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Personnel
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Specialist
postings
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Officers
can now specialise in their staff officer stream, allowing
them to gain greater expertise and job satisfaction.
Photo by Cpl Cameron Jamieson, Army newspaper
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In Army
edition 1103 [August 12, 2004] the article Army streams careers outlined
the Army Career Streaming Project conducted by DOCM-A from 2000-02
and the Military Staff Stream (MSS) that has emerged as a result.
The article outlined the relatively new option in which officers can
elect to focus their careers within the three MSS specialisations
– Military Personnel (HR), Capability and Acquisition and Military
Strategy and Policy.
MSS offers the opportunity for GSO officers to concentrate their efforts
within a chosen specialisation during staff officer postings, while
maintaining a view to returning to other GSO positions for service-need
or career progression.
Positions within the three MSS specialisations can also offer a diverse
range of employment, as exemplified by two long term Military Personnel
staff specialist officers Lt-Col Helen Barnes, SO1 Personnel at LHQ,
and Lt-Col Peter Short, soon to become the first specialist officer
to be given a command position when he assumes the position of CO
5/7RAR in 2005.
Lt-Col Barnes said she joined MSS after working in DOCM in 2001/2002
as a career advisor and in plans.
“I decided that I would [transfer], because working in the military
personnel arena offered me longer term job satisfaction than remaining
in my primary corps, which was health,” she said.
Lt-Col Barnes’ position is not only arguably one of the most
influential HR positions within the Army, but it also offers a diverse
and different employment in comparison to other HR specialists.
“The difference between the types of jobs we do here at the formation
level and below, as opposed to the types of jobs that other military
specialists might do at DPE, DGPERS and AHQ, is that we have to practically
implement all the strategies that HR specialists come up with, so
I have to deal more at the working level, interaction with COs and
units and the consequences of what happens to our soldiers.”
Lt-Col Short has had a similar career progression to Lt-Col Barnes.
As an infantry officer posted to SCMA, he decided to transfer to MSS
so he could utilise his degree majoring in HR during his staff officer
postings.
“I always saw it as a win-win situation where I would remain
as an infantry officer who also has a specialisation,” he said.
“You’re a generalist first and a specialist second. The
difference between a specialist and a non-specialist officer is that
when a specialist officer undertakes a staff role, it should be in
their area of speciality, but with a view to returning to the generalist
field when the service need and career development requires.”
The advantage of Lt-Col Short’s specialisation was exemplified
when ,between his SCMA and 5/7RAR postings, he spent a further year
in a HR position in AP – Melbourne rather than take an unrelated
staff officer position.
“This allowed me to further develop and broaden my understanding
of HR as it applies to the Army, and Defence.”
For more MSS information follow the information link to the MSS page
at http://intranet.defence.gov.au/armyweb/sites/DOCMA
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