office  space,  giving  more  privacy  and  relieving  the congestion in the main office. Applicant chairs were moved  beside  the  recruiter’s  desk  to  eliminate  the physical  communication  barrier. Now,  let’s  look  deeper.  What  clues  do  these changes provide about the difference in the way the two  RINCs  approached  their  job?  The  first  RINC used the separate office space to set up his personal realm. He  secluded  himself  with  his  files,  pubs, prospect-cads,  SMART  board,  and  DEP  status  board. He  approached  his  RINC  job  as  one  of  an  office manager. His  systems  were  impeccable  but  the station’s production was inconsistent. When the ZS asked  for  updates,  he  usually  had  to  yell  for  a recruiter   to   come   into   his   office   to   provide   the information. The second RINC knew he was not just in  charge  of  a  team,  but  a  part  of  that  team.  He realized  the  recruiters  were  his  first  priority.  He  was quick  to  identify  training  needs,  provide  interview assistance, and was on top of office morale as well as business. Needless to say, production increased. You can  probably  imagine  many  other  differences  between the two RINCs just by noting the differences in the office layouts. Of course, not all office space allows for  an  ideal  arrangement,  but  you  should  look  for ways to improve. BUDGET  INPUT The   budgeting   process   begins   in   May   and concludes with the receipt of funds to begin the new fiscal year. Your participation in the budget process will probably be limited to the initial data gathering phase, but it is helpful to understand the basic process from beginning to end. Budget Worksheets During May or June of each year Area and district staffs begin to gather data for budget meeting input. This  data  comes  in  the  form  of  the  budget  input worksheet. Worksheets are designed to roll up costs to   the   next   level   of   supervision. The  RINCs’ worksheets  are  consolidated  into  the  zone  worksheet; the  zones’  worksheets  are  consolidated  into  the  EPO’s worksheet. You  estimate  budget  requirements  for applicant  travel,  lodging,  and  subsistence  based  upon estimated goal and your applicant conversion rate. Production   TEMADD   is   projected   for   itineraries requiring  TEMADD.  Exhibit  booth  rental,  meal  ticket expenses,  and  center  of  influence  (COI)  (including DEP/bring a friend) events are projected as well as other  miscellaneous  requirements.  ZSs  also  project costs for administrative TEMADD and travel, such as station  visits,  headquarters  trips,  RINC  meetings, classifier field training, and so on. All the estimates are then broken down by quarter for the coming fiscal year. Remember, these are worksheets only. Figures 4-5  and  4-6  show  the  budget  input  worksheets  for RINCs and ZSs. Budget Planning Department heads and program managers use the worksheets to prepare line item budget requests to submit to the CO. During the July-September time frame the district will receive an annual control figure from the Area. A budget meeting is then held with all department  heads  and  management  personnel  to  revise the previous budget requests to match the figure given by  the  Area.  All  fixed  costs  (such  as  civilian  labor, vehicles,  telephones,  out-of-pocket  expenses  [OPE], and  applicant  transportation)  must  be  funded. Priorities of the other requirements are determined in the budget meeting. Worksheets  are  edited  after receipt  of  the  final  control  figure  from  the  Area  to reflect the actual funding in the annual spending plan. The Area staff reviews all NRD budget requests for recommendation  and  approval  by  the  commander. Once the Area commander approves and returns the budget requests, they become the annual spending plan by quarter. NRS SECURITY RINCs are responsible for ensuring all security regulations are observed within their stations. ZSs are responsible for monitoring the security practices of their stations. NRS  security  applies  to  processing information,  testing  material,  plant  property  and equipage,  transportation  requests  (TRs),  bulk  tickets, meal tickets, and the physical security of the facility and  vehicles. PROCESSING  INFORMATION Processing  applicants  for  enlistments  requires  that we  gather  an  abundance  of  personal  information.  We must maintain this information in a secure manner. Make sure all your recruiters are familiar with the policies concerning requesting, recording, filing, and divulging  information  on  applicants  and  recruits. 4-14