 Over the last several months, I have had the opportunity to travel throughout the fleet to meet with many of you and hear your comments and concerns. In my personal interactions and those of other senior leaders, we continue to get a number of questions about the mechanics of the enlisted retention board, how the board worked, what factors were considered, and what the thought process was behind the decisions made. It is important to recognize up front that the ERB was conducted using the same principles as all of our other boards. These principles are fairness, equity, and integrity. Our board process is fair, structured, and a tried and true process. The board members strictly followed a board precept which outlined how the board was executed. The board was conducted in two phases and the precepts gave board members specific guidance on selection standards for each phase. The first was a performance review where each member's record was strictly examined following the precepts. Following that was a quota-based portion of the board which racked and stacked each sailor's record next to their peers to select the best qualified sailors for retention. Board members included a diverse group of officers, warn officers, command master chiefs, and master chiefs representing different ratings, geographic locations, and warfare perspectives who relied on their best judgment and fleet perspective throughout the process.