State of FORCECOM October 2018
Fellow Marines!
Let’s see who reads my reports.. lol
It’s been quite some time since I’ve posted one of these ‘State of …’
reports, but I’ll tell you it wasn’t because I’ve been lazing around on my fourth point of contact. No, we’ve been pretty busy here at Forces Command, and the ‘Dant’s recent announcement concerning the new rank insignia constituted a large part of our fervor the past few months.
By now I hope you’ve had the chance to see, and maybe order, the new rank insignia. The rank project was a widespread, working group led endeavor in which the SFMC worked together with the MACOs to produce a rank insignia that both groups could use as the more ‘military style’ groups within SFI.
The decision process took quite a while – thanks for the patience – as anything does in a science fiction club, but at long last we’re able to put this project in the ‘accomplished’ column. I would like to thank every member that served on a working group, helped with graphics, delivered designs, or ideas to move the SFMC forward to our goal of new rank insignia.
To go along with the new insignia comes updated wear guidelines. Those guidelines were distributed to your Brigade OICs a few weeks ago, and should have made their way down to the unit level. The ‘Dant also published a copy with her announcement of the new insignia; uploading a copy to the SFMC Facebook page. If you haven’t received a copy of the new wear guidelines, contact your Unit, or Brigade OIC immediately!
The wear guidelines are a work in progress. Meaning, what works in theory doesn’t always work in practice. I’m relying on the membership to go through the guidelines, and comment on what doesn’t work, looks wrong, or out of place, or to make additional suggestions. Those suggestions will be put in front of all the Brigade OICs for discussion, and decision. So, have a look at the guidelines, and let’s make them right!
Other irons in the fire…
Did you know the SFMC has a Spreadshirt Store? A link to the store is included on the SFMC Shopping page of the website ( https://shop.spreadshirt.com/sfmcqm/). It’s been neglected for quite some time, but I’ve been in contact with Spreadshirt to see what we can do to re-energize sales. But!! Before I do that, I need to know if there would be any interest from the membership! My proposal is to reopen the store, but with a lot more SFMC swag, and newer designs. Perhaps even making all the unit logos available for print on shirts, hats, mugs for wear at summit, muster, or IC. We could even tie this into the SFMC polo shirt project! ;o)
Corps manual revisions are on the horizon, and if you’ve counted the number of manuals the SFMC has in its general library you can understand the arduous task this will be. Luckily, I think the list of manuals to be revised will be whittled down to the MFM, the General Staff manual, and the Policy manual. Once the ‘Dant hands down the guidance, and timeline I will be looking for volunteers to assist with proofreading, and editing those manuals. If you’ve wanted to help the SFMC at the Corps level, this would be a great opportunity!
Openings on the Forces Command Staff will be announced shortly. With a year remaining on my current tour as CO, I want to ensure the Marine that replaces me has a solid, and reliable staff to work with. As you know the Deputy CO, Forces Command position is about to be filled, and as the chief of staff for FORCECOM, the DCO will need a few good volunteers! The positions currently open are the Special Projects Officer, Awards Officer (and soon the Ecerts Officer), and the Recruiting and Retention Officer.
Be on the look out for announcements from SFI H&R on the opening of the application periods for each position.
To close…
Now that things are settling back into a somewhat normal routine, my reports should be timelier, and hopefully a little more diverse. There are tons of great ideas floating around the ranks, coming up thru the chain of command, and with the holidays approaching quickly, and schedules slowing, there will be more time look at the feasibility of some of them. When those I feel will interest the membership come up, and the ‘Dant gives me the green-lite I’ll be sure to pass them on to you!
Oorah!
BDR B. Allen
Forces Command
BRIAN K. ALLEN
BDR, SFMC
COFORCECOM