Posted on May 2, 2017
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I wanted to open up the holistic/theoretical envelope and see what people wanted to change.
Don't feel constrained by the survey questions, just something to get the creative juices flowing.
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Responses: 80
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MSG Unit Supply Specialist
169
169
0
(get rid of all the double gender standards)
(169)
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LTC Hardware Test Engineer
LTC (Join to see)
>1 y
FTX: 2 shower tents. 1 for the 130 males and the other for the 2 females.....
(2)
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(0)
CPL A McKenna
CPL A McKenna
6 y
You got to take showers?
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CPL A McKenna
CPL A McKenna
6 y
Well, I am not concerned with your gender when we are on the battle field, your gender is Army green and your gonna bleed Red, White, and Blue.
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SGT Leon Riege
SGT Leon Riege
6 y
one pt standard,i can understand a sliding scale for age but not for gender , oh yeah reinstate the draft , get some adversity back to promote creativity and growth
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1SG Civil Affairs Specialist
133
133
0
Time management.
I have never understood why the Army sees fit to have Soldiers report at ridiculously early times because reasons.
There is a time for that, sure. But in garrison? Typically not. We are just doing it because we have always done it that way.
(133)
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1SG Civil Affairs Specialist
1SG (Join to see)
>1 y
SFC Thomas Foreman - If I wasn't in possession of a keen sense of, well sense and caring for my Soldiers, I would probably be that guy.
I think they issue it with the diamond.
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1px xxx
Suspended Profile
>1 y
1SG (Join to see) haha I don’t doubt you were/are a good one. You make sense, you care about joe and I’ve never once heard you say “piggyback” or “behoove”
SPC Andrew Phillips
SPC Andrew Phillips
>1 y
Top, I always figured that leadership intentionally ate up hours of the day because if they didn’t you g Soldiers in the barracks found ways to get into trouble. This comes from a guy that did 4 years and was never senior.
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1SG Civil Affairs Specialist
1SG (Join to see)
>1 y
SPC Andrew Phillips - The problem with that hypothesis is that generally joe gets in trouble in the late night hours, not 0-dark in the morning.
My truthful explanation if I were to attempt to apply logic to something I don't believe in is that it is a technique to get accountability early so that those that are not there can be tracked down and policed up. Meanwhile leaders get together to get guidance from the CO about the day's activities.
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SFC Steven Borders
126
126
0
Get rid of the ridiculous height and weight standards and update them for the current times, and change the friggin PT test. The Air Force and Navy get by just fine running a 1.5 mile test with headphones. I love running to music and that really pumps me up. No reason the Army and Marines can't go to that standard. I hate running and my knees are proof from all that ground pounding.
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CPT Rex Siemer
CPT Rex Siemer
>1 y
SGT (Join to see) now I'm confused, are you in the Army or Marine Corps? As far as the pt test, yes it may help you get promoted, but, failing a pt test is a sure sign that you do not have the self control to push yourself to be the best that you can. As far as hurry up and wait, well it is, as all whom have waited, it is about making sure you have everything that you need to complete the task at hand. As you make rank, especially if you are in a combat arms unit, this will become clearer.
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Sgt Dan Catlin
Sgt Dan Catlin
>1 y
Uh, running to music is just wrong. You should be aware, not entertained; pushing yourself and others to do better. Hopefully the Marines will never "go to that standard." As for the Army, maybe you could get a Marine to sing cadence for you! :)
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Col John Madison
Col John Madison
>1 y
SFC (Join to see) - Why not get rid of the run entirely, but make a timed rucksack hump over terrain, include some obstacles...and make it with your weapons and basic load.
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Sgt Dale Briggs
Sgt Dale Briggs
>1 y
Col John Madison - too practical I suppose, but if you can ruck you can run, and do pull-ups or pushups. Rucks were the worst, practical, but damn i hated them. But that is the job for many, and it tests more than strength it tests resolve and willpower.
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If there was one thing you could fix in the Army what would it be?
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SFC Melvin Rogers
116
116
0
NCO promotions should be blind. No photos, no gender reference, no racial or ethnic identity, not even a name, just a candidate number, assignments list, and NCOERs
(116)
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SSG Jason Clark
SSG Jason Clark
7 y
Best comment ever!
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LTC Psychological Operations Officer
LTC (Join to see)
7 y
