Navy Reserve Naval Medical Forces Support Command created the Professional Development Program in September 2018. The goal of the program is to develop courses to improve professionalism and educate officer and enlisted Sailors on various leadership topics.
These trainings, in conjunction with operational medical training, work towards fulfilling the mission of NR NMFSC which is to produce and upgrade Navy Medicine’s personnel through leadership, and through operational, professional, and occupational education and training solutions.
Two Sailors who have been invaluable to this effort are Capt. Marie Gannon and Capt. Janet Wessels.
Gannon has served as the director of the program since its inception in 2018 and developed the program from the ground up. Using existing leadership development initiatives Gannon and her team were able to work with subject matter experts to develop relevant, up-to-date courses for Navy Medicine leaders.
“The goal is to offer resources and strategies for successful transition into their leadership roles while being mindful of character and providing opportunities for connections within the enterprise,” said Gannon, whose passion for leadership development attracted leaders from across the spectrum of military medicine who have enthusiastically contributed their time and expertise.
“It has been an honor and a privilege to be able to collaborate with Navy’s finest leaders to develop programs to help Sailors excel and meet critical leadership and positional responsibilities,” said Gannon.
One of the Sailors Gannon has collaborated with is Wessels, who joined the Professional Development Program in March 2021 and worked closely with Gannon to develop several highly successful training programs prior to assuming the role of program director in August 2021.
Gannon, Wessels, and their team have developed a number of courses and events in support of their leadership development goal, such as the Transition to Senior Leader (TTSL) symposium. TTSL is a 2-day symposium designed to provide training in leadership skills such as coaching, holding crucial conversations, emotional intelligence, resiliency and team building.
The success of these symposiums prompted Gannon and Wessels to seek out and capture knowledge from senior officer and enlisted leaders in the form of a “Leadership Pearls” video library. To date, six video recordings of retired flag officers and senior enlisted leaders have been generated, with each speaker offering pearls of wisdom from their experiences to foster leadership growth.
The professional development team is currently developing a 2-day NRM Orientation course which will become required training for all new direct commissioned officers and new enlisted accessions. This virtual course will orient new members to NRM and cover topics such as various NRM platforms (NMRTC, EMF, ASU, RSU, T-AH) and their missions, Global Health Engagement, Reserve Programs: description, mission, billet requirements, and more.