Photo By Petty Officer 3rd Class Sarah Mead | Yeoman 3rd Class Deasahanay Eugene, left, from Jacksonville, North Carolina, and Chief...... read more read more
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Get to Know Us: Administration Department
By Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Sarah Mead
USS Gerald R. Ford Public Affairs
ATLANTIC OCEAN — Administration department, also known as admin, is one of the most essential departments on a ship in the Navy. USS Gerald R. Ford’s (CVN 78) admin department consists of 31 yeoman (YN) and 30 personnel specialists (PS). Due to Ford-class optimized force structure, Ford’s PSs have a 40 percent reduction in manning compared to Nimitz-class aircraft carriers.
“There is not a single person on the ship who is not affected by what we do, we’re here so that Sailors can focus on their jobs and not fall under a mountain of intricate paperwork,” said Chief Personnel Specialist Juan Perdomo, from Orlando, Florida, assigned to Ford’s admin department. “Admin is one of the few rates in the Navy that everyone needs access to so we have a lot of opportunities to see the Navy from all sides.”
Admin department is responsible for the basic paperwork for Sailors, but they occasionally are responsible for some unique paperwork that is normally processed by other departments. An example of this would be security clearance paperwork, in place of intelligence department if it is necessary for the command. All paperwork that goes through a member of admin is double and triple checked to prevent errors and misuse.
“Depending on the billet you fill, you process paperwork ranging from personnel qualification standards, advancements, awards and transfers, to managing and keeping personal records for the Sailors that rely on you,” said Yeoman 3rd Class Jean-Benoit Alvord, from Oceanside, California, temporarily assigned to Ford’s commanding officer’s (CO) admin. CO’s admin is a division of admin department. “There is a lot of pressure on you because you know people are putting their careers in your hands, sometimes things that go bigger than their careers, like a new spouse or dependent paperwork.”
Commands support their admin department by assigning departmental yeoman to process their department’s paperwork. On Ford, larger departments and the command triads (CO, Executive Officer, and Command Master Chief) are designated a YN or PS of their own, and smaller departments assign trusted Sailors to fill this gatekeeper position for them. According to Perdomo there are simple ways that Sailors can save their admin personnel time.
“If I could wish one thing to improve the paperwork from the Sailors I work with it is for them to read the instructions, then ask for help,” said Perdomo with laughter when asked this question. “Most of our spare time we’re reading instructions to people who didn’t want to read them themselves.”
Though the work life of a PS or YN can vary depending on where they are stationed, whether it’s a Special Forces team or an aviation squadron, some consistent characteristics you will find in any admin Sailor is that they are knowledgeable, hardworking and attentive.
For more news from USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), visit www.dvidshub.net/unit/CVN78
| Date Taken: | 11.19.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 11.19.2020 14:06 |
| Story ID: | 383372 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 108 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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