CW3 (Join to see) - I think that could be covered somewhere in the NCOER/OER. If an NCO or Officer doesn't have a professional appearance day in and day out at work, isn't their chain of command supposed to handle it? Shouldn't that reflect in their evaluation somehow? Why do we need a DA selection board deciding if an NCO/Officer looks professional? As others have mentioned, the photos are artificially produced with tape, etc so they don't really depict reality anyway. I remember a division commander long, long ago who told his officers that if you wear a mustache day to day, but don't have a mustache on your DA photo that you are guilty of an integrity violation. Even the DA personnel guys would joke about it. During one of those DA briefs about promotion boards given to officers at each post, he said that the first screening was to look at the photos and separate the mustache guys from the group. Those were auto nonselect, and then they started to read the files of the others. :)
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1SG Civil Affairs Specialist
1SG (Join to see)
7 y
I'll buy this idea for a dollar.
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DoD Civilian
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>1 y
Then what's the point of all the ass kissin' I've been doing?
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SSG Squad Leader
67
67
0
We need more line workers and less staff. We need more soldiers doing there MOS tasks whatever that is. Less CIV filling support roles and more support done by soldiers. Fewer Generals and field grad officers especially in staff jobs more joes look at the ratio that we had in WWII as a good ratio to keep. Basically we need more soldiers working and less making sure that work gets done.
(67)
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SGT Squad Member
SGT (Join to see)
8 y
Last I heard, 2016, the military was at ~450,000 strong. That's 50,000 less than the beginning of the WW2 and at the height of the War, we had a 16 million man military (I just did a paper on how downsizing the military affects our strength and readiness). I'm not saying we need to be at 16 million again, but being able to do our MOS during training instead of spending 3/4 of our time doing paperwork and classes would definitely be better. For the record, I'm currently in the Guard as an M-Day soldier (one weekend a month) and a Black Hawk mechanic. Most drills we spend nearly all day Saturday and most of Sunday on SHARP, or other classes and paperwork instead of our MOS and when we're deployed, most of the younger guys have little to no practical experience on the airframe.
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SGT Squad Member
SGT (Join to see)
8 y
And civilians doing our jobs while we're deployed has gotten to the point that we're not even really needed in the support maintenance role. Kosovo, 2010, DynCorp was there doing 90% of the maintenance and getting paid $120,000 a year + per diem + benefits. Iraq, 2011, L3 was there and, again, doing 90% of the maintenance and getting paid nearly $120,000 a year. And in neither case were our guys allowed to work with the civilians to gain experience and knowledge.
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SSG Squad Leader
SSG (Join to see)
8 y
SGT (Join to see) - That is my point we need more worker bees working. doing whatever they are suppose to be doing.
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DoD Civilian
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>1 y
SSG (Join to see) okay then.
Which MOS is it that works through the PPBES process?
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LTC Owner
66
66
0
The biggest challenge I've seen in my time in uniform is when we start off, we are told to think outside the box, be innovative. First duty station and everyone there after it's shut up and color... don't make waves... follow the crowd. We need to reward thinking and innovation not stifle it. The Colonel or General isn't the only one with a brain, though yes they make the final decision.
(66)
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SSG Pat O'Flaherty
SSG Pat O'Flaherty
7 y
I agree with the innovation statement. As a guardsman I used innovation was punished for racing into Ground Zero in uniform. I had a back ground in operations, communications and utilities. I set up a command post on the west side and ended up being deputized by the deputy mayor as a member of NYC OEM. Ended up spending 700 hours there.
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PO3 Chris Wright, MBA
PO3 Chris Wright, MBA
7 y
LTC (Join to see) Side question. Why does the army call 1SG top when there is another pay grade above them?
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SGT John Berry
SGT John Berry
7 y
PO3 Chris Wright, MBA Because Top is the senior NCO at the company level.
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SGT Motor Transport Operator
SGT (Join to see)
7 y
One of the interesting things about the reserves & guard is that many SM do a similar job on the civilian side. Sometimes these people have job experience which afford a different or better way of doing things. Sometimes, the command is open to suggestions. Other times, these ideas bump up against “the regulations” or “the manual says”. There should be a sort of “get out of jail free” provision. If the deviation was not reckless or can be shown to be successful in other areas (such as the civilian world), the member should not be penalized. Unfortunately, innovation is a slow moving slug on a winter day in the military culture.
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SSG Eduardo Ybarra  Jr.  MS Psyc
47
47
0
There really isn't just one thing where the Army has failed at. However, for starters I would get rid of the stupid reflective belt. Here's an idea for the idiot that thought this idea would get him/her promoted the PT uniform already has reflective material on it. If you want to wear that stupid thing down range be my guest (it ill give your enemy a clearer sight picture). Did you not realize this or has your stupidity gotten the better of you (which is most likely the case).

