Developing solutions during the Annual Navy Lessons Learned Workshop
02 November 2022
Norfolk, VA --
This past week, the Navy Warfare Development Center (NWDC) was honored to host, keynote speaker, Rear Admiral Peter Vasely during the Annual Navy Lessons Learned (NLLW) Workshop during October 18-20, 2022.
The event was to provide Memorandum for the Record on the NWDC Lessons Learned Workshop held live and virtually using the Main Conference Room, Defense Communication System (DCS) and Flank Speed Microsoft Teams.
The workshop is an annual working level forum (O5-O6) designed to educate participants, identify issues, and develop solutions relevant to Navy Lessons Learned Program (NLLP). Objectives for this year’s workshop were:
- Improve NLLP policy, process, and procedures.
- Expand NLLP participation and use to include Shore Commands
- Align NLLP Program Managers, participants, and stakeholders.
- Increase NLLP fleet awareness to support Get Real, Get Better (GRGB)
The NLLWS provided a venue for representatives from Office of the Chief of Naval Operations (OPNAV), United States Fleet Forces Command (USFFC), numbered fleet commands, Type Commanders (TYCOMs), Systems Commands (SYSCOMS), Warfare Development Commands (WDCs), and Fleet Units to brief and discuss how they incorporated lessons into their internal processes, and areas for improving the NLL program to support their issue resolution processes.
Participants indicated that their organizational issue resolution processes met their specialized needs for an effective lesson learned program. As with previous workshops, the consensus is that the overall Navy process should be sufficiently flexible and agile to support different organizational missions, structures, challenges and requirements while providing common programmatic standards to access, share collective insights across the various communities, and better leverage a “Get Real Get Better” environment.
“The GRGB presentation was excellent; needs to be pushed to the deck plates,” said Mr. John Cordle.
As in prior years, the NLLWS invited representatives from US Army (CALL) to expose Navy Lesson Learned practitioners to overviews of how other services execute their respective programs and conduct issue resolution. For 2022, US Army (CALL) and USAF Deputy Director for AFLL participated continuously in the 2022 NLLWS and commented on analogous processes within their respective services during scheduled workshop discussions.
Over the three days of live and virtual meetings, the workshop obtained collaboration and participation from 100 Military, Civilian and Contractor individuals from a worldwide audience representing various Air, Surface, Subsurface, Special Warfare, and Medical, Supply, Maintenance, Fire Safety, Expeditionary, Joint, US Army and US Air Force communities.
“Having a shore-based command involved in presentations is good; shore commands are often overlooked,” said Mr. Tony Sumabat.
The shared perspectives of the workshop provided valuable information to each participant. The workshop was recorded via Flank Speed Teams and Secure Internet Protocol Router (SIPR)net DCS further facilitating post-event reflection and sharing beyond the original participants.