How would you solve the military recruiting challenges currently facing DOD?

Step 1...
Get rid of present Administration
and the far left.
Observe...
The rest will fall into place...

There are a lot of issues and not one specific item that can be pointed out as the main cause (it’s a large combination of different variables). However, what I wouldn’t do is blame the recruiters on the ground. Sadly, that is something that I have seen consistently from my time in USAREC. If anything, that adds to the issues. Recruiters are out there doing their best but they can only achieve what can be achieved. Old data may suggest a station put 100 people in a year but the current market propensity could very well only be 40. You cannot fault the recruiters for that.

Get rid of all the woke BS. The military is for war fighting, not your social proving grounds. Trans members have different height/weight standards and they're exempt from PT tests and deployment? Get rid of CRT or whatever the DOD calls it. Keep the names the bases had. Bragg. Hood. On and on. The world looks at our idiot SecDef with his mask and shield and just laughs.

#1…Get rid of Traitor Mille
#2…Get rid of Woke
#3 Reinstate don’t ask, don’t tell….no one needs to know your sexual preferences….

The current problem is cow towing to the reaction to toxic masculinity. We need to continue to be a force that grows young men and women into capable adults. Show them in recruiting how they can "level up" in ways their non service friends will struggle to. Don't make it all about school benefits..but speak about the benefits of schooling with military service. We need a strong military, not a military full of wimps and frightened children who can't cope. Recruit harder the ones that can break the current mold they are in vs the ones that think they can go in and try to change what serving means.

After yet another deployment, The Balkans-I was "selected" for Recruiting Command of a "large metropolitan area" comprising more than 2 million...blah, blah-
1. ALL 5 COs in my Battalion got "cancel career, or drive your but here" type orders, fresh outta combat- we were literally beat down, no type of acclamation- at Ft Jackson Pre Command. Only officers who wanted to 'get out" somehow volunteered for this? Idk
2. There are no QUOTAS- back to the COs-
Since I was in that large metro area, I was ACCESSED hella more than say, CO responsible for Uvalde, or Austin. Battalion needs ~ 8000 contracts signed annually. COs sign Accessions/ negotiations- intense, fight like hell for your NCOs to reduce STRESS, contracts or exploit weaknesses of peer commanders to gain leverage. My Command thrived on special missions. 2 major Joint Medical facilities, 1 in my a/o.
79R Cadre=permanent AOC" assigned, usually injured RA and Reserve Recruiters who volunteer to change AOCs, not officers -
BLUF:
1. Offer Cadre 79R the incentive to be more than Station Commander-
a. either push for Warrant Direct Commissions FROM WITHIN USARC 79R Cadre
b. Let Cadre flourish at Command responsibility by evolving NCO Cadre into Company Commanders as proud, COMPETITIVE NCOs.
Commissioned officers need only respond to waivers AT BATTALION or higher
3. Allow voluntary return to active duty INCENTIVES- if contractors make so doggone much, then why not reappropriate defense spending back into uniformed services??? - 79Rs shiuld recieve +++bonuses plus the Master Recruiting upgraded badges, Rings, etc.
4. Push Education, medical FOR LIFE Benefits even for 5 to 10 year blended retirees- they are young and nervous- I'm sorry, but I say, unravel that complex "earned benefits" NOT entitled, just earned.
Extend bonuses to darned near every MOS, AOC. Short on every job??? Pay properly!!
5. Allow advace payments of fines, records retreval [i was born overseas and waited a long 13 months for replacement of US Consular docs, not my birth country's required docs. Recruit can pay back with discretionary allotment, or accept reduced bonus.
Tutoring to improve scores ASVAB, FST, OSB-standardized while preparing for IET.
These are some solutions to challenges I can recall.

Recruitment into our modern military has a single problem. We are asking our young people to do something that they do not want to do, or something that they feel there is no future for them in the long run. Although not a current emphasis by recruitment ads, the ultimate goal as seen by many of our young people is to go to war. Greater emphasis should be shifted from war, to the prevention of war with a strong military. A deterrent to war as it has been in the past.
With that being said, given the fact that our young people are faced with so many technical opportunities in civilian life, the military must place an emphasis on training and the development of tools for war fighting more like the tools used in peace time. Using technology and related processes to connect people on common data bases to ensure faster and better decisions to ensure that mission success is achieved should be a recruitment principle.
Training opportunities must be developed to insure that whether it is intelligence, strategic, logistics or tactical that all processes are in a common technical data base that can be utilized throughout the entire military complex to accomplish the strategics, regardless if it comes from Sun Tzu, Du Picq or even the Weinberger-Powell Doctrine
Military training to the recruit needs to be seen as an alternative to higher education provided by our colleges and universities. Obviously advanced technology and advanced technological training is going to cost money, but in order to recruit into the MOSs that is necessary it will take additional funding.

