Fostering leaders, and how to guide the professional advancement of said leaders, has been a constant concern of every professional military since time immemorial. Organizations must temper the need to fill voids in leadership positions with what a professional Soldier needs to learn. The United States Army has progressed and evolved its NCO Corps since the Revolutionary War to meet the ever-changing face of warfare. The Army’s STEP concept is the next evolution of this reality. Enlisted promotions since 1980 have allowed one critical difference from the new system, conditional promotions. This paper will examine the failures of the old system, the potential benefits of the STEP concept, and the responsibilities that this new methodology …show more content…
Conditional promotions were a tool used with the best of intentions. Prior to the global war on terrorism, the frequency at which these promotions occurred was rather infrequent. The increase in the use of these promotions had two primary motivators during the last fifteen years. The first was the increased demand for Soldiers to be away from their home station. Increased deployments, an expansion of required schools, and Soldiers having family at younger ages at increasing rates have had the cumulative effect of placing an increased demand on Soldiers time. The desire not spend more time away from home corresponded with a desire not go away if it could be avoided, or at least postponed. The conditional promotion enabled Soldiers not have to choose between getting to spend time at their home station and being eligible for promotion, at least for a little while. They could have their cake and eat it too. The Soldiers chain of command provided the second motivator. Leaders were under little illusion that the protracted wars since the dawn of the twenty-first century had a negative effect on the lives and the morale of our Army’s Soldiers. Many leaders considered …show more content…
The STEP concept is a very concise method of developing the future leaders of the Army. Leaders will need to Select the Soldiers best qualified for advancement. This is more than just pushing forward a promotion packet for recommendation to a board. Leaders need to develop their subordinates by giving them leadership opportunities and ensure they maintain and enforce Army standards. These opportunities to succeed or fail give leaders the criteria that they will need to give honest assessments of a Soldier preparedness for advancement. The Train part of STEP demonstrates the Army’s desire to build tactically and technically proficient leaders. Leaders need to monitor and assess their Soldiers to determine their ability to do all of their jobs. The future leaders have a responsibility to get Soldiers out of their comfort zones and make certain that they are more than just good at their job. They need to be good at being a Soldier and that includes the warrior common tasks. Educate refers to the Army’s commitment to ensure Soldiers are given the tools needed to lead. Each proponent school is working to make seats available for those who are ready to advance (see appendix for the text of MILPER Message number 16-089 and HRC’s guidance on school availability). This requires leaders to stay on top of their subordinates careers and guide them towards their potential.
The United States Army has been a leader in military prowess on the world stage since its inception in 1775, and with such a record, it is reasonably assumed that there must be solid foundation within the organization working to maintain the high level of performance. The Noncommissioned Officer Corps is one institution within the Army that serves as a large portion of this foundation that makes it the fighting force that it has always been, and the noncommissioned officers have been an integral piece since the very inception of the Army. The Prussian General Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben, organizer of the Noncommissioned Officer Corps, encapsulated this idea when he coined the noncommissioned officer (NCO) as the backbone of the Army. (Arms, 1991) In an Army that is continuously adjusting to world around it while maintaining its status as the military leader to all other nations, the Noncommissioned Officer Corps has always provided the platform for continuity through a growing rank system based on its original core, an evolving training program to develop effective leaders, and a creed that moves us forward while remembering the rich history of the corps that came before us.
As NCO’s we sometimes become complacent in our positions and our routines. Accepting challenges is what sets us apart and continues to ensure that we grow as Soldiers, Leaders, and Non-Commissioned Officers. The Sergeant Audie Murphy Club induction process is rigorous, and because of the rigorous amount of preparation that it takes to earn it, I will become a more knowledgeable NCO, while also allowing room to realize what my weaknesses are in order to improve in those areas. This learning and self-refining assessment will ultimately help me become a better NCO for my Soldiers. I aspire to become a member of the Sergeant Audie Murphy Club for
CF02,Full Range Leadership Development. (2012). Maxwell Gunter AFB. Thomas N. Barnes Center for Enlisted Education (AETC)
This paper will not bore with the definition of a profession. The United States Army is about more than words, it is about action. The action of over 238 years of tradition and service. The Army is a profession. A profession requires its members to adhere to prolonged training and learn specialized skills. A member of a profession must wholly commit himself and his skills to a calling which is entrusted by the public. A profession provides its members with intrinsic value which motivates beyond financial gain. The Army is a higher calling which demands all of these qualities and more.
The Army Human Resource System (AHRS) known as the Electronic Military Personnel Office or (eMILPO) is a web based multi-tiered application. It provides the Army Human Resource Community with a reliable mechanism for performing personnel actions and strength accountability. The System consolidates 43 Personnel Information Systems in one. This system provides visibility of the location, status, and skills of Soldiers in the United States Army. The primary users of this system are Human Resource Soldiers, Commanders, and First Sergeants. The primary features and functions of eMILPO include Personnel Services, Personnel Accounting, Reassignments, Promotions, Readiness, Workflows, System Services, PERSTEMPO, and DTAS.
ADRP 6-22: Army Leadership; Chapter 10: Organizational Leadership, HQ, Department of the Army, Washington, D.C, 10 September 2012
While in the U.S Army I have encountered many leaders. When I reminisce on the past and try to remember all of the different leaders I have encountered, I realize they have all influenced my life in different ways. Although some of the leaders I have had made bad impressions, most have influenced my life positively. Throughout the years I have been in the U.S Army, one particular leader has helped me develop into the Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) I am today. I am Staff Sergeant Eric Duty and I would not be the professional I am today without SGT Buchan’s leadership.
