ProTalk-The Applicant
Blog
By Rick Welling, Dr. Dave Dawson, Sgt. 1st Class, Jeremy Barbaresi; USAREC, Doctrine Division
Sept. 1, 2015
The applicant is the continuing saga of Jessica Carter as she transitions from referral, to prospect, to an applicant preparing to join the Army. This article provides a step-by-step scenario and some tactics, techniques, and procedures to turn a prospect into an applicant."
Our last ProTalk article, “The Prospect,” introduced Staff Sgt. James Johnson and Jessica Carter.
We now join Staff Sgt. Johnson and his center leader, Sgt. 1st Class Carl Miller, at the Carter’s home.
Staff Sgt. James Johnson – Jessica, again congratulations on your decision to join the United States Army and serve your country.
Jessica Carter – Thank you.
Staff Sgt. Johnson – Jessica, remember those documents that I asked you to have available?
Jessica – Yes, here you go.
Staff Sgt. Johnson – Thank you. Give me a minute to verify that I have all your personal information listed correctly. I know it is getting late – already 2030 hours. Do you know what time that is?
Jessica - Yes, 8:30. We use military time at the hospital where I volunteer as a candy striper.
Staff Sgt. Johnson – Very good. Here are your documents back, please keep them all together and put them in a secure place because I will need them again when we do your enlistment record. Speaking of which, what does your schedule look like tomorrow after school? Do you think you can come to our center for about an hour to complete all the documents for your record?
Jessica – That will be fine as long as we are finished by 1800 hours. I volunteer at the hospital tomorrow evening. Is it ok if my dad attends?
Staff Sgt. Johnson – Absolutely. As a matter of fact, I highly encourage it. Since today is Tuesday, I would like to schedule you to go to the Military Entrance Processing Station one day next week. The MEPS is where you go through a medical screening, complete your enlistment contract with an Army guidance counselor, and take the oath of enlistment during a “swear in” ceremony. We will talk more about that tomorrow after school. Let’s say 1600 hours?
Jessica – 1600 will be perfect. I can clear my schedule for MEPS one day next week, but I would prefer not to miss a day of school.
Staff Sgt. Johnson – I understand your concern and appreciate your desire to be responsible. One thing I will tell you is your school recognizes processing for the Army as an excused absence from school for the day. While we’re on the subject, I need you to sign this “Authorization for Release of Information” form so I can get a letter from your school guidance counselor verifying that you are a senior in good standing. Your guidance counselor will give us a school letter that states you are scheduled to graduate on time and the exact date of your graduation. While I’m there, I’ll give the office an official memorandum explaining why you will be missing a day of school, so it is not counted against your attendance record.
Jessica – Thank you. (She signs the release of information form)
Jessica’s mother – We are both happy with her decision but unfortunately, I cannot attend since I have work. However, Jessica’s father would like to attend the ceremony. Where is this MEPS?
Staff Sgt. Johnson – It is in downtown Metropolis. Jessica will have to spend the night in the Ramada Hotel the night prior on 5th Avenue. Mr. Carter, you can drive down the morning of the enlistment. If all goes well, the ceremonies are usually between 1:00 - 3:00. We can discuss further tomorrow, when you come in to complete Jessica’s enlistment record with her. Also, Jessica, tomorrow we can discuss specific jobs that are currently available. After we review your options, you will pick the MOS you want and we will lock in a temporary reservation for you before you leave the office for the evening. I’m sure that will lessen some of mom and dad’s uncertainty, and this way, there should be no surprises when you get to the MEPS. How does that sound?
Jessica, her mother and father all respond simultaneously – “Okay!”
Staff Sgt. Johnson – Excellent, I’m glad you two are so supportive of Jessica’s decision! Jessica, I’m going to leave you with some homework to finish up tonight so you will have all the information required for your enlistment application. We have an electronic questionnaire we call an ACE application that allows you to input all your personal information in a very secure and private manner.
(Johnson provides detailed instructions on how to properly access and complete an ACE application; including how to input full names, addresses, phone numbers, no repeat references, etc…).
Also, when I see you tomorrow at 1600 we will have some paperwork to fill out including a medical pre-screening form, a law enforcement release form, and a few other things. I’m also going to use our Live Scan machine to take your fingerprints and run a criminal background check. You can’t go to the MEPS until the fingerprint results come back, but let’s tentatively try to plan for Tuesday of next week. How does that sound to you?
Jessica – That sounds good, I don’t think I have anything important going on in school that day, but I’ll double check with my teachers tomorrow and let you know for sure at 1600.
