More than 100 of the Navy’s top enlisted leaders gathered in North Suffolk last month to hear about current issues, programs and practices from Mike Stevens, master chief petty officer, and other senior leaders.

According to Navy Public Affairs, the event from Oct. 21-24 included discussion on a variety of topics, including the expectations of senior enlisted leaders, bystander intervention and ethics. The numbered fleets provided updates.

Adm. William E Gortney, commander of U.S. Fleet Forces Command and one of two main speakers on the first day, offered advice on remaining humble, looking out for their sailors and maintaining enthusiasm as leaders.

Meanwhile, Adm. Michelle Howard, vice chief of naval operations, reflected on gender integration, cyber and ethics.

“Those are the three things I want to talk to you about today,” Howard said. “And what’s great is they are three things that cut across the fleet, they cut across the armed forces and literally they are issues that cut across America and the folks we bring into the Navy.”

Younger sailors can be assets in countering cyber threats, she said. “Some of our youngsters, they’re really savvy and they’re trying to tell us (in terms of cyber) we’ve got to get strategic, we’ve got to get operational and we’ve got to get tactical.”

On the symposium’s final day, Chief of Information, Rear Adm. Dawn E. Cutler discussed the expanding role of social media.

“People are information hungry, and that’s the world we live in, that’s the world that communication is so key to,” Cutler said.

“So we need to know it, we need to understand it, we need to teach our sailors how to use it responsibly, and we all need to embrace it from the leadership level as a great tool to talk to our various audiences.”

Stevens spoke about the importance of the senior enlisted leaders taking what they learned during the event back to the fleet.

“That is what this leadership mess symposium is all about — getting information to you so we can get it out to the fleet,” Stevens said. “Please do that.”

He reminded the leadership mess that the Navy is one very large family.

“I’ve been doing this my whole life, since I was 18 years old,” he said. “And when I look at you I look at you as family, just as I’m sure you look at your sailors as family, because that’s what we really are.

“I don’t just care about you, I love you like family.”