We can identify three major cultural dimensions that help us to understand what leaders must focus on as they guide the transition of the Army. First, professional Identity, which is guided by Soldiers at all levels who are striving for excellence in their functional specialty, i.e., HR Sergeants. Soldiers who have goals and ideals of the Army to ethically put service and duty first. HR Sergeants are trained and well educated in their field. They are taught to put Soldiers first and have great customer support skills. Second, community, the sense in which Soldiers stop thinking about “I” and start thinking “we”. The bond among units who not only believe in cohesion with Soldiers, but their families too. The HR Sergeants are there to take care of Soldiers when financial issues arise with them or their families and don’t back down until the situation is solved. Last, hierarchy, which leads to order and control and provides Soldiers with moral reference and a sense of direction. The HR Sergeant has the mentality of mission first, knowing who to contact at the next level for assistance helps get the mission
As our forefathers before us stated, ‘‘No one is more professional than I. I am a Noncommissioned Officer, a leader of soldiers. As a Noncommissioned Officer, I realize that I am a member of a time honored corps, which is known as “The Backbone of the Army (“The NCO Creed writing by SFC Earle Brigham and Jimmie Jakes Sr”). These words to Noncommissioned Officer should inspire us to the fullest with pride, honor, and integrity. The NCO creed should mean much more than just words whenever we attend a NCO’s school. For most of us this is what our creed has become because we learn to narrate or recite. The military from the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard has an overabundance of NCOs who fall under their pay grade of E-5, E-6 and etc. Yet somehow there still not enough leaders. I believe that the largest problem afflicting the military today is our lack of competent leaders, ineffective leader development, and how we influence our subordinates under us who are becoming leaders.
My leadership can expect a top tier performer who strives to be one of the most competent Non-commissioned Officer’s within the unit. I will do this by adhering to the regulations, unit sop’s and any other guidance which governs my section. I will ensure my soldiers do the same, holding them to strict but attainable standards and expecting nothing less. I will teach, coach, counsel, and mentor these soldiers-teaching them what a leader is and grooming them to be leaders also.
In the United States Army, there are two categories of rank structure, the enlisted corps and the commissioned corps. The enlisted corps within itself contains leaders, who are referred to as Noncommissioned Officers, or NCOs. These individuals, whose ranks range from Sergeant to Sergeant Major, are responsible implementing the guidance and command policies provided by the Commissioned Officers and commanders in their units. NCOs are also responsible for the welfare and training of junior personnel. The US Army provides regulations and manuals with step by step guidance for the most trivial of tasks, but it fails to spell out specific and concrete information on how to be an NCO. There are publications, such as “The Creed of the Noncommissioned Officer” and regulations on leadership, but they lack specificity and objective instruction for how to accomplish the aforementioned responsibilities of an NCO. The knowledge and skills of an NCO are instead acquired through training and experience, the products of which are NCOs of varying quality. A good NCO is one who knows and fulfills the written laws and regulations of Army doctrine, has the character of a good soldier and leader, and is able to strike a balance between written law and doing what is right even if the two seem to contradict one another.
The Army spends a great deal of time making followers into leaders and leaders into followers by utilizing several levels of training throughout their military career. This training allows a Soldier to perfect the knowledge and skills required to be an effective leader in every aspect of their job. ...
Non-Commissioned Officers are deficient in vital areas of leadership due to a lack of training. This leads to inexperienced Soldiers becoming inexperienced leaders. The NCO corps needs to develop and enforce comprehensive interactive training that will challenge the next generation to achieve a functional level of communication skills before advancing to leadership positions. This will generate leaders who can write effectively, speak meritoriously and teach adaptively while training others to do the same.
Over the years I have learned many lessons in leadership from different NCOs and civilians I have worked under, as well as various commanders. It is my hypothesis that the leader who will most affect one’s career is that first leader who spends the time to mentor the young Soldier. The leader who had the most influence over me was Staff Sergeant James M. (J.J.) Johnson, Junior. He was not the best NCO in the world, but he was the consistent NCO in my world. I met him at my first duty station, Operations Company, U.S. Army Field Station Korea (OPNS Co., USAFSK) in September, 1983. He was one of many NCOs in a very tangled and confusing chain of command, but he was identified as my squad leader. I learned all about event oriented counseling from him, and that there are promotions and demotions. After serving a year at the Field Station, I PCSd to the 102nd MI Bn, 2nd Infantry Division at Camp Hovey, participating in the QuickFix Platoon, a heliborne collection and jamming platform. I hit my first re-enlistment at the 2nd ID and chose USAFSK as my assignment of choice. My platoon also decided that I had grown enough to be boarded for Sergeant, so that was my reward for a wonderful tactical year.
“A vision without action is merely a dream.” (Kevin Gates) The Army Profession Model is a great vision but if we do not fixed the basics in our upbringing of Soldiers then it will only be a dream. Imagine a panoramic view of an early morning sunrise over a military base. The sun is starting to burn off the morning dew. Formations of soldiers are starting to pop into the picture. Each soldier is in uniform dress sharp and moving as a single unit. Some formations are double timing moving out. Everyone has a purpose and stepping off to get to his or her next obstacle of the day. All Non-commissioned officers are enforcing nothing less than exceeded standards. Soldiers are toe to line in formations for inspection. Senior Non-commissioned