Staff Sgt. Johnson – Great Jessica. It was really a pleasure having the opportunity to talk to you tonight and meet your parents. If any of you think of any other questions, make sure to write them down so you don’t forget, and I’ll get you answers to everything when I see you tomorrow. Have a wonderful evening and thank you again for your hospitality.
Staff Sgt. Johnson and Sgt. 1st Class Miller both say their goodbyes for the night as they depart the Carter residence.
On the drive back to the recruiting center, Miller critiques Johnson’s interviewing technique, providing positive feedback. He congratulates him on a job well done, telling him to make sure someone is available to be his buddy for the enlistment record meeting with Jessica.
The following morning Johnson uses administrative time putting together Jessica’s enlistment packet. Following the center leader’s TTPs required to track documents, he attaches the center’s packet checklist to a folder. Johnson fills out the “680” screen of Jessica’s Recruiter Zone record, prints the applicable enlistment forms, conducts a sex offender search, and prints the results to add to her packet.
He places all completed required enlistment forms in the folder for Jessica to sign, reviews it for accuracy, and securely files it in his desk as he prepares for his day.
Johnson had planned a table setup at Liberty High School, but rearranges his schedule to visit Central High School to request the senior letter and high school transcript from Jessica’s guidance counselor, Mrs. Debrowski.
Miller agreed visiting Central was a better use of Johnson’s time, and offers to take care of the table visit at Liberty.
Johnson prepares a few PPI bags to distribute at the Central HS guidance office and purchases a dozen doughnuts using his Recruiter Expense Allowance.
He greets the guidance department with a smile, places the donuts on a table, distributes the PPI bags, and thanks Jessica’s guidance counselor for providing her name as a lead.
Johnson then describes the meeting he had with Jessica’s parents informing Debrowski of Jessica’s commitment to enlist. He mentions her requirement for a high school letter and transcript to verify MOS qualifications. Debrowski and Johnson engage in small-talk while she types the letter and prints the transcript. Johnson then completes the high school visit, talking to his COIs and VIPs, and scheduling two classroom presentations.
Finished at Central, Johnson conducts some area canvassing, making five face-to-face contact attempts (hot knocks) from leads he gathered prior to leaving the center that morning.
He heads back to the office around 1 p.m. to conduct telephone prospecting of Central early-release seniors, conducting three more face-to-face attempts on his way.
At 3 p.m. Johnson makes final preparations for Jessica’s arrival, double checking that her packet completely printed, that all information is correct and verified, and calling Jessica to confirm she’s completed the ACE application and remind her to bring her source documents.
Jessica arrives with her father at the center at 4 p.m. Johnson promptly introduces them to the rest of the recruiters, takes Jessica to the Future Soldier board, directs them to the restrooms, offers them something to drink and escorts them to his desk.
Together they review the Privacy Act Acknowledgement and the enlistment documents. Johnson asks Jessica to verify all the information, making sure she understands each document before signing them.
Johnson asks Jessica and her father to follow him over to the scale so he can verify her height and weight for the DD2807-2. Johnson and Jessica then validate the information in her ACE record and complete the SF86 data in Recruiter Zone.
Johnson keeps Jessica and her father engaged throughout the lengthy process. He uses his mobile device to capture an image of Jessica’s source documents, converts each to a PDF, uploads them, immediately returning the originals back to her.
Johnson captures Jessica’s fingerprints, explaining to her it usually takes about 48 hours for the results to return and informs them that unless there is an issue, the background check should be complete prior to her scheduled floor date of the following Tuesday.
While Johnson takes Jessica’s fingerprints, Miller performs quality control checks on her physical enlistment documents to identify errors prior to being uploaded and gives Johnson approval to upload them into Jessica’s ERM.
The office visit concludes with Johnson completing a FSR2S reservation by talking with Jessica and her father about all the options available to her. They watch various MOS videos with Johnson answering questions about each and enlistment incentives.
Jessica seems very excited about MOS 68W, Health Care Specialist. Johnson validates Jessica’s qualifications by reviewing DA Pam 611-21 (smart book), REQUEST qualifications, AR 601-210, and applicable USAREC Messages, Fragmentary Orders, and Operations Flash messages.
It is determined Jessica meets all qualifications for MOS 68W. After reviewing the terms of the temporary reservation line by line, Johnson asks her if she is ready to lock in that reservation. After she replies “Yes,” he has her click the button, congratulates both of them, and prints out a copy of the temporary reservation of her enlistment packet for each of them.
