FAREWELL: Outgoing Chief of Navy VADM Chris Ritchie leaves a legacy of Sea Change as the sun sets on his career.

Photos and montage: ABPH Kade Rogers

By Michael Brooke

Outgoing Chief of Navy VADM Chris Ritchie said that Sea Change would be crucial to enable the Navy to meet it’s future objectives in the years to come.

“Certainly my biggest challenge as the CN has been Sea Change. This has involved getting some momentum to the cultural shift we need to really start achieving some gains,” VADM Ritchie said.

“Sea Change represents a transformation in the way Navy personnel are to be managed in the Navy, combined with a process that will ensure that the transformation will happen.”

The outgoing CN said that Sea Change was important because it enabled the Navy to meet its biggest challenges relating to retention and the modernisation of the fleet.

“Navy’s biggest challenge is in recruiting and retaining high quality people to man the future Navy - the AWDs, the amphibious ships, the Armidale Class Patrol Boats etc.

That is why Sea Change is so important.” VADM Ritchie said strategies to improve retention rates should focus on geographic stability and other personnel issues. “Retention is about geographic stability, social certainty and job satisfaction. A fair pay packet clearly counts too but the first three things seem to be what people want.”

VADM Ritchie said he was not concerned by the latest findings in the Defence attitude survey. “I’m not really concerned by the findings because I expect professional people to be weighing up their options for employment,” he said.

“Everyone does that. As for some of the other areas – confidence in supervisors etc, they were improving results. All that said, I take the findings seriously and we can use them in the process of improvement of life in the Navy.”

VADM Ritchie said that Sea Change also symbolizes his greatest contrubution to the Navy.

“I believe that my greatest legacy is Sea Change because of its importance to the future of the Navy and enabling it to meet many significant challenges in the future,” he said.

“But I would also include my part in the Defence Capability Plan of 2003 and the development of our future fleet as legacies to be proud of.”

The outgoing CN said his proudest moment in a Navy career spanning 40- years was serving as Chief of Navy, but he also rated other highlights as three sea commands, command of the Fleet and 11 months as COMAST.

“Given Tampa, 9/11 and all that went with those events, it was a tremendously professionally satisfying job being COMAST,” he said.

Speaking about his retirement, VADM Ritchie said he does not want to “miss the companionship of the Navy, the people who have been part of my life for 40 years”, so he plans to join the Navy Reserve.

.