How should I handle our S-1 continually denying award submissions?

SPC (Join to see) Intricate multi-tiered issue.

1. Continual "denial" of the award: They are not denying the award. They can't deny crap. There are recommenders and approval authorities (ie the approval level commander). The S1 is the gate keeper to the process. The job of the S1 is to screen the award recommendation to ensure the person is eligible, that it is prepared properly, and generally free of errors. Wartime standards should be less stringent for the last two, but with the advent of PCs on everyone's desk they haven't been.

AAM = BN CDR/Qualification Badges (O5 Commander). Due 30 days prior, error free
ARCOM/Combat Badges = BDE CDR (O6 Commander), due 60 days prior, error free
MSM/BSM/AM = DIV CDR (2 Star), due 90-120 days prior error free
LOM = Corps CDR (3 Star), due 120 days prior error free
Understand that 100% of these are actually delegated to this level by the SECARMY and can be revoked.

These are the layers it has to get through.

2. Process: The recommender takes the award they believe has been written to eye wateringly brilliant specifications to the Company Clerk (a co-opted soldier from the formation not authorized or institutionally TRAINED to perform those functions) where it goes to the Company Command Team. The Orderly Room Clerk usually is charged to screen them, and edits them as best they know (not always a bad thing). The corrections are sent back to the recommender who angrily edits and re-writes. The award comes back, lets assume it hits the 1SG this time, he/she catches something, back down...Then the Company Commander...then back down...mercifully it goes to Battalion, usually to get sent back at least once as it is screened by the S1 clerk, S1 actual, BN XO, and then the BN CSM, before it goes to the BN CDR, who may only be the Recommender.

Commanders and 1SGs at BN Level and CDRs and CSMs at BDE and DIV level sit through weekly command and staff. Awards are tracked, especially for PCS and retirement. If you are RC, then the awards are just the merit or "impact" awards and retirement type awards. The system is no secret. Commanders talk this through with the BN/BDE XO pretty often.

3. Things I've learned:
- Commanders have an award policy. Good ones share this directly with their subordinate Commanders, who then rarely share it with recommenders until a flash point.
- Commanders do not see ANYTHING before their XO and CSM do. Actions have specific routing chains to ensure they are properly staffed. I am sure as a 27 series you have seen this. Purpose of the staff is coordination and supporting commander's intent. This is one of many ways.
- S1s are constantly fighting to get time with the award approver and usually have some interval (like weekly) where they walk in for signature all personnel actions. Sometimes they have to "share" with the 4 for FLIPLS and like actions. They are conscious of their backlog of actions and gather up all ready for signature folders and take them in to that meeting. Takes a send back iteration otherwise. I tell you all this because the late night signature may mean that award lingers another whole iteration, which in the RC could be a month or more depending on MUTAs.

4. Not all recommenders are good or even passable writers: As a BN XO and a BDE DCO I saw many horribly written awards, the shame was that was probably the third cut. I tried to stay developmental. I would re-write the award and send it back down, so that it would sail past the next round. I operated under the assumption that the soldier deserved the award and I was just trying to make that happen. Then the award would return with the original unacceptable bullets/narratives and no corrections. I would then boil the S1 in oil for letting that crap through and point out the painstaking effort of my re-write (doing their job), many times emailing the text to the recommender so they could have it fixed when the action came back. A couple Commanders were hardheaded. I then read aloud award recommendations. After two, they took the stack. I wasn't looking for poet laureates, just nouns, verbs, and intelligible. We all have typos and misspellings now and again.

We were tough on awards so that the Boss could just recommend, approve, or disapprove when they got it. The units I served in at the BN and BDE level had a rule that if we missed it the first time thru, we would fix it for them, and just have them re-sign. My BN and BDE Commander (same guy two different assignments) would sign something with 3 mistakes or less on the 638, but the certificate had to be spot on as that is what was going on the soldier's wall. And it required no one other than the S1 to fix.