Johnson reiterates this is only a temporary reservation and that Jessica must complete her processing within seven days in order for it to become a permanent. He reminds her to keep her schedule clear on Monday evening and all day Tuesday. He clarifies that unless there is an issue with her Live Scan results, she is locked in for the hotel reservation and MEPS.
Johnson has Jessica speak with Miller, who gives her a briefing on the “dos and don’ts” leading up to her physical and congratulates her on her decision to enlist.
Johnson escorts Jessica and her father to their car, answering a few more questions.
He tells Jessica he will be in touch over the next couple of days to make sure she doesn’t have any additional questions, and again goes over the timeline for her physical and enlistment the following week.
Johnson asks Jessica to take a selfie picture with him to add to the center’s Facebook and Instagram social media sites.
Johnson then scans and emails a High School ASVAB Pull (USMEPCOM 680-3ae) to Miller to submit to the MEPS. At this point, the enlistment record is built and QC’d by the center leader, Live Scan has been transmitted, a HS Pull has been submitted, and a FSR2S reservation has been completed. Jessica confirms that she is available to take her physical and enlist the following Tuesday. As soon as Miller gives the approval, Johnson is ready to project Jessica’s record for a full physical and enlistment.
Scenarios like the one above play out every day across USAREC. Note how Johnson takes time to plan. He prepares for and calculates his every move and action. He knows that his mission as a recruiter is to find the next generation of Soldiers for the United States Army.
He does not wait for guidance or for something to happen; he makes it happen and seeks guidance when needed. He uses all the resources provided to the fullest extent.
Johnson is the ideal recruiter. Could he improve? Possibly, but he knows his strengths and weaknesses and is always capitalizing his strengths and improving his weaknesses. He accepts critiques and learns from every engagement.
Johnson’s personal drive and dedication make him an asset to his team. He shares his best practices and lessons learned with fellow recruiters and members of his company.
The number of appointments conducted across the command stands at 73 percent of the total appointments made.
Upon further review and onion peeling, recruiters have tested 43 percent of the applicants they have conducted. That is 178,637 testers.
From that number, the command has test passed 111,437 or 62 percent. However, if you consider the total mission of 84,000, and what was achieved at the time this article was written of 66,969, there is a deficit of 17,031.
If you calculate the math, that means a shortfall of approximately 50,000 testers. It also means that the command only converts 32 percent of the appointments made to test.
Blog
By Rick Welling, Dr. Dave Dawson, Sgt. 1st Class, Jeremy Barbaresi; USAREC, Doctrine Division
Sept. 1, 2015
The applicant is the continuing saga of Jessica Carter as she transitions from referral, to prospect, to an applicant preparing to join the Army. This article provides a step-by-step scenario and some tactics, techniques, and procedures to turn a prospect into an applicant."
Our last ProTalk article, “The Prospect,” introduced Staff Sgt. James Johnson and Jessica Carter.
We now join Staff Sgt. Johnson and his center leader, Sgt. 1st Class Carl Miller, at the Carter’s home.
Staff Sgt. James Johnson – Jessica, again congratulations on your decision to join the United States Army and serve your country.
Jessica Carter – Thank you.
Staff Sgt. Johnson – Jessica, remember those documents that I asked you to have available?
Jessica – Yes, here you go.
Staff Sgt. Johnson – Thank you. Give me a minute to verify that I have all your personal information listed correctly. I know it is getting late – already 2030 hours. Do you know what time that is?
Jessica - Yes, 8:30. We use military time at the hospital where I volunteer as a candy striper.
Staff Sgt. Johnson – Very good. Here are your documents back, please keep them all together and put them in a secure place because I will need them again when we do your enlistment record. Speaking of which, what does your schedule look like tomorrow after school? Do you think you can come to our center for about an hour to complete all the documents for your record?
Jessica – That will be fine as long as we are finished by 1800 hours. I volunteer at the hospital tomorrow evening. Is it ok if my dad attends?
Staff Sgt. Johnson – Absolutely. As a matter of fact, I highly encourage it. Since today is Tuesday, I would like to schedule you to go to the Military Entrance Processing Station one day next week. The MEPS is where you go through a medical screening, complete your enlistment contract with an Army guidance counselor, and take the oath of enlistment during a “swear in” ceremony. We will talk more about that tomorrow after school. Let’s say 1600 hours?
Jessica – 1600 will be perfect. I can clear my schedule for MEPS one day next week, but I would prefer not to miss a day of school.
