If it was exclusively volunteer management/personnel, brilliant. But their role appears to span Estates Management, Health and Safety, Safeguarding, Transport and logistics, Multiagency work, plus budgetary responsibility for all of the above. And with some Wings now up to 30+ squadrons - it’s quite a vast role!
I’d argue their role is more closely aligned to an Regional Operations manager. A quick scan of Charity Job shows even some of the Regional Ops Manager posts are on £40k - and they are only responsible for 8-16 sites.
Perhaps, paying appropriately for the role and responsibility, could see some of the issues disappear…
It might suck, but it doesn’t such as much as retail. I know bottom-rung adminners that earn as much as retail (support/department) managers.
Reg Ops sounds about right. Ironically, if you reduced their tasking to remove the safeguarding aspect and passed that off under their management, you could get them active enough to be bordering on something close to Regional Operations Director.
I think my issue with the WExO role is that they are personally responsible for a little bit of a lot, but some of those little bits are incredibly time-consuming. There isn’t a great deal that they can actually delegate, because there’s no one of appropriate authority or responsibility to pass it off to!
That doesn’t excuse how chumpish some of them are, though.
Having seen how things go when you move from having E2, E1, WExO, to only WExO, and back to having 2 and then 3 WHQ Staff, the difference is astounding. Imagine what could happen if there was someone that could take safeguarding (as an example) outside of that chain or if there was an additional bod available at WHQ with actual responsibility and authority to make requests and decisions in certain areas.
Honestly, there are so many things such as estates issues that we need WExOs for to solve/resolve because it’s above E1 level, but they are too caught up in other matters that take precedence.
I can see the whole org moving over to the system LaSER is going to. We have essentially dissolved WHQs into RHQ. So we now have an HEO grade that is responsible for a certain area, like personnel, training or estates. And then the E1s and E2s are distributed around to act underneath those HEOs. So far, it seems to be working.
Before FTRS was a thing there was such a thing as RAFR (CC)/ Royal Air Force Reserve (Civilian Component). They were used in specialists posts including WEXOs hired, paid and managed as civil servants with civil service terms and conditions ie couldn’t the sent anywhere without their consent i(in most cases) but subject to military law. They could be any relevant rank (with no promotion prospects) WEXO’s were Sqn Ldr RAFR (CC). It was more commonly used in the main RAF for Civilian Met Officers/ static Civilian Air Traffic Control and such like so they could be protected under Geneva convention if the balloon ever went up in general war scenario. They did a commissioning course very similar to the Cadet Force OIC with no previous requirement to have held a regular or reserve commission as I understand it although info is slightly vague on the training course undertaken.
I believe they stopped appointing individuals to the RAFR (CC) in late 90s/early 00s but those who were already in post would retain until such time as they left that post/retired. I know at least as of mid last year their was at least one WEXO RAFR (CC) still serving as a WEXO with his RAFR commission . He might still be serving or may have retired since then I’m not sure
Exactly. Where is the training for the key players? Like adjutant & training officer? These are the foundations A lot of it I have found by trial and error. Or just reading and asking what other Squadrons do. But it would be nice to have a more formal training. With things like the training programme or what do we do with old cadets stuff records old uniform. How to get badges when they cannot be gained through ordering. So many questions!
