JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Va. –
More than 20 U.S. Air Force non-commissioned officers and senior NCOs from different squadrons at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, participated in a "Reverse-Mentoring" event hosted by the Airman Committed to Excellence (ACE) organization, Nov. 20, 2015.
The reverse-mentoring event was an opportunity for Airmen assigned to Langley to speak about the experiences they have been facing and how SNCOs and NCOs could give insight to help.
"The reverse-mentoring was our attempt to be the voice of the Airmen on base, to reach out to the leaders on base and let them know what some of their Airmen are dealing with," said Senior Airman Jarett Ware, a precision guided munitions technician with the 1st Maintenance Squadron and coordinator of ACE professional development. "We wanted to find a tactful way of saying these are some of the things that are going on, this is what we've done to try to fix it, but these things are still happening."
During the event a panel of nine Airmen from the ACE organization answered questions from Ware and the NCOs and SNCOs in attendance. The topic of questions ranged from favoritism in squadrons, to allowing Airmen to work more freely and effective communication between supervisors and Airmen.
"It was an opportunity to have some active flow of communication and to get some issues sorted out, or at least be aware of what they were experiencing," said Chief Master Sgt. Jessica Bender, superintendent of the 1st Operations Group. "Communication is one of our biggest vectors right now, we are aware of that in the Air Force and we are constantly trying to bridge that gap... finding the best way to communicate with them is what we have to fix the most."
According to Ware, ACE wanted to not only give Airmen an avenue to voice their experiences and concerns, but to have an open forum where they all could learn from each other.
"Reverse-mentoring tells me where I'm lacking in my leadership abilities and areas where I need to focus on," said Bender. "It was a great opportunity and I'm happy they put something like this on; it's beneficial to everybody and hopefully as they continue to do it, we will get more participation and we can get even more free flow of communication."
This was the first time that ACE has hosted a "Reverse Mentoring" panel and felt it was a success. Ware added that although they achieved their goal they still hope to have more participation in the future.
"I believe today was effective, we had a lot of individuals who came out and truly cared," said Ware. "Mentorship is a part of being in the Air Force, it's a part of being in the military; preparing those behind you to take on the next level, that's what it's all about."
If you are interested in joining the ACE organization or would like to participate in the next reverse-mentoring event, contact Ware at 225-5221.