@jkadel,

Thanks for the response and I agree. Although I think an effective LPD program requires both, I also believe units focus more on training and less on development. I wonder if this imbalance occurs because defining an end state or an assessment is easier for leader training and more difficult or ambiguous for leader development.

~Scott

Jayleene,

Great question. What you do will greatly depend on your unit’s current mission. I’ve been a PL, XO, staff officer, and company commander and all of my jobs differed from what I was taught in school/training to some degree. However, the need to support a team and effectively solve problems were consistent traits requires for all of my…[Read more]

Pat,

Good question. Add variety and use assessments. First, PT becomes boring and monotonous if you conduct the same events over and over. You won’t see much progress if you don’t vary your program. Second, don’t do PT for the sake of PT. If you want your Soldiers to improve physically, set benchmarks and assess their progress. Don’t let the APFT…[Read more]

Davis,

That article discusses some pretty relevant traits. Be willing to learn, help the team anyway you can, be a great follower, and remain positive in the most arduous circumstances. @abclark is absolutely right. Your peers will earn your tab for you. In my experience, the individuals who failed their peer evaluations had problems…[Read more]

Davis,

That article discusses some pretty relevant traits. Be willing to learn, help the team anyway you can, be a great follower, and remain positive in the most arduous circumstances. @abclark is absolutely right. Your peers will earn your tab for you. In my experience, the individuals who failed their peer evaluations had problems…[Read more]

All good advice. I would add that counseling someone with so much more experience seems a bit overwhelming, but good NCOs want to be counseled. @logisticus, @michael-brodka, and @brock.j.young gave great advice about forming the counseling as a discussion instead of a formal event. I would also recommend asking your PSG what they think your…[Read more]

All good advice. I would add that counseling someone with so much more experience seems a bit overwhelming, but good NCOs want to be counseled. @logisticus, @michael-brodka, and @brock.j.young gave great advice about forming the counseling as a discussion instead of a formal event. I would also recommend asking your PSG what they think your…[Read more]

Ab,

Good topic and I experienced this as well. I think gaining initial buy-in is a common problem in many company-level organizations. One way to approach the problem after taking command is setting up some “easy wins” to gain initial trust from subordinate leaders and Soldiers. Culture and organizational change takes time, effort, and buy-in…[Read more]

Really good list! Instead of adding to, I will focus on a technique to manage the infinite number of systems in a company. After I took command, I realized our training meeting was too long. In addition to training, we were also reviewing typical command & staff (C&S) inputs: evaluations, awards, additional duties etc. The meeting was simply too…[Read more]

I was really happy to see this article. First, leaders need to make writing a priority in their units. Articles aside, the Army requires leaders to write memorandums, performance evaluations, award citations, etc. Upholding high writing standards help subordinate leaders become stronger and more confident writers.

Second, we (officers)…[Read more]

I think one issue might be how we interpret mission command. ADRP 6-0 does provides the definition, outlines the six principles, and describes mission command as a philosophy and as a war fighting function. Yet, if you asked leaders to explain mission command, you will probably receive a variety of answers. From discussions I have had, I think…[Read more]