Ficer Corps : The Backbone Of The Army

When I went on mobilization to Fort Lewis, Washington and left my son in the care of my parents, I thought my parental duties would be set aside until I returned home. Unfortunately, the soldiers of 351st Ordnance Company would prove me wrong with their excessive alcohol consumption, commonly term “binge drinking,” and destructive behaviors. I would then spend the next year sharing the responsibility with four other junior noncommission officers in the task of taking care of soldiers. Despite the efforts of myself and the others we were not fully prepared to handle some of the outrageous events and lack of engagement from the leadership that would challenge us during the tour. My abilities as a junior noncommission officer and the understanding of leadership were redefined and I learned exactly what it meant to ensure soldiers have proper guidance, leadership, positive morale, and well-being.

This is our job as NCO’s to keep the culture and climate of our profession at its peak. We cannot be the ones that “talk the talk” but not “walk the walk” bring that culture down. It is one of our areas of expertise to take care and nurture young soldiers. They are the future of the profession, the future experts that will keep the profession strong and thriving. We as NCO’s must do our best to shield our young soldiers from “toxic” leadership, to show what good leadership is, and mold young soldiers into the professionals of

The core leader competency ‘Develops’ is broken into four key objectives: create a positive environment, prepare self, develop others and be a steward of the profession. The behaviors associated with these objectives are essential to the successful implementation of the Army SHARP program. Creating a positive environment decreases the risks of disciplinary issues in general. When an NCO is familiar with the required reporting procedures and available support programs they can more effectively train their Soldiers in what needs to be done given a situation that requires intervention. By passing the knowledge of how to handle situations to subordinates a NCO is ensuring the next generation of leaders carry on the ideals of the profession. When all of these objectives are met the unit becomes an environment where all personnel can be assured that not only their leaders, but also their peers will be invested in their wellbeing.

Ongoing efforts to continue developing the skills needed to promote efficiency and effectiveness continues. The Army White Paper: The Profession of Arms (2010) notes that “as the Army reflects now on what it means to be a profession in the midst of persistent conflict, a central questions frames major challenges now facing the Army’s strategic leaders: the sergeant

The NCO creed states, “Soldiers are entitled to outstanding leadership; I will provide that leadership.” If I had to sum up my leadership philosophy in a phrase, this would be my answer. In my early years as an NCO I wasn’t always applying one of the most underrated tools in the Army to effectively develop subordinate Soldiers for the next level of responsibility. Specifically, I wasn’t properly utilizing the military counseling process on form DA 4856 – Developmental Counseling Form.

By sending the junior officers to the training centers, the Army shapes an agile force that is able to synchronize and maximize the effects of their actions on the enemy. Having a basic knowledge of U.S. Strategy facilitates the understanding of their tactical and operational actions and their implications at the strategic level. By giving junior officers a basic understanding of the U.S. Army Training Strategy during their formal education process will enable them to become adaptive Army leaders that are well verse and ready to perform their mission in support of the nation. After attending the formal educational process, these trained Soldiers will continue to grow professionally at their operational assignments as part of the second tenant of leader

They are academically prepared to meet the challenges of their profession. They will be eager to join the ranks of their fellow Soldiers to sharpen their newly acquired skills and to demonstrate they are part of the team. It is each Soldiers responsibility to be proficient in their field craft. This includes being mentally and physically prepared while trained to win a complex world. It is the responsibility of the NCO to train these Soldiers. “Being an expert in field craft reduces the likelihood you will become a casualty. The requirement to do one’s job in a field environment is one of the differences between Soldiering and civilian occupations. Likewise, the requirement that Army leaders make sure their Soldiers take care of themselves and provide them with the means to do so is unique.” (Morrow, 20 September 2011) There is never enough time in the day for all the required Army training. Therefore, NCOs must take advantage of every opportunity to train. Commanders will make time to train and retrain on what they have determined to be important. It is the NCOs primary duty and responsibility to train to standard. So where does the time come from. NCOs must be creative and think outside the box in order to train their Soldier. One such way is Sergeant

Master Sergeant (MSG) Ofelia Kernan (used to protect her personnel information) is the prime example of a Noncommissioned Officer (NCO). As my legacy leader, she has mentored me throughout my years in the military and helped mold me into a Senior NCO. From the first time, I met her as Staff Sergeant (SSG) and now as a MSG, she has always displayed the key Army attributes of intellectual capacity, presence, and character. Her dedication to instilling the NCO army core competencies, leads, develops, and achieves, into personnel not only in her charge but also to any Soldier, NCO, or Officer, is an example to anyone with whom she has contact. Any person exposed to her, would like to emulate her leadership style, her ability to transition soldiers to NCOs, and to not only follow the Army Values as a Soldier but to become examples of leadership within their community. Her direct interactions throughout my career has not only developed me as a leader but has instilled the virtues of passing my leadership to those in my charge.

