If cross-training is not in place at your public affairs office, consider the predicament you can get into when a “main cog” is suddenly removed from the scene as in the  following  case: A year ago, you put JO2 Vetch in charge of running educator orientation visits (EOV) in the community  relations  section  of  the  office.  Vetch  is a  superb  sailor: reliable,   professional   and dedicated. She runs the program to perfection. In fact,   you   just   recently   drafted   a   letter   of commendation  for  her. The CDO calls late Sunday night to inform you that Vetch’s father died in Honolulu, and she is en route to attend the funeral. An EOV is scheduled for tomorrow  at  0900,  but,  because  of  your  own commitments, you cannot possibly fill in for her. You have got JO2 Rummy and JO3 Stone available, but they have never run an EOV. The PAO is TAD to the U.S. Naval Academy for a three-day public affairs  symposium.  What  will  you  do? Now let us install a staff that has been adequately cross trained as in the following scenario: You get the same call from the CDO, and, after briefly pondering the situation, you remember that JO2  Rummy  rotated  out  of  the  community  relations section three months ago. As part of his tour there, he   organized   and   ran   two   EOVs.   Rummy   is contacted  and  assigned  accordingly. Uprooting Rummy means someone will have to take over his external release writing duties. You are covered here too, because JO3 Stone, a broadcaster by trade, can do the job because she wrote external releases  for  four  months  and  has  it  down  to  a science. Get the picture? Cross-training is vital to the overall operation  of  a  public  affairs  office  and   must  be continuously   emphasized   in   the   overall   training program. Why such an emphasis on cross-training? Because versatility is the byword of the JO rating. Every JO follows a unique career pattern that mayor may not lend itself to being versatile. In some cases, you may come across  a  JO  with  a  “closed  loop”  career  path,  for example,  a  JO3  with  a  3221  NEC  who  only  has broadcast assignments under his belt. If this individual is  assigned  to  your  public  affairs  office,  you  cannot possibly   give   him   enough   broadcast-related assignments to keep him busy. The answer is you must get him up to speed on the operations of your office by cross-training. Cross-training applies to you, the office manager, as well. You must be professionally qualified in every facet of office operations. It is a rare situation where the senior JO in an office does not occasionally have to write a news release, give a tour of the base or even pinch hit as a photographer. You are responsible for maintaining your basic skills and continuing to develop those in which  you  have  limited  experience. Benefits The benefits of a rigorous cross-training program are numerous. The individual develops a broader base of  experience  that  can  be  used  not  only  during  his present duty station, but well into the future. Meanwhile, the  senior  journalist  will  enjoy  the  benefits  gained  from a public affairs office operation that can “heal” itself when  main  players  are  removed.  If  your  resident  expert on EOVs is 4,500 miles away on emergency leave, you are not left with an insurmountable problem. By shifting assignments  to  cross-trained  individuals,  you  are assured that the job will get done without a compromise in quality. Implementation Determining  the  amount  of  cross-training  each member of your staff receives is entirely up to you. However,  keep  in  mind  that  you  do  not  want  the cross-training to be too brief or excessive. If your office is  set  up  as  shown  in  figure  1-2,  consider  shifting personnel among the three main public affairs office divisions every six to 12 months. A shorter period of time  may  not  sufficiently  serve  your  training  needs  or your ultimate cross-training goals, and a longer time frame  may  lead  to  stagnation  and  specialization. DOCUMENTATION Maintain  professional  training  folders  on  all  your staff members, to include the date and topic of the training  session,  and  any  other  pertinent  information. When the individual transfers, give him the folder to take to his next command. CREDIBILITY Learning Objective: Recognize the principles of credi- bility as they apply to public affairs office management. 1-13