Project Supervisor/Manager
Resume:
James E Walker IV
Multilingual Public Affairs /Mass Communications Manager (TS-SCI)
An effective, tactful leader, experienced in digital journalism and social media management
Phone: 804-***-**** Email: *****.*.******.**@*****.*** Address: P.O. Box 4107, Monterey, CA 93942
EDUCATION Excelsior College: Bachelors in Liberal Arts (Grad: MAR 2021); 3.5 GPA; 128 Semester hrs. completed. Defense Language Institute: Associates Degree in Russian Language studies (Grad: Oct 2019) 3.7 GPA
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:
Position: Public Affairs Operations Supervisor (1BCT, 82nd Airborne Division) Dates: 02/15/2017 - Present Hrs/week: 60 Location: Fort Bragg, NC Agency: U.S. Army
- Coordinated and supervised engagements between organizational leadership and local civilian media; managed engagement on multiple social media platforms and target audience analysis; developed communication plans for exercises and operations, using established themes and messages; served as public relations subject matter expert to the Brigade Commander
- Oversaw the training and quality control of print and audiovisual products produced by three subordinates; routinely provided instruction on advanced storytelling, interview, and lighting techniques to his subordinates and public affairs practitioners from other units; currently mentors four service members from other units
- Responded to information requests, comments, and feedback from news outlets and social media; ensured adherence to the Department of Defense regulations, regarding declassification and appropriate release of information; routinely liaised and negotiated with land management, military leadership, public safety, and local community organizations in order to plan strategic communications and multimedia productions
- Embedded with countless military units during ground and airborne training exercises in order to acquire digital media, producing more than 30 videos and 350 captioned photos for release on social networks; exercised effective public affairs planning, demonstrating a keen ability to determine the most effective platform for publication, considering the desired effect; distinguished himself from peers in all military branches; sole producer of the “Paratroop for Life” video series highlighted on the 82nd Airborne Division Facebook page
- Hand-selected to supported 18th Airborne Corps as the Senior Public Affairs Noncommissioned officer during tactical command post exercise “War Fighter 18” at Fort Campbell, which aimed to enhance the readiness and interoperability between U.S. and Republic of Korea forces, preparing their units for future decisive action missions; liaised between the operations center cell and subordinate public affairs units to ensure maximum support of military operations in simulated “high threat” regions
- Employed composite photography techniques for the design and production of poster/banners highlighting 82 Airborne Division history in order to increase general knowledge about the organizational heritage amongst young service members; created digital artwork for videos, posters, flyers, social media; coordinated with installation print service and third-party contractors for the printing of posters/banners
- Traveled to Normandy, France and Arnhem, Netherlands to conduct interviews of WWII combat veterans who served in the 82nd Airborne Division and acquired archived WWII footage in order to produce two short-documentary films for the division’s social media and several episodes of the “All American Legacy Podcast” for the division’s YouTube channel; supported the commander’s initiative to increase knowledge of 82nd ABN heritage amongst soldiers at the lowest level of the organization- Hand-selected to plan, film, and edit a series of seven training videos for the Advanced Airborne School at Fort Bragg, NC, which were used to showcase newly established rigging standards and or the development of new non-personnel aerial delivery procedures
- Demonstrated technical proficiency in the use of Adobe digital media editing tools such as Premiere, Photoshop, After Effects, Illustrator, and Lightroom; created logos for the brigade and division public affairs offices
- Expertly used native social media metrics tools to assess page views, interactions, bounce rates, average time spent, and geography of readership in order to plan future posts for maximum audience engagement
- Earned first place in the U.S. Army Forces Command and Department of the Army levels of the MG Keith L. Ware competition for best social media video in 2017 and 2018;
- Promoted and ensured a respectful and courteous work environment for all military and civilian personnel
Position: Radio Station Operations Manager (American Forces Network Bavaria) Dates: 10/10/2014 - 02/15/2017 Hrs/week: 80 Location: Grafenwoehr, Germany Agency: U.S. Army
- Oversaw the daily radio station operations of American Forces Network - Bavaria for an audience of more than 73k; ensured crisis communication capabilities of installation Equal Opportunity, Sexual Harassment Prevention, EMS, police, and provost marshals, through the airing of AFN radio/TV commercials and social media engagement
- Developed communications plans for military exercises and crisis situations; coordinated with outside agencies and clients to develop communication objectives; planned execution and distribution of digital media via radio, TV and the internet; engaged with the target audience both proactively and reactively
- Composed and/or tailored talking points, scripts, and speeches for senior leaders before interviews and high-visibility engagements; ensured all scripts supported established organizational lines of effort in accordance to approved themes and messages in order to support the installation commander’s intent
- Monitored and evaluated the planning/production of TV news stories, TV commercials, social media videos, radio commercials and radio news stories of 17 civilian and military personnel; complied weekly, quarterly and monthly reports
- Contributed to U.S. Army Europe’s efforts to deter and prevent sexual harassment by producing a 25- minute short film, which highlighted the effects of sexual harassment on the military work environment and individual combat readiness; USAREUR distributed the video to all subordinate Sexual Harassment and Assault Prevention offices and published on YouTube where it quickly reached more than 200k views
- Produced 20 social media videos as part of a web series,10 news stories, and more than 100 radio commercials for local non-governmental organizations, such as Army Community Service or Outdoor Recreation
