Command Sergeant Major / Sergeant Major,
With your guidance, we can count on NCOs to ensure Soldiers become fully trained in IPPS-A. It is with your help that we have reached an incredible milestone—1 million distinct users to IPPS-A!
The system is designed to benefit Soldiers, so please continue to encourage your teams to access IPPS-A, learn how to use it, and give us their feedback.
Here is an update, guidance, and more resources to share with your units as they continue to navigate IPPS-A. Please ensure this gets down to the lowest levels as well as full dissemination to the HR Professionals in their respective footprints.
Absence Analytics
IPPS-A’s absence analytics capabilities promote accuracy in personnel readiness. These functions allow HR Professionals the ability to capture a unit’s absence data on generally a six-hour delay. Essentially, this allows HR Pros transparency and oversight of their units’ personnel availability.
There is some confusion in the field pertaining to designated authorities for approving absences. As it is currently written, the IPPS-A User Manual does not indicate
how to identify and designate a proxy for approving absences. Further, when a Soldier is being “arrived” in the In-Transit Grid (ITG) and they have to adjust their absence, IPPS-A is making them the “approval authority” by default.
I want to emphasize that Commanders, Managers, and HR Pros should be approving absences. Please make sure your NCOs only have access that is compatible with their roles, and that personnel in your unit who are approving absences are supposed to be doing so within the correct approval category.
Incorrect Clearance Data on Soldier Talent Profiles (STPs)
Please inform your NCOs that we have noted that that some STPs may be showing incorrect security clearance data.
If a Soldier’s security clearance information is not correct in one or more fields, please contact the HRC at
usarmy.knox.hrc.mbx.fsd-security@army.mil to request a correction. The Soldier, S1, or S2 can make these requests in an encrypted email.
In the email, please provide (1) the Army Component, (2) last, first, and middle Name, and (3) full SSN (the email box is setup for encryption). For example, “Active Duty, Doe, John A., 123-45-6789.”
If you are sending an unencrypted message, please include a DoD Identification Number instead of a SSN.
Once the request is submitted, please allow 24–48 hours for the data to update in the STP.
Talent Management (TM) SUBCATs
TM Closed (CLSD) Market Unit transactions involve entering unit preferences, requesting to add positions, and prioritizing vacant positions. This SUBCAT is intended for those users involved in the Mission Essential Requirements (MER) process for their units. Typically, MER processes include the Commander, CSM, XO, and/or S1.
To obtain a TM CLSD Market Unit Sub-Category (SUBCAT), users with Commander, Manager, or HR Professional SUBCATs must submit Access Requests for: (Category) HR Professional, (SUBCAT) TM CLSD Market Unit.
Please refer to the
Talent Management Closed Market Unit - Quick Sheet. This resource will help guide you through the process and provide you with training resources.
Revocation/Promotion Personnel Action Requests (PARs)
When the Special Promotion PAR (PS Form) migrated to the newer version (Activity Guide), some Members in the field encountered issues with an incorrect or “blank” Primary Military Occupational Specialty (PMOS) on the IPPS-A-generated order while attempting to revoke or amend orders (stopping to process).
We have corrected this error. If the original promotion/demotion transaction is missing the PMOS, the system will use the transaction effective date from the Member’s record. This successfully allows promotion/demotion amendments and revocations when the transaction lacks PMOS.
Assignment Dashboard Improvements
Currently, Tuition Assistance (TA)/Credential Assistance (CA) clerks are experiencing issues processing assistance for Soldiers. Notably, three main problems are displayed: “Inactive” Job Codes, unarrived Soldiers to current assignments, and Soldiers serving in assignments past end dates. These problems may be solved by HR Professionals at varying echelons--
HRC, MPD, HR Professionals at echelons Battalion and above.
Please refer to the attached
TA/CA Issues quicksheet. This resource will help guide you through the process and provide you with training resources.
Resources
Please reiterate to your NCOs that there are many great IPPS-A products created by units located on S1Net. On the left-hand side of the
IPPS-A landing page, they may find and select the sub-topic most relevant to them, or select one of our many IPPS-A resources.
Encourage your NCOs to access and use the Soldier Support Institute’s (SSI) Learning Resource Center (LRC). This site offers the most current internal and external training resources and supports individual, collective, and distributed learning. The LRC can be accessed from the
SSI Homepage. Adjutant General (AG) University is another solid resource for your NCOs to receive training.
Your HR Pros should join the
Drive the Change channel on MS Teams to get the latest updates as well as New Release Training every Friday following a release. During these events, the IPPS-A team will demo items released into production and explain where the updated training packages reside. You may access the channel here:
https://dod.teams.microsoft.us/l/channel/19%3adod%3a1fc38b9ba1714261a5e2e78bddbb92d3%40thread.tacv2/1.%2520Drive%2520the%2520Change?groupId=a0f79218-9101-4c6c-863b-84c8c14309e9&tenantId=fae6d70f-954b-4811-92b6-0530d6f84c43. If you missed a release update, please visit the
Drive the Change page for links to recordings and slides.
The IPPS-A Team is still conducting
virtual Over the Shoulder Support (OTSS) and
Reinforcement Training. For more information, including dates and times, please visit:
https://ipps-a.army.mil/Drive-the-Change/.
They can listen in to the IPPS-A Podcast to hear from our Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) and learn what is going on with the program. In our
latest episode, COL Becky Lust chats with CPT Taylor Vladic, Assignments Product Team Lead, and CPT Patrick Hill, SABIR/BI Data Analyst, about the In-Transit Grid (ITG) and Leader’s Dashboard. You may find the IPPS-A Podcast on
YouTube,
Apple, Spotify, and Castbox.
Also, have them check out our IPPS-A Coffee Tawk series, where IPPS-A subject matter experts respond to your questions and comments — it is casual, concise, and full of facts. You may find these posted to our website, YouTube and social media pages.
For additional information and resources, your NCOs may visit our website at
https://ipps-a.army.mil/.
IPPS-A is helping our Soldiers meet the mission requirements of today and of the future. Thank you for continuing to inform, support, and empower your NCOs.
Please let me know if you have any questions or need help — we are here for you!
V/r,
SGM Paul J. Smith
Senior Enlisted Advisor
DCS - G1, IPPS-A FMD
Learn more about IPPS-A