Staff Sgt. Johnson – I understand your concern and appreciate your desire to be responsible. One thing I will tell you is your school recognizes processing for the Army as an excused absence from school for the day. While we’re on the subject, I need you to sign this “Authorization for Release of Information” form so I can get a letter from your school guidance counselor verifying that you are a senior in good standing. Your guidance counselor will give us a school letter that states you are scheduled to graduate on time and the exact date of your graduation. While I’m there, I’ll give the office an official memorandum explaining why you will be missing a day of school, so it is not counted against your attendance record.
Jessica – Thank you. (She signs the release of information form)
Jessica’s mother – We are both happy with her decision but unfortunately, I cannot attend since I have work. However, Jessica’s father would like to attend the ceremony. Where is this MEPS?
Staff Sgt. Johnson – It is in downtown Metropolis. Jessica will have to spend the night in the Ramada Hotel the night prior on 5th Avenue. Mr. Carter, you can drive down the morning of the enlistment. If all goes well, the ceremonies are usually between 1:00 - 3:00. We can discuss further tomorrow, when you come in to complete Jessica’s enlistment record with her. Also, Jessica, tomorrow we can discuss specific jobs that are currently available. After we review your options, you will pick the MOS you want and we will lock in a temporary reservation for you before you leave the office for the evening. I’m sure that will lessen some of mom and dad’s uncertainty, and this way, there should be no surprises when you get to the MEPS. How does that sound?
Jessica, her mother and father all respond simultaneously – “Okay!”
Staff Sgt. Johnson – Excellent, I’m glad you two are so supportive of Jessica’s decision! Jessica, I’m going to leave you with some homework to finish up tonight so you will have all the information required for your enlistment application. We have an electronic questionnaire we call an ACE application that allows you to input all your personal information in a very secure and private manner.
(Johnson provides detailed instructions on how to properly access and complete an ACE application; including how to input full names, addresses, phone numbers, no repeat references, etc…).
Also, when I see you tomorrow at 1600 we will have some paperwork to fill out including a medical pre-screening form, a law enforcement release form, and a few other things. I’m also going to use our Live Scan machine to take your fingerprints and run a criminal background check. You can’t go to the MEPS until the fingerprint results come back, but let’s tentatively try to plan for Tuesday of next week. How does that sound to you?
Jessica – That sounds good, I don’t think I have anything important going on in school that day, but I’ll double check with my teachers tomorrow and let you know for sure at 1600.
Staff Sgt. Johnson – Great Jessica. It was really a pleasure having the opportunity to talk to you tonight and meet your parents. If any of you think of any other questions, make sure to write them down so you don’t forget, and I’ll get you answers to everything when I see you tomorrow. Have a wonderful evening and thank you again for your hospitality.
Staff Sgt. Johnson and Sgt. 1st Class Miller both say their goodbyes for the night as they depart the Carter residence.
On the drive back to the recruiting center, Miller critiques Johnson’s interviewing technique, providing positive feedback. He congratulates him on a job well done, telling him to make sure someone is available to be his buddy for the enlistment record meeting with Jessica.
The following morning Johnson uses administrative time putting together Jessica’s enlistment packet. Following the center leader’s TTPs required to track documents, he attaches the center’s packet checklist to a folder. Johnson fills out the “680” screen of Jessica’s Recruiter Zone record, prints the applicable enlistment forms, conducts a sex offender search, and prints the results to add to her packet.
He places all completed required enlistment forms in the folder for Jessica to sign, reviews it for accuracy, and securely files it in his desk as he prepares for his day.
Johnson had planned a table setup at Liberty High School, but rearranges his schedule to visit Central High School to request the senior letter and high school transcript from Jessica’s guidance counselor, Mrs. Debrowski.
Miller agreed visiting Central was a better use of Johnson’s time, and offers to take care of the table visit at Liberty.
Johnson prepares a few PPI bags to distribute at the Central HS guidance office and purchases a dozen doughnuts using his Recruiter Expense Allowance.
He greets the guidance department with a smile, places the donuts on a table, distributes the PPI bags, and thanks Jessica’s guidance counselor for providing her name as a lead.
Johnson then describes the meeting he had with Jessica’s parents informing Debrowski of Jessica’s commitment to enlist. He mentions her requirement for a high school letter and transcript to verify MOS qualifications. Debrowski and Johnson engage in small-talk while she types the letter and prints the transcript. Johnson then completes the high school visit, talking to his COIs and VIPs, and scheduling two classroom presentations.
Finished at Central, Johnson conducts some area canvassing, making five face-to-face contact attempts (hot knocks) from leads he gathered prior to leaving the center that morning.
He heads back to the office around 1 p.m. to conduct telephone prospecting of Central early-release seniors, conducting three more face-to-face attempts on his way.
