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SURFACE WARFARE FALL 2020
Story by Lieutenant (j.g.) W. Kirk Wolff USS Paul Hamilton (DDG 60)
A newly commissioned officer has to navigate difficult waters, whether that involves undergoing the qualification process for their community, figuring out how to live in a new city on their own, or literally navigating a ship for the first time. Many commands across the Navy do not have a Public Affairs Officer (PAO) assigned to them, thus the task routinely becomes a collateral duty for overwhelmed junior officers. Consequently, those commands’ public affairs missions often fall by the wayside as competing demands take their toll. This is not an indictment of unit public affairs representatives, as the number one and two priorities for junior officers should certainly be their Sailors and qualifications, respectively. Having been one of these intimidated, unqualified junior officers myself, I know what it is like to feel buried by unfamiliar responsibilities, collateral duties, and new tasks, all while standing at the heel of a mountain of PQS. However, there are resources, tips, and habits that can ensure public affairs excellence without the task overtaking an officer’s focus. Some of those are listed below, but first I want to clarify why I am writing about an oft-overlooked area of responsibility. Why Public Affairs? In the age of social media and hyper-connectivity, the public affairs mission has taken on a level of importance never before seen. Additionally, every ship, squadron, and shore command has stories that need to be told, and work that should be highlighted. I truly believe public affairs empowers Sailors, and increases job satisfaction, pride, and buy-in to the mission. I have personally witnessed these results after the implementation of an aggressive public affairs program on my ship (USS Paul Hamilton DDG 60). As a result of our command’s efforts, individuals could often be heard in the passageways congratulating each other on their accomplishments, discussing who was featured on the Facebook page or website that day, and generally feeling proud of the ship. The Ombudsman reported family pride was greatly increased as well. The efforts and stories of our Sailors matter, and they deserve to feel proud of their command while having their accomplishments shared. Not only is it important for commands to have competent and efficient public affairs programs for these reasons, the collateral duty presents a golden opportunity for junior officers to “break out” among their peers and demonstrate their ability to effectively plan and execute. Though not all inclusive, some keys to success I have found are as follows:
