The Mustang Lariat

This newsletter delivers essential updates and insights for the Limited Duty Officer (LDO) and Chief Warrant Officer (CWO) communities:

1. Head OCM's Corner: Reflects on recent developments, emphasizing the pivotal role of leadership, mentorship, and professional growth within the LDO and CWO ranks. Addresses budget constraints impacting travel and community engagements, urging officers to find innovative ways to maintain strong communication and support networks despite these challenges.

2. Sustainability Initiative Progress: Provides an update on the ongoing LDO/CWO Sustainability Initiative, highlighting successful billet realignments and designator modifications. These efforts aim to ensure the long-term health, relevance, and adaptability of the communities in alignment with the Navy's evolving needs and mission requirements.

3. Promotion Board Announcements: Shares results from recent promotion boards, extending heartfelt congratulations to newly selected officers. Acknowledges their dedication, hard work, and the significant contributions they've made to the Navy's mission and readiness.

4. Community Engagement Efforts: Recaps recent roadshows and fleet engagements, underscoring the importance of active participation in these events. Encourages officers to attend future engagements to foster camaraderie, share valuable experiences, and strengthen mentorship networks across different commands and regions.

5. Policy and Instruction Updates: Informs about pending updates to key instructions and policies affecting career progression, including revisions to temporary officer status, lateral transfer opportunities, and commissioning programs. Stresses the importance of staying informed and proactive in managing one's career path within the Navy.

6. Professional Guidebook Release: Announces the availability of the updated LDO/CWO Professional Guidebook. This comprehensive resource includes revised eligibility requirements and serves as an essential tool for career planning, understanding professional standards, and supporting personal development initiatives.

7. Mustang Academy Mentoring Program: Introduces senior leaders who will sponsor upcoming classes at the Mustang Academy. Highlights the value of mentorship from seasoned officers to guide new accessions, facilitating a smooth transition into their roles and promoting long-term success within the officer corps.

8. Mission and Vision Reinforcement: Reaffirms the community's mission to enhance the Navy's warfighting capabilities through exemplary leadership, technical expertise, and an unwavering commitment to continuous improvement. Encourages all officers to embody these principles in their daily duties, fostering a culture of excellence and dedication.

This newsletter underscores the steadfast commitment of the LDO and CWO communities to operational excellence, leadership development, and the readiness of Naval Forces. Officers are encouraged to remain engaged, support each other, and actively pursue professional growth to meet the evolving challenges of today's strategic environment. Through collective effort and a shared vision, the community continues to strengthen its vital role in achieving the Navy's mission.

We are headed into the dog days of summer throughout the Fleet as June is upon us and the PCS  season is in full swing.  After a very successful Mustang Roundup recruiting kickoff in late April and  throughout May, we need to maintain focus and ensure that those applying for our program remain  fully on track.  For those potential applicants that will be PCSing this summer, it is imperative that the  command forward a letter of recommendation from the losing Commanding Officer to the gaining  Commanding Officer for inclusion in the member’s package to the board.  This simple networking  provides both Commanding Officers an opportunity and a fair assessment of the individual’s potential  to serve as an LDO or CWO.  OPNAVINST 1420.1B, chapter 7, page 7‐18, paragraph 13.f. provides this  full policy guidance on application packages. 

As we wrap‐up another month I must tell you about the excitement we have about the LDO &  CWO programs. The efforts that you have put forth as Leaders in our various Fleet concentration  areas to conduct a kickoff event in supporting the 2013 Mustang Roundup and OCM briefs is already  paying huge dividends and I believe we will realize how successful it has been once we receive the  packages for next year’s board. I want to personally thank everyone involved as the numbers were  reflective of the hard work you put in to setup such events.  Please stay in touch with those interested  in the programs and ensure continued mentorship is provided!  Thanks!!

August was a busy month and we found ourselves on the road for several days as we continued to provide the road show community and applicant briefs to those commands that requested our presence. We attended the SEAL conference in San Diego to discuss the CWO SEAL community future and we had a great visit. We also traveled all the way to Guam to visit the base and submarine tenders, and received a great showing and support while there. We had to rush back to Millington to prepare and brief the Chief of Naval Personnel, VADM Van Buskirk, on the LDO & CWO Sustainability Initiative on 27 September. The CNP was very receptive to the work being done and has asked for further follow-up by the N13 (RADM Kurta) and NPC (RADM Covell) to the Enterprise Flag Officers and their manpower shops on where we are headed with the correcting of our pyramids and building a more viable and sustainable LDO & CWO community.

