IndexIntroductionThe Structural Organization of the NavyBarriers in CommunicationMissteps in CommunicationConclusionIntroductionThe United States Navy is a large organization with a worldwide presence, including international bases in the United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, Japan, and Australia, among other places. In addition to these permanent multinational commands, many naval organizations frequently travel overseas on a temporary basis. Throughout this article I will discuss the structural organization of the United States Navy and how the Navy monitors its employees stationed or deployed overseas; Additionally, this paper will discuss what communication barriers can arise among employees stationed overseas and reference a couple of communication missteps I experienced while working for the US Navy. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayThe Structural Organization of the NavyThe structural organization of the United States Navy is a complicated hierarchy composed of four major bodies: the Office of the Secretary of State for the Navy (SECNAV), the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations ( OpNav), the Operational Forces and the Coastal Establishment. For the purposes of international employee management, this document will focus on the Operational Forces component; Operational Forces consists of eight separate components: Naval Forces Command, U.S. Naval Forces Europe (Sixth Fleet), Pacific Fleet (Seventh Fleet), U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (Fifth Fleet), U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command (Fourth Fleet), U.S. Fleet Cyber Command (Tenth Fleet), U.S. Naval Special Warfare Command, and U.S. Navy Reserves. For the most part, each of these operational forces is specific to certain geographic areas of the world, if a ship or shore station is located in said geographic area, then that ship or shore station falls under that Operational Force. (A ship stationed in Japan, or a shore station located in Japan, for example, would fall under the command of the Pacific Fleet.) Each ship or shore station has a commanding officer who reports to the commander of its operational force, who reports to the chief of naval operations. Communication Barriers With such a diverse range of personnel spanning vast distances and locations, communication barriers arise, in part, due to cultural differences. Commanding officers of an operational force may not always know the current climate of a foreign country, but they are still tasked with developing rules specific to the area and ultimately enforcing them against personnel who break them. When it comes to culture, the Navy is like any other business in that cultural differences are a major obstacle to developing and maintaining an international business presence. If a sailor has an accident overseas, it creates tension between nations and many times between the host country will move to oust the Navy. (Xiaoyan& Lan, 2013 p. 118). A communication barrier occurred internationally while I was on a mission in the Middle East, our ship stopped for a port call in Salalah, Oman, during Ramadan and senior US commanders have issued guidance regarding this what we could and could not do during the hours of fasting and prayer, based on what they perceived as right and wrong according to cultural values, including prohibiting our crew from entering mosques. Oman, however, appears to be a more progressive country than our commander believed and, as many of us have.
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