The second thing that needs addressing is the now pathetic way Soldiers are trained. This starts in Basic and tends to follow a Soldier through their entire enlisted career. How about we go back to training to standard instead of time. Go back to what leadership training was meant to be; Primary Leadership Course (also known as PNCOC). What is this new crap warrior leadership training? Not everyone who serves is on the frontline so why call them warriors?

The third thing is Height and weight, yes there does need to be a standard but during my time as an MFT I had to put out some men who were overweight, but the sad thing is these men could out PT most of the men within the company. This kind of nonsense was a travesty because the Army lost some very fine and capable young men. The standard should reflect the new generation.

The fourth thing is, whatever assclown thought it would be a good idea for women to go to and compete in the Ranger School Training should just leave the Army to the big boys. Why degrade a time honored tradition such as Ranger School and Ranger Training? Really do you think a female can be in the field as long as a man can without any consequences? Try spending 79 days out in the field without a shower and tell me you can "hang with the guys". Yes the standards are lacking now-a-days which need to be raised once again to what they once were in the late 80's. No more of this PT test then run two miles and continue running until you reach the mark. It should be the way it was run in formation at the pace the RI sets.

Another thing that needs to be looked at is the allowance of society within our military community. Stop trying to pacify every liberal ideation and focus on the main mission of the Army. If officers do not know this mission then they need to find another career field such as door greeter at a local walmart. The mission of the Army is to safe guard the citizens of the nation not pander to the requests of those citizens. So keep the attitudes of society out. Our only boss is the Commander-in-Chief not Joe Snuffy the councilman, mayor or governor.

With so much more that needs fixing I'll stop now before I end up with an aneurysm.
(47)
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SPC Tony Pacheco
SPC Tony Pacheco
7 y
I’m Getting a bit of a HOOAH, chubby SSG.
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SSG Eduardo Ybarra  Jr.  MS Psyc
SSG Eduardo Ybarra Jr. MS Psyc
7 y
SPC (Join to see) - Please tell me you are not gathering your information from a forum? There is nothing empirical from this article in essence it is just anecdotal which holds no validity what-so-ever. This is purely opinion based.
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SPC Aviation Operations Specialist
SPC (Join to see)
7 y
SSG Eduardo Ybarra Jr. MS Psyc go talk to a doctor then, a real one not the army's they'll tell you the same thing
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MAJ Bill Darling
39
39
0
Get rid of ALL double standards regarding males and females. This includes PC language, fitness standards, "wear and appearance", SHARP, promotion/recruiting/academy selection "goals" etc. If this means women make up 43% of the force, fine but if it means they are 1% of the force, that's fine too as long as the Army's effectiveness is maintained or improves.
(39)
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SGT Operations Ncoic
SGT (Join to see)
7 y
SGT (Join to see) no, it shouldn't take a policy to tell you that that is not how you treat people. That was the job of your parents. The SHARP training as a whole is a big waste of time. There is not a single shred of evidence that this program has made a lick of difference.
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MAJ Bill Darling
MAJ Bill Darling
7 y
SGT (Join to see) - That's not why I said that. There are many reasons to get rid of it, not the least of which is what SGT Beullens said.
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SPC Samantha Stapley
SPC Samantha Stapley
>1 y
As a female, I agree completely. Let the standards be the same for both males and females. With that being said, if a female can "hack it" as a Ranger, she should have that opportunity. Maybe none actually can, and that's fine, but give everyone the same chance, and keep the standards the same for both sexes.
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SPC Samantha Stapley
SPC Samantha Stapley
>1 y
I also agree with getting rid of SHARP. It did nothing to curb sexual assault in the military.
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CSM Bn Ssa
34
34
0
We need to fix the promotion process. Soldiers should be based on actual performance not based on a broken point system. I've seen outstanding Soldiers in small MOS's that did not want to reclass get stuck as SGTs and RCP while subpar NCOs make SFC just because they happen to be in a bigger field like 92Y or 42A (just using those MOS for example)
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SPC Aviation Operations Specialist
SPC (Join to see)
7 y
A perfect example, I had a sgt try to fill comsec in a speaker box
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SGT Senior Human Resources Nco (S1)
SGT (Join to see)
7 y
But you picked two low density MOSs that are historically high points just to make SGT and have only been promoting the last couple of years?
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SPC (Other / Not listed)
SPC (Join to see)
7 y
I agree SFC. With my MOS, our points are so high but our MOS is not large. We don’t have many which means when we want to go to classes our man power is low. Plus if we went to so many classes to get our points, we would be at classes all year round. They wants more SGTs but they make it very hard to get there and people get stuck at SPC until either they get out or they RCP out. Can’t reclass bc we aren’t high strengthened.
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CPL Cord Nipper
CPL Cord Nipper
7 y
In 1992-4 the points for E-5 in MOS 95 (MP) was 798/800.
Good E-4s without a college degrees were denied promotions and left the service.
I always saw that as a disservice to the individual soldier and the Army.
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MAJ Staff Officer
28
28
0
Better talent management. Oh you have a master's degree in computer science? Ok you branch Armor!
(28)
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SSG Michael Hathaway
SSG Michael Hathaway
7 y
I whole heartedly agree with this. It should also apply to enlisted as I know many enlisted, myself included, who have changed their areas of interest dramatically. For example, Im a medic yet my passion is computers and technology, but reclassing is a long road and at times restrictive. Also, when I took my ASVAP, the recruiters we're very surprised at my test scores stating I cheated, blah blah, blah....yet even with the high GT score, my original chosen MOS was no longer available (only 24 hours have passed), only medic and engineer were open.
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