moaa.orAA
Tell Your Story ■ Submit your levice-
learned by e-mail toor
mishapss@moaa.oro enc y mail to MOg, or mail them to Encore Edi- N. Washington St., Al-
ex.andria, VA 22314. All14. submissions will be con- sideried feor publicblication.
Professional Series, 201 tor, 201 N. Washington St , Alexandria, VA 223 All submissions will be cons der d for pu ation. Comment on the latest lesson or share your own at
www.moaa.org/ lessonslearned.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92