An Cosantóir

15 Strong Leadership The Result these directives for General Staff approval. To complement our commanders 'Talks to Troops' etc., we developed a detailed PowerPoint presentation on Covid Risk Awareness with associated speaking notes, and our H&S network delivered it to all ranks in a formal manner. Receipt of the presentation is certified on our training management system, so that we can track and prove progress. As I write about 95% of our personnel have been briefed and certified, and we will start over again in the New Year. This was only one example of the exceptional work done by our Health & Safety network, led by Comdt Conor Ryan in DFHQ and the formation safety reps, who played a blinder throughout. The second way that we communicated our plan was through Extensive Use of All the Channels Available to our Public Relations Branch, such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp. Our audio-visual team developed short videos, for example a clip featuring the Chief of Staff directly addressing all ranks and their families, which was shared on all channels. But nothing beats Face To Face Contact. Over a number of weeks, I led a small Covid Assurance Team on visits to every DF installation. The team included EO Training Branch, the DFHQ H&S Officer and the DF Sgt Major. These short visits provided assurance in both directions. The visiting team confirmed that there was both clarity on the plan and compliance with all our countermeasures. Units for their part got the chance to give feedback and raise concerns, which were fed back into improving and guidance documents, via the JOPG. As ever, the glue that holds it all together in the Military, and our third and final rule of thumb, is Leadership. First and foremost, this meant a Strong Command Presence by all leaders, from our junior NCOs up to and including formation commanders and General Staff members, so that our leaders were visible on the front line, talking and especially listening to our people. In this regard the leadership shown by our NCOs was superb, and in keeping with the finest traditions of Óglaigh na hÉireann. I'm glad to report that this DF twin track approach has worked. So while we have continued to conduct framework operations at home and abroad, carried out essential training and education and, most importantly, continued to deploy our personnel in support of the HSE and others throughout the pandemic, our latest analysis confirms that our infection rates in the DF match the national rates per head of population, almost exactly. The majority of the personnel who have tested positive in the DF are assessed to have picked up the virus in the community and not at work, even though we have continued to work throughout the pandemic. And that, I hope, is the real proof that our three 'rules of thumb' have seen us safely this far through this crisis. Until the vaccine is fully rolled out (and it may take some time), we need to keep practicing our good drills, such as our hand washing/sanitising, cough etiquette and social distancing. In that way, we will keep our infection rates low and continue to successfully protect our centre of gravity through 2021. We also placed great emphasis on Encouraging and Enabling Innovation. Pte Tommy Collins, our tailor in Collins Barracks Cork, produced an excellent DPM (camouflage) facemask, while we were procuring 30,000 facemasks from industry (our Army cadets were later able to use these DPM facemasks during their tactical training). Sgt Leona Houlihan volunteered NOT to travel overseas as scheduled so that she could establish an in-house Covid testing facility in St Bricin's. This type of innovation and selflessness was repeated again and again throughout the year, across all services and ranks. This leads me to my final point on Leadership: the need to Recognise Leadership and Exemplars of Our DF Values. In the DF we do this through our Values Champions Awards, a key component of our 'Values in Action' Programme. Anyone can be nominated, including PDF, RDF and civilian employees. Likewise anyone can nominate a comrade for an award, regardless of rank or station. I'm pleased to report that as I write, we have over 90 nominations in for this year. Our selection panel of senior enlisted leaders (Sgts Major and equivalent) will have a tough job picking the champions this year! ACOS Covid Assurance Visit to the Aviva Com JTF & ACOS addressing a recent Covid lessons learned webinar PROTECTING THE FORCE

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