What is the common length of time to wait after submitting awards for them to be approved. I have several cadet and senior member awards submitted and awaiting approvals or rejections. What could be some reasons for the hold up? No one has contacted me for any input. Several are waiting at wing and several at group. From 8 months to 2 months.
It makes me feel like my efforts to do a good write up are wasted the longer time goes by. How long should I wait until I start inquiring? I'm afraid if I "bother" anyone it might cause them to reject everything.
There is no rule on this. Review board meetings can hold it up. Both my own Lifesaving awards took some time, probably partly because of the ranking of the award, even though it only requires wing CC approval.
39-3 Simply Says: "Prompt recognition through presentation of awards earned will promote esprit de corps."
The Commander's Commendation and Achievement award didn't take that long for the 2 cadets for whom I submitted them.
Although I received the autographs to be presented with the awards (personalized by our very own astronaut Colonel Boe) BEFORE the actual awards were approved. The autographs were a non-bureaucratic gift to go with those cadets' awards for their very hard work working at 2 squadrons.
I'd suggest following up through the chain through Personnel.
My consistent method to getting movement on awards is to call each approval level when it hits their point and ask them the following questions:
1. Did you see the award pending?
2. What formal steps at your level are there for approval?
3. Do you require additional supporting documentation?
4. When should I next call to ask you about this?
Remember to that not everybody is sitting there looking at their eServices account or their email like a hawk every 15 minutes.
I got a call one day about a senior program level award approval, and it had been submitted the afternoon previously. If I had gotten some kind of an email alert I might have actually thought to go in and look for it, but I had not seen it yet in my queue in e-services.
Turns out the squadron commander hadn't even approved it. Yet here I have the member on the phone demanding to know why his senior program award had not been approved yet.
Funny thing was I got basically the exact same phone call a few days later with the member's promotion. Not the squadron commander, not the director of personnel. Actually the sequence was National headquarters, then me.
We are all volunteers, and we're doing this in our (copious) spare time. I don't log on and check eServices between getting home from work and sitting down to dinner.
I don't recall exactly what the suspense dates were for paper promotions or PD awards, but 10 days sort of sticks in my head. Even though it's electronic, you can't really anticipate that somebody is going to get something like that push through in less than 24 hours. But yet some people do.
Thanks a lot Jeff Bezos
Bottom line, 2 months is unacceptable and 8 months is ridiculous.
Make some calls.
I have an award sitting at NHQ for the last 10 months. It was submitted April 2019 and cleared Region in October 2019. Been sitting at NHQ since then.
What is NHQ saying is the hold up?
Quote from: Eclipse on July 31, 2020, 08:28:41 PMBottom line, 2 months is unacceptable and 8 months is ridiculous.
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Back when I was doing promotions for people, I got it to a turn around time of a week for promos below major.
Reviewed PD records, filled out form, CC signature, fax to National. Commander usually handed then me ID Card the following week.
I managed to get a Major promo in a week, but it was a case of good rapport with my next higher level equivalents, and the wing staff meeting was two nights after my unit meeting.
Might have take a similar focus when it comes to awards once I rejoin. This is mostly getting approvals on a timely manner.
Maybe I could handle awards for the wing. I have always looked at it as "If you earned it, I'll do my best to make sure you get it."