Chief Master Sergeant James Roy won’t become the Air Force’s top enlisted leader until the end of next month, but service members are already scrutinizing his background—and the selection process that led to his new job.
Roy, a 27-year Air Force veteran, was announced as the next Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force on Friday. He will be the 16th man to fill that post since it was created in 1967. Roy will replace Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force Rodney McKinley who is retiring in July, after 30 years of service.
Like most who have held the post, Chief McKinley spent years as a unit first sergeant and senior enlisted advisor before serving as a Command Chief Master Sergeant, advising senior commanders on issues affecting the enlisted force. While Roy has served as a command chief in recent years, much of his early career was spent in the civil engineering career field. He never served as a First Sergeant.
“It smells funny,” said one retired chief, who requested anonymity. “Certainly not the broad breadth of experience we’ve seen in the past.”
Roy, who holds a master’s degree in Human Resources Management from Troy University in Alabama, will become only the second Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force with an advanced degree. But other elements of Roy’s education have caught the attention of senior non-commissioned officers, both active duty and retired.
“Look at those four ‘foo-foo” courses on his resume,” snorted the retired chief. He referred to Roy’s graduation from the USAF “Center for Creative Leadership,” the U.S. Joint Forces “Keystone” course and an executive level equal opportunity course, all in 2005. During that period, Roy was assigned as Command Chief for the 1st Fighter Wing at Langley AFB, Virginia and later, as Command Chief for U.S. Forces in Japan.
Chief Master Sergeant Roy also attended the “Gettysburg Experience” in 2006. Developed by a firm called Academy Leadership, the three-day course “brings executives to the Civil War battlefield to learn timeless lessons in leadership.” According to an on-line brochure, the three-day course costs $2950 per person. Roy’s participation was presumably funded by the Air Force.
“Those courses say ‘it’s all about me,” according to the former chief, who retired from active duty in 2003, after a distinguished, four-decade career. He said that a number of chiefs declined invitations to participate in those programs, believing they are a waste of tax dollars and offer little in the way of practical training.
Others expressed surprise at Roy’s relatively modest list of awards. His highest decoration is the Meritorious Service Medal with a silver oak leaf cluster. Most of his predecessors have earned the Legion of Merit, one of the nation’s highest awards of exceptionally meritorious military service. ”I’ve got more decorations that he does,” said one retired senior NCO.
The retired chief cautioned that Roy could become a “real deal” leader, respected by the enlisted troops he represents, and the senior officers he serves. But many feel that the bar has been set low by the performance of recent Chief Master Sergeants of the Air Force, including McKinley.
While the outgoing CMSAF is credited for developing the service’s new PT uniform and a new bachelor’s degree program for enlisted personnel, McKinley has been faulted for ignoring other issues, including professional military education for non-commissioned officers. Courses for mid-level and senior NCOs are far shorter than those offered to commissioned officers, and there has been little effort to close that gap.
Roy’s selection as the next Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force came as something of a shock. He wasn’t among the five Chiefs believed to have an inside track of the job, despite his recent assignment as Senior Enlisted Leader for U.S. Pacific Command.
Some observers thought that CMSgt Kenneth McQuiston, the senior enlisted representative for U.S. Transportation Command was the front runner to replace Chief McKinley. At TRANSCOM, McQuiston worked for General Norton Schwartz before he became Air Force Chief of Staff last year. Schwartz interviewed all the finalists for CMSAF and chose Roy over McQuiston, his former command chief.
Comments
You infer that "most" previous CMSAFs served as unit first sergeants prior to being selected as the CMSAF. That is not true. CMSAF McKinley and CMSAF Binniker are the only two CMSAFs that graduated from the US First Sergeant Academy. CMSAF Airey was a first sergeant, but other than those three, none were ever diamond wearing first sergeants. You should have researched why the senior leaders did not allow the most qualified Chiefs in the service to even apply.......
I served with Chief Roy in Japan. He was in tune and not just with the Airman but all services. You could say he was the steady pulse, the outside non bias. Being able to speak to all personnel on the same level. Additionally, what I did see from him is that HE NEVER spoke of "‘it’s all about me,”. He cared about all services in Japan not just the Air Force or himself. He was able to cross boundries within services and put in the best interest for all services. There was some Chiefs in the
Granted Chief Roy does not fit the typical role or qualifications for the job, I think thats a good thing. "Change is good"
I served with Jim on Anderson AFB when he was the Heavy Repair Forman and I was the Facility Maintenance Superindendent. Jim was then and I assume still is a compassionate, caring and completely capable person to perform all CMSAF duties. I can only speculate that the retired Chief that you were able to get the negative quotes from never knew Jim Roy or had the pleasure of working with him. I think the most significant statement of Jim’s capabilities is that General Norton Schwartz interviewed all the finalists for CMSAF and chose Jim Roy over Ken McQuiston, his former command chief. I agree with General Schwartz choice and wish Jim and his wife Paula the very best in everything they both deserve it.
So you found a retired old Chief who doesn't like the training courses the AF sent Chief Roy to. Whoop-de-do. Most Command Chiefs, if not all, attend The Gettysberg and Center for Creative Leadership courses. It says nothing about the man. I don't know him, but certainly wouldn't draw any conclusions from his list of training courses the AF sent him to. It's about time we broke the First Sergeant paradigm to. There is a lot more to being a SNCO than being a First Sergeant.
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