Executive Director's View

The Human Advantage is NHA’s Advantage

By CAPT Jim Gillcrist, USN (Ret.)

I am excited about the direction of this year’s symposium theme, “The Human Advantage.” The 2022 NHA Symposium will be less about the “hardware” we need to win the fight, and more about our true competitive advantage in peace and war, our people. The Rotary Force is a mix of high-end rotary wing, unmanned, and tilt rotor platforms. However, what makes it unique is an organization made up of maintainers, aircrew, and pilots who train, operate, and deploy together. We fix, we fly, and we strike as a team – united through a shared purpose and reinforcing culture. This is what makes us different and provides the edge in combat.

So too, NHA is about the people with the same shared purpose and reinforcing culture. Professional development, camaraderie, and the opportunity for mentorship and networking are our key mission sets. This is the value proposition for being a member. It is about taking care of each other and paying it forward when you can. This is my reflection after three years as Executive Director. Besides swag and a magazine, your membership in this professional organization enables you to tap into shipmates and career mentors, all of whom provide support and sage counsel. We are each other’s keeper.

Allow me to provide a real-world example. In the past 18 months, I have had the privilege to mentor and make key connections for two active duty NHA members who reached a point where they had decided to transition to a civilian career. Both individuals had excelled and been successful in the Navy. As we crossed paths professionally aboard North Island and socially at the I-Bar, I made introductions (as we all would have) for each within a local aerospace and defense company where both landed jobs as strategic hires. This is what we do as a professional organization – we look out for each other.

Attracting more JOs, aircrew, and maintainers to the organization makes NHA more vibrant, builds the team, and enriches the overall experience. Reaching 3,000 active members this year is a strategic priority. Currently, NHA is at 2,775 members. Membership is the lifeblood of the organization, and it is NHA’s “human advantage!”

• Please keep your membership profile up to date. • Register NOW for the 2022 Symposium. • If you should need any assistance at all, give us a call at (619) 435-7139 and we will be happy to help – you will get

Linda, Mike, Allyson, or myself.

Warm regards with high hopes, Jim Gillcrist.

Every Member Counts / Stronger Together

DCAG Drenning gets “coined” as Lifetime Member #700 with E-Dub, Bick, Tracksuit, Gump, Easy, Bomb, and JMel at the I-Bar on Friday, 25 February 2022.