Commander and 1SG

First off, congratulations sir.  I had four Company Commanders while I was a 1SG.  Each one brought something different to the table.  Some of the best traits were patience, patience, patience...  Patience with everything.  Take time to assess your unit before implementing any changes.  See what works and what does not.  Lean on your 1SG to give you the "no sh@t" about your unit.  He/she is there to assist you and to provide you with the facts...good or bad.  One thing that I remember very fondly is that behind closed doors is the time for you and your 1SG to discuss, argue, agree to disagree, etc., but once the door opens, the two of you are on the same the sheet of music.  You are a uniformed front for the unit.  Some of the best experiences of my career were when I was a 1SG.  The relationship between a CO CDR and a 1SG is one, that is fostered correctly, will last a career, and even longer.  Again sir, congratulations and good luck!!!

<p>Seems like everyone has covered the normal "property" and other aspects of command, so I'll just toss in my two cents as to my philosophy while in command:</p><p><br></p><p>In every decision you make - from UCMJ to who gets selected for waivers and tuition assistance-&nbsp;be sure that you can look your Soldiers - all of them - in the eye and articulate why you made the decision you did. 99.9% of the time you won't need to say why - heck, you never have to say why - but you had sure as hell have a reason for the decisions you make.&nbsp; Soldiers cannot question their leaders' decisions (typically), so it is imperative that the leaders question their own decisions first.&nbsp; </p><p><br></p><p>Listen to your 1SG.&nbsp; Listen to your Senior NCOs.&nbsp; Listen to your Junior NCOs. Listen to your Soldiers.&nbsp; Listen to your Commander.&nbsp; Listen to everyone, but never, ever cede the responsibility and ownership of a decision to any of them.&nbsp; Every decision you make is YOUR decision that YOU make - not because anyone told you to, or someone else thought it was the best idea.&nbsp; It's your Command - take charge and be the Commander.</p><p><br></p><p>When you screw up - and you will screw up - admit it, do what you can to fix it, and move on.&nbsp; Your Soldiers will respect you if you can admit when you're wrong much more than putting on the "I'm always right" attitude.</p><p><br></p><p>Take care of your Soldiers.&nbsp; We always say mission first, Soldiers always, but often we include all the stupid random BS that comes throughout the day as part of the mission.&nbsp; It's not.&nbsp; You have an actual mission - and scrubbing floors isn't part of it.&nbsp; You still have to do those other things, like scrubbing floors, but don't take away your Soldier's off-duty time to do it.&nbsp; There is MORE than enough time in the day to get that done.&nbsp; If your NCOs don't use their Soldiers' time wisely, then the NCOs should take care of the after-hours crap without the Soldiers.</p><p><br></p><p>Meetings.&nbsp; Never, ever, plan a meeting that requires your NCOs to attend after 1600 unless there is some serious stuff going on.&nbsp; Why?&nbsp; Because your NCOs are going to hold the Soldiers sitting around until after that meeting in case anything important comes up - and so you Soldiers are going to be sitting there until 1730 or 1800 for your stupid meeting to be over and so their Platoon Sergeants and Squad Leaders can put out some important, but not time sensitive, information at 1830.&nbsp; Don't steal your Soldiers time.&nbsp; Protect their time. Protect their FAMILY time.</p><p><br></p><p>Don't make your NCOs wait for you to come back to release the company if you have a 1600 or later meeting with the BN Commander.&nbsp; Same reasons as above - don't screw your Soldiers.&nbsp; </p><p><br></p><p>Get your crap done during the duty day.</p><p><br></p><p>Don't be a dick.</p>

