If you could change 1 thing about the Canadian Armed Forces...

[RTaylor]

If you could change 1-2 things about the Canadian Armed Forces what would it be? Any topic is good, just try not to get too offensive.

For me it'd be :

1 - Streamline the recruitment process - for myself and a lot of friends who have joined back up the CFRC(s) we've gone to have lost papers or otherwise mismanaged the process which has created an undue wait for the overall process.

2 - More public exposure for the Armed Forces - A lot of people have NFI what the forces really do. I tell people I'm joining and they tell me to wear a webcam on my head when I hit combat in Iraq...yeah because all AVS techs (future) has that option. Or I get called a killer or terrorist...

 

[Trinity]

This thread isn't going to end nicely. 

 

[RTaylor]

It's my "Bored at work" thread

 

[aesop081]

1 - Streamline the recruitment process - for myself and a lot of friends who have joined back up the CFRC(s) we've gone to have lost papers or otherwise mismanaged the process which has created an undue wait for the overall process.

You know what i would change ?

I would love it when people see a problem, that they bring a solution to go with it.

 

[GDSM MTL]

We have it pretty damned good, but theres always room for improvement

1)  Better public relations: whoever said it hit the nail on the head, the public knows 0 about the CF and what we do, this is a problem, universities are under pressure to deny Army recruiting initiatives, anti-"war" protests with people burning Canadian Flags, the list goes on...  Not that it's the CFs fault, the info is there for the public to see, but we must accept that the majority are ignorant and uninformed.

2) Civilian Job security: I don't know that much about this, but basically my SGT told me that when I'm done school, look to work for an American company in hope that I can secure LWP time for training instead of having to use my vacation time, like a Canadian company would have you do.  This is absurd, our government should have legal structures set up ensuring that reservists are given due time to serve their country without having to sacrifice their vacations. 

 

[RTaylor]

CDN, I'd write a solution to it but since it'd sit and gather dust it's not worth it at the moment.

In the future who knows?

I, however, do believe that they should be processing everything into computers and setting up a way for people to check their information to update,revise and check on the status w/o having to call the CFRC. Also, do away with the necessity of needing old paper files that really serve no purpose other than the slow up the process of recruitment. All my info was in their computers and they stated that before the process could go further they needed my actual file folders which is redundant because most of the info was already input on their computers.

It may head that way in the future, who knows? But at this current time if you have prior service it takes a LOT longer to get in which is totally ridiculous since all your info should already be in their systems, they just want the archaic paper trail to go along with it. I've actually been shown my files and how the system works and so forth. It's very clunky in it's current forms, and to be honest, they should take some of the filing concepts from call centers and apply it to their systems to stream line it, as well as have every system store/retrieve from a central server like most mass telecommunications company.

Maybe when I get in I can affect some changes by pushing out some of my ideas. I doubt they'd go anywhere, but who knows, if an idea is simple to implement and well thought out who knows where it may go?

Anyways, I don't want to turn this into a debate, back to the OP!

 

[George Wallace]

I, however, do believe that they should be processing everything into computers and setting up a way for people to check their information to update,revise and check on the status w/o having to call the CFRC. Also, do away with the necessity of needing old paper files that really serve no purpose other than the slow up the process of recruitment. All my info was in their computers and they stated that before the process could go further they needed my actual file folders which is redundant because most of the info was already input on their computers.

It may head that way in the future, who knows? But at this current time if you have prior service it takes a LOT longer to get in which is totally ridiculous since all your info should already be in their systems, they just want the archaic paper trail to go along with it. I've actually been shown my files and how the system works and so forth. It's very clunky in it's current forms, and to be honest, they should take some of the filing concepts from call centers and apply it to their systems to stream line it, as well as have every system store/retrieve from a central server like most mass telecommunications company.

Maybe when I get in I can affect some changes by pushing out some of my ideas. I doubt they'd go anywhere, but who knows, if an idea is simple to implement and well thought out who knows where it may go?

Anyways, I don't want to turn this into a debate, back to the OP!

So your signature is in their data base?  You do realize that Legal Documents, such as your Application Form, Personnal Screen Permission Form, Physical Fitness Test Form, Medical Forms, etc., although submitted electronically, require your 'original' signature on them to be Legal?  (That is one reason that they don't like you to sign in black ink.)

Your information from Previous Service may be in Archives and not accessible in the current database, especially if you have been out for five or more years.  If it was all still accessable in the current database, that would have to be make it one heck of a large database, as it would include all the archived information for every member of Canada's military since John Cabot.

 

[RTaylor]

Solid points George, the issue of written signature could be resolve by digital signatures like you use when signing for a parcel from UPS / Purolator or whatever, although that still wouldn't resolve the current files still in records and some may still have issues with it. Can be solved by having a witness sign it also when fresh signatures are being given for updated/new files.

Going back to Cabot would be redundant I think(I wonder how far back the current archives go...), but bringing to the modern age (as they come across people that are re-applying) files could be done on a one by one basis.

I'm thinking we should move 1/2 of this to another topic called "How would you change the Canadian Forces Recruiting process" 

 

[Tanner]

I tell people I'm joining and they tell me to wear a webcam on my head when I hit combat in Iraq...yeah because all AVS techs (future) has that option.

Iraq?

 

[RTaylor]

As I said, severely misinformed.  :

 

[kincanucks]

Bring the PT test back to the CFRC level and get rid of the RFT crap in BMQ so lazy out of shape people don't have an easy way in to waste public funds.

 

[benny88]

Bring the PT test back to the CFRC level and get rid of the RFT crap in BMQ so lazy out of shape people don't have an easy way in to waste public funds.

  Hear hear! Bad for CFLRS, bad for the folks in RFT. Not a bad program for what it is, but unnecessary if we do as kincanucks says.