In today's modern military, would there be any benefit to an enlisted structure similar to that of the past?

Maybe the technical sergeant ranks but honestly have like a 22 year old SGT in command of a 45 year old Spec-9? Doesn’t seem like a good idea

Yes!

In combat arms? No! In the rear with the gear possibly. However there will be a power struggle some guy with SP7 who's been in 15 years is getting school by an NCO corporal and above who's got maybe 3 years in service at the least, how is that gonna play out? I can here that argument already. In combat arms if the NCO gets dropped in a fight it falls to the next man down! If your a SP4? Oh well! Your in the driver's seat buddy! You will lead and accomplish the mission, period! That's your JOB!

We had this debate at my unit a couple months back.

I think it would muddy the waters of authority and simply complicate rank. I love the idea, but the execution is a thing of the past.

My concern is that junior NCOs should be skilled in their respective MOSs: “remain tactically and technically proficient”. - a specialist 5-9 in this area undermines that concept. And what’s the point of having a super 68W SPC9? What exactly would they do that is a force multiplier beyond just paygrade and filling a slot? I totally would take the job but it would probably be a waste of sorts.

I think a better option is identifying potential and current NCOs who are better suited to the more technical aspects of their craft and put them in positions that maximize their skill and less so the “leadership” aspect. As time goes on they can be mentored to take greater or more overt leadership roles.

I agree that we should consider bringing back the Specialist grades at least through SP7, we do not neet the 3 at the bottom as Specialist covers the "T" or Technical grades, Along with this there needs to be followon technical courses for the Spc grades to climb up the ladder as we have for the hard stripers

I think it would be beneficial to bring the specialist ranks back, but only in certain MOSs like medical, MI, and Signal. It would increase retention to have the specialist ranks back up to E-7, as it would afford more good soldiers the ability to advance. The higher you move up in the NCO ranks, the harder it becomes because slots are fewer as they are leadership slots; making it one of the most common reasons for those with 8-10 years of service leaving the Army.

Absolutely. We have great soldiers who know all aspects of their job but lack the interpersonal skills required to be effective leaders. It’s time we reward soldiers who can grow out (professionally speaking) better than some grow up.

As it said- specialist. Now why in the infantry a machine gunner is a Specialist but in the artillery, the assistant guner its a corporal? (This may be out of date. )

Not everyone is cut out to be a leader. If someone is comfortable in their job, let them perfect it. Yes we still need cross training. But we need professionals in the job they love.

The problem is that leading was not always what the rank was really about.
I was a Sergeant E-5 and when I changed fields, from Signal Corp to Ordinance, I became a Specialist E-5. Then when I made E-6 I became a Sergeant again. It never made sense to me.

If a Specialist was to go to NCOES, and graduate, and could then become a Sergeant, I would be OK with it.