RSO NW hosts counseling skills course

Successfully communicating with Sailors about career options and professional growth is critical to retention. In support of this,
the Regional Support Organization (RSO) Pacific Northwest hosted the Professional Counseling Skills (PCS) Core course earlier
this month.
Sailors from around the Pacific Northwest gathered at Naval Station Everett for this exceptional professional development
opportunity. Commands involved included RSO, Everett Intermediate Maintenance Facility (IMF), USS Abraham Lincoln, Pacific Fleet
Career Information team, and Naval Air Station Whidbey Island. The class offering was coordinated by RSO’s NCC Maximo Chico,
and administered by NCC (SS) Gerard Guzmano of Pacific Fleet Career Information team, San Diego, Ca.
The PCS course was developed by AchieveGlobal, Inc. as a training aid to help Career Counselors communicate more effectively with
their Sailors. Past observations revealed that Navy Career Counselors were having difficulty in identifying the needs of their Sailors
and suggesting the appropriate programs to advance their careers.
This was particularly the case where Sailors expressed indifference to making the Navy a career, or simply harbored misunderstanding
and skepticism about Navy programs and benefits.
By analyzing many of the principles and practices used by some of the world’s leading sales organizations, AchieveGlobal was able to
design a course to aid Navy career counselors in identifying obstacles to the decision-making processes used by Sailors in determining
career goals. This course helps career counselors educate Sailors about the myriad of Navy programs that would meet personal and
professional growth needs, increasing retention for the Navy and Navy Reserve.
The course uses many methods to teach communication skills to Sailors. Text books, workbooks, videos, exercises, and role-playing all
contribute to the learning experience. 
The role-playing was a class favorite. “What I liked was the opportunity to use these skills in such an interactive setting,” said NC1 Kimmy
Gideon of Pacific Fleet Career Information team, Naval Station Everett. “The interactive situations were very effective at allowing the Sailors
to hone their communication skills. According to AC2 Cynthia Lesher of the USS Abraham Lincoln, “This class has given me the knowledge
and the necessary tools to better serve the Sailors in my division. It was a great class and very beneficial.”
Though designed to meet Navy requirements, PCS teaches skills that are tremendously useful outside the naval service as well.
“I thought the class was awesome! It gave me a lot of tools to take back to my Sailors; and even some to use in ‘real-life’ situations,” said
EN2 Rachel Utter, IMF Detachment Everett. More classes can be scheduled through the Pacific Fleet Career Information team at (425) 304-3127.