I would often go to 1SGs and CDRs when I got frustrated. Many recommenders seemed to know the same illiterate guy with the "hook up" template. It would spread through the BN like a virus, and seem to make just me sick. Someone tried to copy another award perhaps they received. Words were not used in the correct context, spelled incorrectly, etc. What made me angry about it, is when I tried to just get them to write their own, using their own words, they seemed to get indignant over it. I ended up walking stacks of awards back to Companies with individual corrections in my own hand. I put together the strains of the viral hook up bullets and told them to fix it. I offered to sit down with the recommender if that is what it took (doing their job).

5. End run of your S1: I wouldn't. They are simply enforcing the approving commander's rules for awards, which the next level will enforce and kick you back. If you attempt to end run by going to G1 at Division with an MSM, skipping your BDE as an example, you may or may not luck out and get it done, but if it is 8 up or not, you will likely have a series of very uncomfortable conversations and down right ass rippings from the BN XO, BN CSM, and even your own Company Commander. Then there will be 20 questions at the SGS and the DIV COS about why you are doing what you are doing. You thought your S1 was murderous, these guys are more seasoned and ten times better at it than your poor old BN S1.

6. Why the fuss? This is one of many ways that higher HQ commanders judge their subordinate leaders. Sorry. True. The thought is: All those people down there and not one can write a sentence? You have to put your best foot forward whether that is a properly written and timely award, or the best NCO/Officer to send on a tasking to another unit, giving back lent equipment better than you found it, etc If you always seem to be jacked up, then the assumption is you are so jacked up you have accepted it as OK and normal. You do not want your senior rater thinking that. I watched a young LT's life implode after three high vis screw ups in front of the Group Commander. His opinion of that Company and even our Battalion suffered greatly. True story. Took a lot to turn it around.

7. So just give up?: NO. Soldiers need recognition. Commanders want to give it. But there are standards. How would I fix it?
- Each Platoon and Primary Staff has a commissioned officer with a Bachelor's degree that should be reading these and fixing the readability and basic grammar.
- Most S1s publish a standard award citation for writers to use. Every S1 up through G1 does this. Follow it.
- STAR format for bullets: situation, task, action, result. Tie this to the approval authority's mission (better) or how it impacted your unit's mission (approver should be able to mentally bridge that to their mission.
- Company Commander's have a 5th Bullet on the 638. If they leave the comments blank or write some inane gibberish in there, then that hurts the award. Use the 5th bullet.
- Recommenders need formal and mentored training on writing awards and evaluations, but should be with real world ones that are due. The made up ones don't work because you don't know the person IRL.

As a former Personnel Management Specialist, nothing regarding ADMIN is simple! The request for an award goes through many different reviews before being granted. Good luck getting a logical answer which is consistently implemented

As a former S1 OIC it was never my goal to have an award denied, instead I wanted them to sail through, 1st time with no errors. My staff would screen awards before they hit my inbox but I still read them thoroughly (my team wasn't perfect and neither am I). A quick simple spelling mistake can't be fixed once the award is digitally signed. I'd have to remove the signature, fix the spelling and then get a re-signature. Trust me, if I could have just fixed it I would.

Part of my screening was making sure the award told the story. If it's an AAM it's not too hard to get approved but once you start going higher then the award needs to speak for itself. I wouldn't ever tell a recommender "you have to fix this" but I would say, "from experience you need to expand these bullets or you run the risk of it being downgraded or disapproved". Most of my companies took the feedback well, some felt they knew better and told me to send it forward. I would absolutely send them forward if it was demanded of me but also had the opportunity to tell the XO (my boss), that I made the recommendation that these errors be corrected and whoever pushed back which is why it's written as it is. Typically my XO would review and send it back anyway.

For the most part I would say listen to the S1. They know what the commanders will and won't sign and have experience getting the Soliders the awards they deserve. If they want a signature after hours it's probably so they can get it to the boss first thing in the morning so you won't have to wait longer (or write a letter of lateness). Don't bypass them. Commanders usually trust their S1 OIC, if an award doesn't come through that channel then they will ask why.