CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. –
Airman Smith ... Here, sir! Airman 1st Class Excited ... Here, sir! Sergeant Works-a-lot ... Present for duty, sir! And so went the list of names that was called by our flight chief. This was my roll call, and this how I reported for duty.
This was a time when we towed the line with toolboxes with our boots shined and with our uniforms pressed in inspection order. During my roll call, jobs were assigned, big events were highlighted, safety briefs were conducted and other information supervision wanted us to know was shared. That was it ... pretty one-sided, but at least information was disseminated.
What if your job isn't maintenance, security forces or civil engineering? What if you work in a shop with only a few other folks? How do you think these Air Force Airmen receive the same information you do if their jobs don't allow for a daily roll call?
Fortunately, this level of information sharing concerned Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley too. In fact, it concerned him so much that the Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Rodney J. McKinley addressed the Air Force through his inaugural Roll Call message Jan. 10, 2007.
In this Roll Call, Chief McKinley stated, "the CSAF has mandated weekly roll call for supervisors at every level." These weekly meetings are designed to help keep Airmen informed on current issues, clear up confusion, dispel rumors and provide additional face-to-face communication between supervisors and their teams.
Roll Call highlights the topics supervisors should include in the weekly meetings and is posted weekly on www.af.mil. This makes it easy for supervisors to print it along with any other documents released by our Air Force senior leaders, and then share this info with their co-workers.
Now, all Airmen have access to the latest news that affects every one of us. Did you miss last week's? What about last month's? No worry, Air Force Link has got you covered. Here, you can find the complete Roll Calls from the first one posted, to the most recent. Think of the possibilities and advantages this gives each and every one of us. Every Airman at every level now has access to loads of information at their fingertips. Remember the Air Force Priorities ... it's there. How about the Airmen's Creed ... it's there. Then there's one of my personal favorites ... Standards and Discipline. And guess what ... it's also there.
Roll Call is actually an amazing tool for that young supervisor who might normally struggle at how to get that early information out to their new Airmen. This way, it not only ensures the supervisor is receiving the right information, but it continues to flow down to reach us all at every level. But, the question remains -- how do you conduct Roll Call?
Is it face-to-face? Are you connecting with the Airmen in your work centers? Are they reaching their goals? Remember, it's a weekly product posted every Friday. This is the supervisor part that says, "Hey, I care about you!" This is the operational risk management, safety brief, news you can use, think before you drink, have a plan part ... now you're getting it.
We operate in a very technologically advanced Air Force. We're a smart Air Force that has instant access to almost everything we need. This is why we can't miss the opportunity to add Roll Call to that list of tasks.
Today marks the 58th Roll Call in a little more than a year's time. Start marking your favorites, just as I have. More importantly though, what's your Airman's favorite? Now, how will you respond the next time you hear your name at roll call?