Liaisons to the Office of the Surgeon General (Liaisons) serve as a crucial and vital link between the
central systems and processes of the Commissioned Corps and the officers
assigned to OPDIVs, STAFFDIVS, and Agencies.
Roles and Responsibilities
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Liaisons must be
subject matter experts in the policies and procedures governing the
administration of the PHS Commissioned Corps.
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Liaisons advise and counsel officers, supervisors, managers, senior agency
officials on PHS Commissioned Corps policies, procedures and careers.
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Liaisons serve as leading
advocates for the Commissioned Corps, promoting the culture
of the Corps (vision, mission and values).
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Liaisons are looked upon to lead
the implementation of new and existing PHS Commissioned
Corps policies and procedures within their respective OPDIV.
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Liaisons advise DCCPR, Division
of Commissioned Corps Personnel and Readiness regarding
policy development and implementation. They
serve as a key communication link between Corps operations and policy
entities and the agencies, and they often serve as a communication link with
Human Resources personnel.
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Liaisons are the process focal
point within the agency, advising, facilitating, and/or
coordinating PHS Commissioned Corps personnel actions to
include, but not limited to: assignment (including billets),
promotions, adverse actions, grievances, probationary
reviews, retirement, career counseling, special pay and
other contracts, logistics (i.e., shipment of household
goods), long term training, separation, survivor benefits,
performance evaluation (COER), awards, and compliance with
basic readiness.
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Liaisons serve a critical role in
the recruitment process, including advising, tracking, and
counseling applicants (entry, relocation, and inter-service
transfers) and COSTEPs.
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Liaisons train raters/reviewers
and other agency managers with respect to Corps processes
and procedures, and they are often responsible for training
officers on administrative procedures.
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Liaisons also have many
additional duties, depending on the agency, such as
coordinating promotion ceremonies, convening all hands
meetings, hosting retirement seminars, and providing
on-the-spot advice to CPOs, Corps Flag Officers and other
leaders. This list of roles and responsibilities can
be overwhelming and generally Liaisons must rely on
assistance from other staff or volunteers within their
agency to support their efforts. In order to balance the
roles and responsibilities with the needs of the agencies
and their officers, Liaisons must be proficient in
negotiation, diplomacy, organization, and time management.
Even so, it will be the rare Liaison or team that can
effectively address each of these roles on a consistent and
daily basis.