Head OCM’s CORNER:  You should be in the final stages of having your Superstar enlisted applicant packages finalized and ready for mailing in order to meet the 1 October deadline.  I am hoping this is going to be a great and competitive year.  Mitch and I were able to reach every Fleet concentration and a number of outliers with the exception of Japan.  The audiences were engaged, motivated, and appeared to be our best and brightest – that is just the guys we need.  We thank you for participation this year and getting your people to the brief, and particularly those that sat through the brief as mentors.  This will stand out as a banner year, hopefully the first of many to follow. And speaking of banner years…

 In March we had the opportunity to travel to the SE US and Guantanamo Bay to present our new brief in addition to our recruiting brief.  The community brief is  l-o-n-g but probably very little can be cut because it really lays out what was broken, what we have done to fix it, and what the future holds including initiatives to address some long standing problems.  I think the general mood in most audiences was, initially, anxious and possibly even hostile.  But the mood at the end of the brief can best be described as cautiously optimistic.  Quite honestly there is lots of good in this initiative with very few being disadvantaged (and even that is minimal because we will age any force changes).   It will take a couple of years to fully implement all of the changes and  I believe that all initiatives will be carried out because they are logical and best for the Navy and are supported by our chain of command (Flag and community).  The OCM team in place right now will be here for at least a year together, and any reliefs will be handpicked to ensure they share the same philosophies, vision, and fortitude to ensure completion.   This fits very well with our Flag Sponsor, Admiral Quinn, retaining leadership of our community as he transitions to NETC Pensacola – an incredible win for us as he greatly values what you do for our Navy.

25 February 2011 is a date that should go into our history book as a day of celebration.  It was the day we met with CNP and presented all of your hard work in outlining a new course proposal to manage our community in meeting Navy needs. It was also the date that we received approval to fix some of the long term problems our community has battled with for decades.   The work outlined was very complex and included your inputs, your community Flag Officer concerns, and guidance from our sponsor, Admiral Quinn.  It included great feedback from RDML Kurta (1110) and RDML Covell (1200) to ensure we could realistically achieve what we were asking for.  It was evident that the restructure of our billet base, making it viable and sustainable, was not enough.  There are some very necessary elements to ensure that these changes will have a long term lasting effect and that we don’t find ourselves doing annual deep dives to make course changes. In a nutshell, we need the supporting inventory to do the job in the long term – I am very happy to tell you that our chain of command supported that view and was accepted by CNP as a requirement.

I trust that everyone had a great Christmas and New Year Holiday break and are probably in the process of catching up.  We are very busy and have really never stopped with the billet reviews and gathering your inputs from the symposium as we look forward to meeting CNP’s February deadline on this initiative.  Again, your hard work and passion for our community is apparent and the value gained in having your expertise on-hand has proven invaluable as we move ahead and look forward to a clear and bright future.  We will do our best in the coming year to provide frequent communications via the NPC and NKO websites, as well as our Facebook page (Shane has done an awesome job of keeping it updated and generating discussions) and e-mail distribution messages to keep you up to date on any and all changes affecting our community.

I would like to take this opportunity to applaud and thank the LDO/CWO Senior Leadership that came in full force to our Symposium this month.  A typical symposium attracts around 40 people – this year we reached 117!  It was clearly evident that you have all taken this difficult tasking very seriously.  Your hard work and passion for our community is apparent and the value gained in having your expertise on-hand for this granular community work will prove to be invaluable as we move ahead and look forward to a clear and bright future. I am very proud to be a part of such a professional cadre.  Thanks again!

The March 2020 edition of The Mustang Lariat celebrates the selection of newly appointed Chief Warrant Officers and Limited Duty Officers, congratulating them on their achievements. It emphasizes the critical role these officers play in supporting and enhancing the wardroom, with their technical expertise and leadership skills being key to mission success. The newsletter also highlights upcoming initiatives, professional development opportunities, and updates within the community, reinforcing the importance of readiness and adaptability in addressing current and future challenges. Additionally, the publication includes resources, announcements, and messages from senior leadership aimed at fostering a sense of pride and unity among the Navy’s technical specialists and leaders.