Having never been a S4, I can’t answer your questions directly, but have some suggestions that came out of my own lessons learned from S1-land. I hope these help you have a more effective RIP. Even if you have the ideal RIP with your predecessor, keep in mind that there won’t be time to do everything. Put together some questions to ask them (or the NCOIC). Some ideas I have – What did you wish you knew how to do when you took over? What were the 1 or 2 significant events that you expereinced as the S4 (could be getting specific gear for training, or maybe UMO certifications when the BN had none, or deploying / redeploying)? What systems/databases do you need access to? What are the Commander’s projects for the S4? Are their Company Changes of Command coming up soon for your BN? How do you have to coordinate to assist with that?

Something else that might useful to reflect on (if you aren’t already there) could be learning to set aside supply functions you do as XO vs. logisitics functions an S4 executes.

Lastly, as you know from being XO, don’t underestimate the value of knowing your network. Knowing your fellow BN S4s, members of staff, and resources at brigade is really going to help you climb the learning curve more aggresively.