NAVAIR headquarters is nestled in the heart of St. Mary’s County, Md., where 2011 Census data indicates the Hispanic population is 4 percent — a challenge to attracting and retaining these employees, NAVAIR officials say.
Using skills he developed through the NAVAIR Leadership Development Program (NLDP), José Rodriguez is on a mission to improve recruiting, retaining and developing Hispanic employees through his work with NAVAIR’s Hispanic Engagement Action Team (HEAT).
HEAT, established in September 2009, helps identify potential hiring barriers and increases awareness and morale through mentoring and knowledge sharing. Its efforts have paid off — the population rate for Hispanics across NAVAIR has continued to grow for the past three years, and the overall retention rate for Hispanics is higher than the total NAVAIR workforce.
“HEAT allows me to give back to the Hispanic community by fostering an inclusive working environment for all,” Rodriguez, a logistics management integration analyst, said. “We look at the recruitment and retention barriers, identify root causes and implement solutions.”
One retention barrier that remains is the remote area of St. Mary’s County.
One solution is Rodriguez’s work with a community collaboration group, which includes representatives from county government, the College of Southern Maryland and St. Mary’s County’s Board of Education. The group focuses on cross-cultural communication and plans to implement countywide diversity events to foster a welcoming community for Hispanics.
Within NAVAIR, Rodriguez has also helped HEAT sponsor national mentoring events and a cross-cultural communication event celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month in 2012.
“The efforts and dedication from the HEAT ensure that all employees are equally recognized and ultimately increase morale, efficiency and effectiveness to make progress towards creating a more diverse workforce at NAVAIR,” said Gary Kessler, HEAT champion and NAVAIR deputy assistant commander for test and evaluation.
Rodriguez said his time spent in NLDP, from which he graduated in 2010, has helped his work on the HEAT and outside the base.
“[NAVAIR Commander] Vice Adm. David Dunaway has a philosophy with regard to leadership at all levels. That philosophy, as well as the concepts of diversity and inclusion, is reinforced in the NLDP classes, and that has been a skill that I have been able to apply to the HEAT: leading from top down, peer-to-peer and leading up,” he said.
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