NCO development has evolved by utilizing the Army Profession of Arms, NCO Education System (NCOES) and the NCO Professional Development System (NCOPDS). These programs addresses the need to better define and optimize the development of a noncommissioned officer for the United States Army, The strive for development of the NCO Corps came about as a result of the NCO 2020 study done through the TRADOC Institute, it provided the Army with plans intended to strengthen and certify professional competencies and technical skills. NCO development has a main goal for getting focus on building a competent and professional NCO Corps. Couple of the key focuses are the Profession of Arms and STEP program which I will elaborated on because it ties well into

GySgt Daniel Daly once said, “Any officer can get by on his sergeants. To be a sergeant you have to know your stuff. I’d rather be an outstanding sergeant that just another officer.” Imagining and Marine Corps without any NCOs is to imagine a Marine Corps that doesn’t exist. There would be no boot camp because there would be no drill instructors. There would be no outstanding specialists to transform into warrant officers; aircraft, weapons and trucks would rust and break down never to be repaired and finally and most importantly there would be no accountability.

The Brazilian Army has an increasing quitting rate by junior noncommissioned officers (NCOs). The Army is turning its attention towards this issue that is becoming worse year by year. Brazilian junior NCOs do not realize how important is to be a good leader, and how their demeanor should be. They think it is hard to develop positive attitude, and they get demotivated because something happens in their personal lives that affects their work as a Soldier or vice-versa. Junior NCOs lose focus very easily, they must be constantly monitored, and senior enlisted advisors must provide them feedback whatever positive or negative. They lack perseverance, patience, and purpose. They need guidance and counseling.

The purpose of this paper to is to identify an influential Army leader that has exhibited great leadership qualities and as a result of those leadership qualities, contributed to my growth and professional development as a junior enlisted Soldier and then as a non-commissioned officer (NCO). Throughout this paper, I will identify and explain the leadership qualities and characteristics that have impacted me the most. This person has demonstrated their competency and understanding of the Army values and the two basic tenets of being an NCO. The Army values are wide ranging and all-encompassing but can be summarized into seven distinct categories of loyalty, duty, respect, self-less service, honor, integrity, and personal

Transitioning from enlisted to officer is an achievement that results in an increased awareness of responsibility. A few of these conceptions are: take care of Soldiers prior to taking care of myself; plan my career accordingly in order to progress; and to develop people, making the most of their talents. It is imperative to care for your Soldiers first in order for them to be ready to take care of the mission. As an officer, I will be giving the orders, but the Soldiers need to be ready and able to accomplish the task. To ensure I progress in my career, I need to plan for it. Serving and excelling in my assigned position is only part of setting myself apart from my peers; as an officer, it is expected that I become an expert at my current position, then educate myself in order to qualify for the next better job. The best leaders are able to use their tools efficiently to complete a task; the best tools in all situations are Soldiers. In

In this paper I will be discussing the dynamic and effects of the mentorship relationship in relation to the Army. I will accomplish this by using Army doctrine and personal experience. First I will explain mentorship as defined by the Army. I will then discuss the characteristics of a mentorship relationship. I will cover the basic principles to be used to define the relationship. Next I will discuss considerations for the selection process for the mentor and mentee. Additionally, I will cover expectations a mentee would have of their mentor and the responsibilities of the mentor. I will clarify the four stages of mentorship, the application of them,

The skills required to be an officer in the US army have changed dramatically over the course of the army’s lifetime. The training, or lack of training, shaped the officers into what the army decided it needed at the time, while also shaping the officer’s own combat experiences as they were shipped to their respective wars. These things created an atmosphere of leadership that were radically different from each iteration of the US army, producing different kinds of officers for each.