Sir, I'll be brief as my Battle MSG Stankovich has covered the basics.&nbsp; If at all possible attend the local CDR/1SG course together, the benefits are huge.&nbsp; You'll learn more about each other by observation in the class and discussions over lunch than you can learn in a month.&nbsp; Prepare to spend a lot of time with your 1SG, not all of it enjoyable.&nbsp; Some of it will be recalls for a "joe" doing something his Mom would be proud of. Some will be Red Cross message delivery, way unpleasant.&nbsp; Some will be ART 15 readings, which for me is some of the worst, because I always felt that I failed that Soldier somehow, irrational perhaps, but real for me.&nbsp; Some times you'll be on top of the world, your company will have just won some event, sports day,&nbsp;unit competition whatever and the pride, knowing that those are your Soldiers, is immeasurable.&nbsp; Overall Sir, it will probably be the best time in your&nbsp;career, even though sometimes you may want to throw things, and do.&nbsp; You will have, with your Battle Buddy, the opportunity to impact lives of young (and not so&nbsp;young) Soldiers in a way you will never have again.&nbsp; Best of luck Sir, and the best trait of&nbsp;any of my commanders, five of them, has been listening.&nbsp; Lastly Sir, congratulations, and make&nbsp;it fun!&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

<p>A little something for your wall sir...&nbsp; </p><p><br></p><p>While there will inevitably be days that you will wish there was a "reset" button, those will not even come close to the days that you will wish never had to come to an end.&nbsp; Again, great forum question and I am glad that all of these fine folks came out and contributed to the conversation.&nbsp; A lot of great advice and experience here.&nbsp; Good luck!!!</p>

Congrats on taking command! Most everyone has already hit the most important points, so I will simply add my .02 cents. When in doubt, develop the situation. And by that I mean don't rush to judgement or make a rash decision without first getting all the facts and consulting your right hand (1SG). I got burned real good once by making a big assumption and taking some actions on an initial report that seemed sketchy and later turned out to be completely false. It was a good lesson to learn and I got a friendly "told you so" from a seasoned MSG who tried to warn me. (As mentioned, listen to your senior NCOs!!!)

The first meeting with my 1SG was all about leadership philosophy and roles and responsibilities. We knew we needed to back each other up at all times and maintain good situational awareness of our Soldiers and equipment. We learned each others strengths and weaknesses and learned how to complement each other in our leadership styles. For both of us it was our first rodeo, but after a couple months we got in a groove and things just started to flow. A good hour long sit-down discussion/initial counseling about the mission, the Soldiers and ourselves really helped get us on the same page and off to a good start.

Sir Congratulations! Company commands can be the most gratifying jobs you will have in your career! First of all, i hope you get a strong and intelligent First Sergeant! It will make your days go by so much better.  The 1SG is there to give you his knowledge, experience and support! Yet you put out your observations, goals and guidance that the 1SG will get it done! Do not come in kicking doors down and doing the 1sg's job, taking his responsibilities and authority away. If its not to your satisfaction, thats when you and the 1SG have to talk to get on same page of expectations. Take over your job slowly, making observations and asking questions from your 1sg, since he is the one familiar with the unit. It dont take long before things will start changing to what you want! you and your 1SG have to be completely together when it comes to soldiers and unit direction. Both of yas have to be able to OPENLY communicate with each other behind close doors. Me and my new commanders within a few days would sit down and just get a ideal of the unit and let it be known that you want his input and advice. that will open that channel of communication. then make it a point to just go in his or your office, shut the door and then  shoot the SH^^ about the unit. best advice- open communication, frequent one on ones when it comes to decision making and make sure your on the same page.Good luck!

My Commander and I have forged a great relationship and are currently down range where it continues to grow. First thing we did was sit and talk. We got to know one another as PEOPLE; we learned about our families and career path that has brought us together.
Then we talked business. We fostered a system to develop PEOPLE. If you develop PEOPLE, they automatically become better Soldiers, better husbands/wives; better in their civilian sector (Guard/Reservist); better friends.
Sit down and figure out what you want the CULTURE of your command to be like. Then make a play book for success. Culture induces Behavior; Behavior induces Performance. If you want to maximize the performance of PEOPLE, get to work on the Culture. Contact me if you have any questions.

I'm a CSM. My Squadron CDR was also my Company CDR back in 2003-2005 in Iraq. We've known each other a while. My advice to forming a solid command team with your 1SG is to always listen when he advises on enlisted matters. He didn't get to be a diamond without learning a few things along the way. His job is to keep you shiny. Unless he or she is really thick, open coms and trust are the keys to success.