5 Questions with Naval Unit NPF personnel

Mike Miller, NPF Operations Advisor, PSP Naval Unit 

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Can you share more about your new role as the Naval Unit NPF Operations Advisor and what it entails?

Canadian Forces Morale and Welfare Services (CFMWS) in partnership with the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) has recently stood up the Personnel Support Programs (PSP) Naval Unit, consisting of myself, Mike Miller, NPF Operations Advisor, and Paolou Lagrimas as the Procurement Coordinator.

We will provide the support and expertise for all things NPF, most notably the provision of goods for the onboard Messes and Canteens across the Fleet. With the retirement of the Steward Occupation scheduled to be completed in April 2026, we will provide the continuity and support to sailors in the Fleet, who will be taking on some of these duties as a secondary responsibility, and with our Finance Team we will be supporting them from ashore.

How do you plan to ensure the fleet is equipped with all necessary NPF goods before and during deployments?

Working with the Logistics department onboard, and local suppliers ashore, we will source the best quality products available, at the best possible value, and coordinate deliveries and resupply as needed to ensure that the sailors continue to enjoy a quality standard of living, when deployed on operations. From crested items to favourite snacks and personal amenities, we hope to make life at sea as comfortable and convenient as possible. Working from a central warehouse and dealing directly with major manufacturers, we hope to realize increased buying power and provide increased value to the services we provide.

What are some of the key challenges you anticipate in this new role, and how do you plan to address them?

Understanding that the sailors taking care of the canteen and messes onboard have other, significant, primary duties to perform, we are looking to simplify the process of ordering and accounting for goods onboard so that these new responsibilities do not become too cumbersome for the members involved.  Moving away from cash boxes and chits, customers will be able to make purchases with debit/credit cards, greatly enhancing security and removing the burden of storing and counting cash on a regular basis.

What are some of the most significant changes you’ve seen in the organization?

Messes will still provide beverages and snacks at sea, as well as leisure activities for the members such as movies and games. The Canteens will still provide a taste of home with popular snacks and toiletries alongside clothing and other items that build a sense of pride within the unit.

What will change is who is running the NPF operations onboard, and it will provide an opportunity for the ships company to become more involved with their mess mates and the crew.

What are your goals for the PSP Naval Unit, and how do you plan to achieve them?

We will be continuously working with sailors across the Fleet as they take on these new responsibilities for the first time, and we will continuously work on streamlining the process and making the role one that sailors will embrace in the future. Knowing that you are making life at sea better for your crew has always been a rewarding experience, and we are eager to help the next generation of sailors embrace this much needed role on behalf of their shipmates.