New Airman Comprehensive Assessment Worksheet emphasizes mentorship

  • Published
  • By Colonel Michael Hernandez
  • 482nd Fighter Wing Vice Commander
HOMESTEAD AIR RESERVE BASE, Fla. --  Someone once told me that during our time in the Air Force, we should always either be learning or teaching, and this is a concept that is really at the heart of mentorship.

"Mentor" was originally a character in Homer's The Odyssey. Mentor was a friend of Odysseus and when Odysseus left for the Trojan War, he asked his friend, Mentor, to look after his son, Telemachus.

What happens then? Well, you can read the 500-page book, or I can tell you. Mentor establishes himself as a guide and indispensable counselor to Telemachus and allows Telemachus to continue on his adventures.

Because of Mentor's relationship with Telemachus and his practical plans for dealing with personal and professional dilemmas, the Mentor name was adopted as a term meaning "someone who imparts wisdom to and shares knowledge with a less experienced colleague."

In 2014, Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III and Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James Cody announced plans to begin implementing a more comprehensive Air Force evaluation system for officers and enlisted members.

While the new Airman Comprehensive Assessment (ACA) introduced a process that not only improved communication between supervisors and subordinates, it also addressed mentoring through the "knowing your Airman" section.

These new AF931, AF932 and AF724A forms have revolutionized what we used to do in our old feedback sessions. In section three of the ACA forms, Airmen will provide a self-assessment to their supervisors prior to the formal assessment session. Additionally, supervisors are required to do assessments on all Airmen they supervise, including those not eligible for EPRs. During the feedback, topics will include intangibles such as personal and professional goals, stressors, and mentoring that were not fully covered in the previous Feedback Form.

Commanders need to implement the new ACA and if you, as a 482nd Fighter Wing member, have not yet received your feedback--you will. The ACA covers a lot of things, but none more important than mentoring. The wing's emphasis on mentoring is designed to help each person reach his or her full potential--professionally and personally. We can't run the biggest and strongest Air Force on the planet without the empowerment of Airmen (at all ranks) from their mentors and supervisors.

Identify your mentors. Those who you feel comfortable with and whose opinions you value. Seek them out and ask them for guidance. Conversely, be open to mentor others in the wing who come to you for guidance. It's an honor to be able to influence and help a fellow Airman on his or her personal and professional journey.

If you've never officially or unofficially sought advice from someone with more experience than you, if you don't have a mentor--look for one today. I promise you won't regret it.