There is a problem within the Reserve Components (specifically because that is what I have witnessed, feel free to comment if it’s the same in the AD) of Soldiers promoting too quickly, being pushed up without leaders ensuring that they have much of the knowledge and abilities that would set them up for success. There will come a time when you as a leader, PL/ XO/ CO, receive an NCO; might be a senior NCO, might be a SGT; and that NCO isn’t technically and tactically as competent as they should be… Okay, so now what?

What sparked my desire to begin and post this discussion was a conversation I had with a Sergeant First Class during lunch today (we’ll call him SFC X). He’s in another platoon/section, and has confided in me in the past about things that he sees as being wrong, seeking mentorship on his career and future in the military, and issues he himself is having.

Background: SFC X admits himself that he is not as strong as he should/could be. He lacks both administrative skills and assertiveness, and even admits that he doesn’t like to “rock the boat,” so he doesn’t bring up smaller things that he sees as needing to be fixed. However as a motor-sergeant, his technical abilities rank up in the top 3 I’ve ever met in my career. His situation is that as the senior SFC in the HQ platoon, he should be a Platoon Sergeant. However due to his weaknesses and dislike of him from his superiors, an SSG was appointed as the Platoon Sergeant over him (I get it, let’s not concentrate on the clear violation of how things SHOULD work in the Army). Looking at the situation as an outsider, I have never personally witnessed or heard about SFC X being mentored by his superiors. SFC X himself commented on the fact that he has asked repeatedly for counseling, mentorship, and guidance on how to become the NCO that he knows he can and should be, but is met with “I don’t have the time” from his superiors. SFC X admits that it was the same when he was an SSG, his superiors not providing the guidance and mentorship that would have set him up as a success as an SFC, and now that he’s an SFC those same superiors are ostracizing SFC X because he’s not as strong as an SFC should be.

This conversation is a snapshot of something that I have seen throughout my time in the National Guard. A subordinate isn’t quite where they need to be, and instead of providing mentorship, direction and guidance, that subordinate is pushed as aside because “they don’t know what they SHOULD know.”

There are many excuses I’ve heard from those who push aside those in need. However from personal observations, I would say that there are two primary reasons that leaders fail to develop their subordinates. Leaders are either A) lazy, saying they don’t “have the time” it would take to develop that subordinate, that the subordinate should already know what they need to know or the last chain of command should have taught them (because yes, it does take time to teach leaders to be leaders); or B) don’t know HOW to develop subordinates.

So I guess this discussion can focus on two areas:

You as a leader have just been assigned a subordinate (could be a Senior NCO, a SGT, could be a young LT) that isn’t where they need to be; okay, so now what?

How do we, as company level officers, break this culture of passing the buck; failing or allowing others to fail to develop subordinate leaders simply because those subordinates aren’t where they should be in terms of their rank/position/years of service?

–Brock