Annual PPC SPO/Admin Workshop

Registration Opens for 2010 SPO/Admin Workshop

We are pleased to announce the dates for our annual PPC Topeka SPO/Admin Workshop to be held 13 through 16 September 2009, here in Topeka.

We have a new location for the workshop this year. With more than 25,000 square feet of meeting space, the Capitol Plaza Topeka will be a great location for this year's workshop.

We are working to develop an agenda of relevant topics for SPOs and administrative yeoman based upon your feedback from last year's training workshop and the many changes currently taking place within the Coast Guard. It is important to note that this training workshop is considered "mission critical" for field personnel working in the personnel services arena for travel guidance purposes. We will have many subject-matter experts from Headquarters and other units providing the instruction, as well as our own PPC experts presenting a wealth of information.

Similar to past years' events, PPC Topeka and other subject-matter experts will provide training and information on Direct Access, T-PAX, accessions, enlisted contracts, and reserve transactions. You will also learn about advancements, separations, PCS orders, as well as the most effective and efficient ways to interact with PPC to quickly address challenges.

Workshop Registration:

Registration is simple! To register, e-mail CPO Zandra Sneed at zandra.sneed@uscg.mil.

2010 SPO/ADMIN Workshop
Date: Sept 13-16, 2010
Place: Capital Plaza Hotel
1717 SW Topeka, Blvd
Topeka, KS 66683

Room Reservations:

We have a block of rooms available at the per diem rate. Please note that conference registration and room reservations are handled separately. Room reservations can be made online using this link. Or you can visit the Capital Plaza's web site at www.capitolplazahoteltopeka.com. Click on "book online" and you will be redirected to reservations page. In the top paragraph you will see "click here" to continue for secure bookings. After clicking there you will be redirected to the reservation booking page. Select "group reservation" to continue booking. If you are using Flash the link will be located at the top center in BLACK. If using HTML the link will be located in BLUE at the bottom left of the page. The attendee code for the discounted rate is COAST. Once the code is entered, you will be able to select the dates and book your reservation. OR, call the hotel directly at (785) 431-7200 (please mention you are part of US COAST GUARD SPO 2010 or group code USCG).

We strongly encourage SPO staff members and unit admin personnel to attend this important workshop if at all possible. Put in your request for travel funds with your command (No PPC funding is available) and come out to learn the latest in your world of work so that you can take the information and improved skills back to your unit!

2009 SPO/Admin Workshop a Great Success!

The week of 21-25 September PPC hosted our annual Customer Advisory Council/SPO conference for the Yeoman rate. This 4th annual conference had a theme of "Customers..Suppliers..Partners" and was very well attended with over 200 Yeoman coming from all over the Coast Guard. I consider this event critical for our responsibility in SPO Service Line Management, and I believe the conference was a great success overall.

Admiral Neptun, Commander, Personnel Service Center Arlington provided our keynote address and encouraged Yeoman to remain relevant during this time of Coast Guard Transition. PPC presented a wide variety of technical modules for business processes where we work with SPO's to serve our mutual customers. Topics included the many changes to Reserve Program Management, Direct Access Self Validation results, CFO Audit issues, SPO Measurements and CGBI cube reports, and other business processes that are critical to daily Yeoman duties.

We had the YN Assignment Officers, YN Course Writer, and Rating Force Manager here as well to provide the latest information on the Assignment Process, Manpower Rating Analysis (MRA) Study, and the stand-up of Personnel Service Support Units. We held a social event that was an excellent opportunity to network with YN attendees from around the Coast Guard and compare notes about work or just catch up with old friends and shipmates.

We solicited feedback electronically this year in addition to written surveys and got an unprecedented 63% response rate with comments on the conference and constructive ideas on how to make it better next year. We will be evaluating the venue, incorporating more variety of topics and providing some hands-on learning opportunities for smaller groups in the future. We are listening to your input and are pushing to progress into a true partnership with SPO's and grow our advocacy for the YN rate.

Thank you to each and every one of our volunteers who worked so hard to make the conference a success and Bravo Zulu to Chief Zandra Sneed for leading our conference planning team this year. Finally, THANK YOU ALL for attending, and for being our partners. We rely on you and your hard work to achieve success in serving our mutual customers!

J. D. PHILLIPS, P.E, CAPT, USCG
CO PPC Topeka