Page 47 - RADC Bulletin 2021

DEVELOPMENT
A New Way of Working
Sgt G Shaw
After receiving a call from the desk officer during half term to inform me that I had promoted off the back of last years Cpl’s board and was required to take up post
as Practice Manager for Kinloss and Fort George Dental Centre’s as a Sgt, I was in
a rush to complete the required courses to substantiate. Rumours were flying about that it was two weeks in the field and heavy classroom work, however, a sigh of relief came over me when I found out it was all going to be done remotely using Microsoft Teams and Zoom. The problem was that my courses would be happening during my move from Catterick Garrison to Kinloss.
My Army Learning and Development Programme Military Training (ALDP MT) course started in the middle of March. I
had barricaded myself into a small room
in Scotton Road Dental Centre as it would be impossible to work from home with a barking dog and a 5 year old requiring all my attention, being off school due to yet another lockdown.
The MT course was good, learning about different ways of approaching difficult personnel issues and about how soldiers’ mindsets had changed and what these new soldiers were hoping to get out of being in the military as opposed to what I had joined up to do. We discussed the individual values and standards of the Army and how these are incorporated into our daily lives.
The ALDP MT course also required you
to write up orders and deliver them to the rest of your course group. The situation was a town that had been flooded and we were called in to assist. This I found challenging as it required you to understand and follow the principles of the Tactical Aid Memoir (TAMs). Thankfully, after attempt 2, and the villagers receiving their water, I completed the task and passed all aspects of the course.
So now to the ALDP Military Education (ME) Part. This course started whilst I was on relocation leave and preparations for
this had to be done well in advance. The course would be conducted using Zoom this time and unlike Microsoft Teams where a MODNET Laptop could be used, I needed
a personal laptop with a strong Internet Wifi connection. As I had just moved into a new house, I did not have any internet! Luckily, prior arrangements had been made via Leuchars and Kinloss Education Centres and an education centre laptop was loaned to me with the use of the MOD internet connection.
During this course we looked at
management skills, X Y theory and other management theories. We discussed the UK’s involvement in countries around the world, what is required to be recognised
as a state and the terrorist threat to the
UK. We also had to deliver a PowerPoint presentation on the UK’s military involvement on a country of our choice, I picked Sudan. This course lasted seven days.
Overall, I found both courses enjoyable but the downsides of doing them remotely was not having the ability to talk freely with other participants, no socialising with colleagues in the evening, no course photo and, of course, missing out on the end of course drinks.
However, I believe this will become
the norm for this type of course, not only
is it better for the soldiers as they get
to stay at their home location but will
be financially beneficial to the MOD as there’s no requirement to pay for travel and subsistence.
With both MT and ME courses completed, JPA was updated and I became a substantive Sgt. However, with a 30 day wait for your rank to update on Outlook you have everyone asking why your email still says Cpl! My pay hasn’t quite caught up with my productivity, yet my mess bills have started pouring in “welcome to the SNCO’s Club”.
RADC BULLETIN 2021 45