Reading Social Media, an various News articles. There is a Extreme Shortage of ppl coming into the various Trades in our Society. One of the biggest issues is A Living Wage . Ive been screamed at called a Boomer , a Gate Keeper. That I'm outta touch with the Real World . Over & Over I've seen the complaints they can't get hired cause they have no experience, an how are they supposed to get experience if they can't get hired. I've tried to explain it was No Different for Our Generation. They dont want to hear that , the reply is so your just doing the same an have changed Nothing. An it really ticks them off when I tell them as a Manager with yrs & yrs under by belt I can just about tell if they are going to be a good fit or not just by the way they appear We have Big Signs - do not block bay doors an I be damn if they don't park their car right in front of the sign . An then the ones that do make it to the interview stage well their wants are just over the top . Things like $20-$25 @ hour to start , No Overtime, No Weekends, No On Call . An yes many have a negative view of The Military it's too hard ? It's just not for them , they don't like being told what to do Ive asked them so how should I give directions ? Young Ppl are tethered to their phones , I've even seen here how they couldn't believe they had to give up their phones during Training hours . I've had to let a couple guys go cause they just won't stay off their phone . They dont even want to discuss taking vocational classes . I dont know I'm at a loss loss you can't help someone if they are unwilling to help themselves. Myself I joined to learn a trade as I couldn't afford additional education after High School. But the big thing I learned was Leadership. I spent right at 6 yrs Active Duty , Getting out was a personal choice that even today I still wonder what if I had stayed . But the Time I served was instrumental in the person I am now an that experience has guided me thru life .Every place I have ever worked It was easy to standout over my peers , in a supervisory position it allowed me coordinate my personal . Several times Upper Management during conversations or yearly reviews They have pointed out how I take care of my people , Which to me has been the greatest compliment I've received. My last job I was Shop Foreman for a Major Equipment Mfg the Regional Manager commented it's rare I hear from you , I explained you hired me to run this operation due to my qualifications, when the situation arises I'm not quite sure how to address I've contacted you either by phone if it was critical or by email if it wasn't a major issue . The whole time thru our discussion he kept getting interrupted by Shop Foreman's from various other Stores for things that I just took as day to day operations, I even commented to him I shouldn't have to ask you if I need to wipe by backside after using the head . To which he laughed saying if he had just 2 more ppl like me he would have a dream job . 3 months later he asked me if I would be interested in a Assistant Regional Manger position overseeing Shop Operations thru out 3 states .

I would like to add one more thing to my previous remarks, I also believe every single city, State, Federal Employee along with every service member, FBI, CIA , IRS etc should be Required to take a year long class TO BE ABLE TO ANSWER THE FIVE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHEN & WHY, THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE, UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION & THE BILL OF RIGHTS WERE WRITTEN . By reading and answering those five basic question I hope it would help the Young Officers and Enlisted personal understand why they took a oath to protect & Defend the United States Constitution & the Bill Of Rights , & why they did not take a Oath to protect any single political party or elected Official, but Swore to Protect & Defend the American Citizens Individual Constitution Rights & Freedoms from all Foreign & Domestic Threats.
I remember when I was on active duty, I was Shocked at how many young and old service members never even read the Declaration Of Independence, the United States Constitution or the Bill of Rights, I would give the service member a Pocket copy of the Declaration Of Independence, the United States Constitution & the Bill of Rights, while telling them, you did take a Oath to protect and defend these Documents , don't you think you should at least read them, for a few different reasons? such as to help you understand what is a Constitutional lawful order, and what is a Unconstitutional order. to get a basic understanding of Why and what you are defending .

Not that it would fill all the needs of our military I think with the 'overcrouding' of our prisons judges use to give a first time offender or blue color minor crime the choice of prison or the military. Why not do it again. It turned a lot of people around and made the good citizens.