Has anyone ever been to the Company Command / First Sergeant Pre-Command Course? Thoughts?

CPT(P) Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 22 Aug 2018 11:55:36 -0400

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 22 at 2018 12:11 PM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 22 Aug 2018 12:11:25 -0400

Yes, I went to the two week course at during my last command, and have to go to the USAREC course in a month or so.

Honestly, the best part about it was when they gave us a binder with a reference CD that had all the POCs and Regs we would need in command. I would've been just as well served if we had skipped the classes and just been givien that. The Commander's Legal Handbook is particularly useful.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 22 at 2018 12:25 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 22 Aug 2018 12:25:24 -0400

Yeah, I was sent to the pre-command course. 6 months AFTER I got out of company command because they had a slot that needed filled and I was the only guy they could get to go. Would have been nice to have before being a company commander. Gotta love the National Guard.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 22 at 2018 6:22 PM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 22 Aug 2018 18:22:49 -0400

I finally went to the course 2 months into my third year as Detachment Sergeant. I will say that the Instructors are adamant on training to time. They adhere to that schedule as gospel. If you are going to FT Knox for the course, I highly recommend a rental vehicle. The reason is that the POI usually lasts til after everything closes on base. The best part was that they give you a binder with all kinds of reference material up to and including a disc with all the information you could use.

Response by CW3 Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 23 at 2018 7:11 PM

CW3 Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 23 Aug 2018 19:11:24 -0400

Yes...Ft. Knox January 2013.
Great course.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 27 at 2018 11:54 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 27 Aug 2018 23:54:01 -0400

Yes, I went at the end of my 1st year of command. I thought they provided a lot of valuable information. Would have been nice if I had the opportunity to go prior to taking command, and with my 1SG. All in all, I think I was able to pick up a few key things that helped me during my 2nd year in command.

Response by COL Brad Welch made Sep 2 at 2018 10:24 PM

COL Brad Welch — Sun, 02 Sep 2018 22:24:31 -0400

Dating myself, but EVERY captain in my brigade was required to attend the PCC PRIOR to taking command. This was peace time prior to 9/11 and the focus was on training (unfortunately for the previous war) and not on deploying.

I can see through some of the comments that that focus is no longer there. Too bad. It's a good course (if you have experienced/motivated instructors).

Response by MAJ(P) Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 12 at 2018 10:08 AM

MAJ(P) Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 12 Sep 2018 10:08:30 -0400

I never attended the course. I think it provides a lot of good information, but for me personally, it was not a deal breaker as far as my command, my unit's success. I'm sure there are things I would have learned that would have been helpful, the courses always conflicted with major training events my first year and after that, my Commander never brought it up.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 27 at 2018 9:31 PM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 27 Oct 2018 21:31:49 -0400

I attended about a year after I took command. It would have been a great course to attend before my command started or early on, after a year in I was already in the swing of things and knew what worked.