At 3 p.m. Johnson makes final preparations for Jessica’s arrival, double checking that her packet completely printed, that all information is correct and verified, and calling Jessica to confirm she’s completed the ACE application and remind her to bring her source documents.
Jessica arrives with her father at the center at 4 p.m. Johnson promptly introduces them to the rest of the recruiters, takes Jessica to the Future Soldier board, directs them to the restrooms, offers them something to drink and escorts them to his desk.
Together they review the Privacy Act Acknowledgement and the enlistment documents. Johnson asks Jessica to verify all the information, making sure she understands each document before signing them.
Johnson asks Jessica and her father to follow him over to the scale so he can verify her height and weight for the DD2807-2. Johnson and Jessica then validate the information in her ACE record and complete the SF86 data in Recruiter Zone.
Johnson keeps Jessica and her father engaged throughout the lengthy process. He uses his mobile device to capture an image of Jessica’s source documents, converts each to a PDF, uploads them, immediately returning the originals back to her.
Johnson captures Jessica’s fingerprints, explaining to her it usually takes about 48 hours for the results to return and informs them that unless there is an issue, the background check should be complete prior to her scheduled floor date of the following Tuesday.
While Johnson takes Jessica’s fingerprints, Miller performs quality control checks on her physical enlistment documents to identify errors prior to being uploaded and gives Johnson approval to upload them into Jessica’s ERM.
The office visit concludes with Johnson completing a FSR2S reservation by talking with Jessica and her father about all the options available to her. They watch various MOS videos with Johnson answering questions about each and enlistment incentives.
Jessica seems very excited about MOS 68W, Health Care Specialist. Johnson validates Jessica’s qualifications by reviewing DA Pam 611-21 (smart book), REQUEST qualifications, AR 601-210, and applicable USAREC Messages, Fragmentary Orders, and Operations Flash messages.
It is determined Jessica meets all qualifications for MOS 68W. After reviewing the terms of the temporary reservation line by line, Johnson asks her if she is ready to lock in that reservation. After she replies “Yes,” he has her click the button, congratulates both of them, and prints out a copy of the temporary reservation of her enlistment packet for each of them.
Johnson reiterates this is only a temporary reservation and that Jessica must complete her processing within seven days in order for it to become a permanent. He reminds her to keep her schedule clear on Monday evening and all day Tuesday. He clarifies that unless there is an issue with her Live Scan results, she is locked in for the hotel reservation and MEPS.
Johnson has Jessica speak with Miller, who gives her a briefing on the “dos and don’ts” leading up to her physical and congratulates her on her decision to enlist.
Johnson escorts Jessica and her father to their car, answering a few more questions.
He tells Jessica he will be in touch over the next couple of days to make sure she doesn’t have any additional questions, and again goes over the timeline for her physical and enlistment the following week.
Johnson asks Jessica to take a selfie picture with him to add to the center’s Facebook and Instagram social media sites.
Johnson then scans and emails a High School ASVAB Pull (USMEPCOM 680-3ae) to Miller to submit to the MEPS. At this point, the enlistment record is built and QC’d by the center leader, Live Scan has been transmitted, a HS Pull has been submitted, and a FSR2S reservation has been completed. Jessica confirms that she is available to take her physical and enlist the following Tuesday. As soon as Miller gives the approval, Johnson is ready to project Jessica’s record for a full physical and enlistment.
Scenarios like the one above play out every day across USAREC. Note how Johnson takes time to plan. He prepares for and calculates his every move and action. He knows that his mission as a recruiter is to find the next generation of Soldiers for the United States Army.
He does not wait for guidance or for something to happen; he makes it happen and seeks guidance when needed. He uses all the resources provided to the fullest extent.
Johnson is the ideal recruiter. Could he improve? Possibly, but he knows his strengths and weaknesses and is always capitalizing his strengths and improving his weaknesses. He accepts critiques and learns from every engagement.
Johnson’s personal drive and dedication make him an asset to his team. He shares his best practices and lessons learned with fellow recruiters and members of his company.
The number of appointments conducted across the command stands at 73 percent of the total appointments made.
Upon further review and onion peeling, recruiters have tested 43 percent of the applicants they have conducted. That is 178,637 testers.
From that number, the command has test passed 111,437 or 62 percent. However, if you consider the total mission of 84,000, and what was achieved at the time this article was written of 66,969, there is a deficit of 17,031.
If you calculate the math, that means a shortfall of approximately 50,000 testers. It also means that the command only converts 32 percent of the appointments made to test.