- Documented the movement of the 2nd Cavalry Regiment, during multinational exercise “Dragoon Crossing” from Vilseck, Germany to Arad, Romania, highlighting the combined effort to enhance interoperability between allied forces; created a series of 5 multimedia VLOG-style videos for release on social media platforms
- Facilitated a live, multi-camera, remotely televised broadcast of the Secretary of Defense’s visit to Grafenwoehr, Germany; effectively trained and ensured videographers were familiar with the previously unfamiliar ENG cameras to be used during the event; met the intent of higher headquarters
- Created logos for various multimedia products; licensed royalty free music and video commercial video clips for use in local audio/video productions
Position: Public Affairs Specialist (43rd Public Affairs Detachment) Dates: 08/10/2011 - 10/10/2014 Hrs/week: 60 / 120 Loc: Ft. Bliss / Afghanistan Agency: U.S. Army
- Produced 12 news stories, one short documentary and hundreds of photos highlighting Afghan National Security and Coalition Forces interoperability, traveling to more than 15 Afghan cities to acquire footage and interview during and after combat operations; provided combat declassified footage to Afghan media, supporting ongoing Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Afghanistan efforts to show the Afghan public that Afghans were indeed leading the way in the provision of security; cross-referenced multi-sourced intelligence, interviewed Afghan district/provincial leadership, and acquired digital media during Village Stability Operations, helping the unit meet the commander’s communication objectives
- Served as news media security escort for CNN and several journalists/authors in eastern Afghanistan in order to ensure the security of the civilian and the unit mission; frequently briefed news outlets on security measures, and regulatory limits in order to safely and appropriately acquire vital information and digital media; facilitated informational security and propriety
- Disseminated accurate and appropriate command information through news releases, newspaper articles, Web-based material and photographs for use in military and civilian news media, conducted social media analysis
- Responded to information requests, comments, and feedback from news outlets and social media; ensured adherence to the DoD regulations, regarding declassification and appropriate release of information
- Managed and planned organizational social media activity both proactively and reactively; produced 60 social media videos, integrating multiple audiovisual elements such as sound effects, graphics, and animation
Position: Training Operations Manager (647th Quartermaster Co) Dates: 01/16/2008 - 08/10/2011 Hrs/week: 60 Location: Ft. Bragg, NC. Agency: U.S. Army
- Scheduled military schools and planned battle focused training for a unit of over 300 personnel; recorded and archived of all personnel training records and certifications
- Served as a supply specialist and human resources clerk, managed the company's motor maintenance schedule, maintaining the vehicle Fully Mission Capable above 90%
- Promoted a respectful and courteous work environment for all military and civilian personnel
SKILLS & CERTIFICATIONS: Security Clearance: Top Secret –SCI; Multilingual: Eng/Span/Russ Defense Information School (DINFOS) Certificate: Public Affairs Broadcast and Multimedia Journalism
AWARDS : 1 Bronze Star Medal, 1 Joint Service Commendation Medal, 2 Army Commendation Medal, 4 Army Achievement Medals, 2 Army Good Conduct Medal, 5 Certificates of Achievement REFERENCES:
- Peer: Jesse Ledger email: *****.*.*****@**.***
- Supervisor: Col. Joseph Buccino. email: ******.*.*******.***@****.***
- Previous Supervisor. Sgt. First Class Carlos Burger email: ******.*.******@*****.***
- Previous Supervisor. Sgt. First Class TaWanna Starks email: *******.*.******.***@****.***
James E. Walker IV
Effective, tactful and efficient manager/leader with military experience
Jan 9, 2021
Ma’am or Sir,
In my thirteen-year career as a soldier in the U.S. Army, I was fortunate to gain nine years of invaluable leadership experience at multiple levels. My first experience as a leader entailed the determination and scheduling of training to suit the operational needs of a company with more than 400 assigned personnel. Additionally, I demonstrated to my subordinates that adherence to equal opportunity, and sexual assault/harassment prevention policies and military regulations was necessary in order to ensure a healthy work environment and overall mission readiness at the lowest level.
Afterwards in Afghanistan, I led my hand-picked team of soldiers as we conducted target audience analysis, created trend reports, acquired digital media, developed command information and ensured the mass communication of the same to local and international media outlets. During these public affairs operations, we also responded to media queries, wrote press releases, engaged civilian media and produced digital media daily.
I experienced my most challenging leadership experience when I served as the Armed Forces Network radio station operations manager in Germany. There, I oversaw the overall training and daily workflow of more than 10 interns, 12 military personnel, three local-national civilians and numerous volunteers as we worked to service an audience of over 75k service members and an even larger shadow audience. This particular position forced me to take a step back from the hands-on aspect of the job as I was now accountable for successful station operations and over six-million dollars’ worth of equipment.
However, I do have some basic leadership, which I acquired before my military service. For more than a year, I worked as a shift manager at Pizza Hut in Richmond, Virginia. There, I ensured that timeliness, cleanliness production, and customer service standards were met by all employees. Before that, I worked both at McDonalds and Paramount’s Kings Dominion for about one year each, filling multiple customer services roles.
Now that my military career will come to an honorable end in April 2021, I seek to apply my seasoned public affairs leadership experience and adaptable personality in a similar civilian role. I would love the opportunity to discuss how I can contribute to your team. I thank you in advance for your consideration and I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely and respectfully,
SSG James E. Walker IV
*****.*.******.**@*****.***
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