Enlisted evaluation, promotion system transformation Published April 21, 2015 By Senior Master Sgt. Jennifer Holton 27th Special Operations Force Support Squadron CANNON AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. -- In July 2014, the Air Force announced major changes that would transform the enlisted evaluation and Weighted Airman Promotion Systems. These programs had become severely overinflated and some personnel were promoted because raters were not making the tough decisions to accurately document job performance. "Unfortunately, over time the system has become inflated and a great majority of Airmen have become a 'firewall five,' which makes it very difficult to differentiate our very best performers," stated Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh III in a news release announcing the changes. “Changes over the next year will evolve our enlisted evaluations and promotions into a ‘performance-based’ evaluation system.” This is intended to ensure job performance is truly the driving factor behind ratings. "Our enlisted leaders have worked closely with the air staff and major commands to design a system that truly recognizes and rewards Airmen based firmly on their performance,” said Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James Cody in the same news release. “This is the most comprehensive update to enlisted evaluations and promotions in nearly 45 years." Cody assures Airmen that if they are doing what is expected, there is no need to worry. The Air Force has conducted extensive research to rebuild both systems to ensure it will sustain our forces in the future. In the end, this new approach will be better for all supervisors and Airmen while being more efficient and rewarding those who excel. The Air Force is still going to promote the same number of personnel, but these changes will ensure the best are being promoted based on their job performance. “No one knows better than our Air Commandos the level of effort that goes into sustaining and directly participating in our [Air Force Special Operations Command] missions,” said Chief Master Sgt. Randy Scanlan, 27th Special Operations Wing command chief. “The modernizing and sustainment of the force is not solely accomplished through our hardware and impressive inventory of aircraft, but also through the implementation of systems that most fairly and accurately measure performance.” To support this vision, the Air Force has made several adjustments to the current evaluation and WAPS programs for enlisted personnel summarized in their intent below: Enlisted Evaluation Changes Airmen Comprehensive Assessment – A new feedback form was introduced to the Air Force in July 2014. It provides an initial vessel for supervisor and subordinate communication. Feedback is the foundation and heart of performance assessments. You cannot effectively evaluate a member’s job performance if you have not properly communicated expectations and how Airmen meet those expectations. In addition, evaluation forms are being revised to closely parallel the new ACA form. Forms will be built to accurately document an honest assessment of a member’s job performance. Static closeout dates – Creation of fixed annual closeout dates based on grade that coincide with active duty promotion eligibility cut-off dates. This includes the elimination of change of reporting official driven reports and 59 day extension requests. Implementation started with the technical sergeant reports that close out Nov. 30, 2015 and the staff sergeant reports that close out Jan. 31, 2016. This change removes the requirement for raters to complete over 36,000 CRO reports. It ensures all enlisted members have a current evaluation prior to meeting promotion consideration and provides raters an opportunity to rate all members against their peers through force distribution and senior rater endorsement consideration on a fixed schedule. Chief Master Sgt. evaluation form - Chief master sergeants will have their own unique evaluation form, the Air Force Form 912, which will provide a short overall performance assessment and provide a recommendation for their future chief roles. It will also allow senior raters to nominate individuals for the command chief screening board based on job performance. Enlisted Promotion Changes Evaluation weighted factors – The previous WAPS system calculated using the last five EPRs, but now it will use a maximum of three ‘promotion eligible’ EPRs. The evaluation points changed from a maximum of 135 points to a maximum of 250 points. These changes place a higher emphasis on the individual’s most recent job performance. Time in grade/time in service – The previous WAPS system provided member’s additional promotion points for seniority. TIG/TIS points will gradually be reduced over the next few years until eventually being removed in 2017. This change promotes the best based on job performance, not longevity. Master sergeant boards – Creation of the master sergeant promotion boards is a two phased program. Personnel will continue to test against their CAFSC, and the top scoring 60 percent will move to the second phase where their records will meet an evaluation board that mirrors the senior noncommissioned officer promotions. This change ensures we have the best based on their job performance entering in the senior noncommissioned officer tier to lead our Airmen.