LTC Private RallyPoint Member 44482 <div class="images-v2-count-0"></div><p>Being charged with the honor and responsibility of commanding our Nations most prized possession, the United States Soldiers, is the highlight of any officers career.  However these days at the B/C/T level, every captain seems expect the "right" to command and don't necessarily understand the "privilege" behind the opportunity they have been charged with.</p><p><br></p><p>The Army should start looking at making command a privilege and only reward those that deserve and have the ability to lead our Soldiers and do what is best by them.  Taking a chance of a captain to provide the command our Soldiers need only because he has been "slated" to command is not worth the risk of seeing if he / she can come through.  Our Soldiers deserve the best and we should give that to them.</p> 2014-01-26T10:09:27-05:00 LTC Private RallyPoint Member 44482

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div><p>Being charged with the honor and responsibility of commanding our Nations most prized possession, the United States Soldiers, is the highlight of any officers career.  However these days at the B/C/T level, every captain seems expect the "right" to command and don't necessarily understand the "privilege" behind the opportunity they have been charged with.</p><p><br></p><p>The Army should start looking at making command a privilege and only reward those that deserve and have the ability to lead our Soldiers and do what is best by them.  Taking a chance of a captain to provide the command our Soldiers need only because he has been "slated" to command is not worth the risk of seeing if he / she can come through.  Our Soldiers deserve the best and we should give that to them.</p>

2014-01-26T10:09:27-05:00 2014-01-26T10:09:27-05:00 CPT Private RallyPoint Member 44508

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Privilege, without a doubt. I have only seen one "bad" commander, and he wasn't even my commander, and I've heard a few horror stories.

2014-01-26T11:05:08-05:00 2014-01-26T11:05:08-05:00 MAJ Private RallyPoint Member 44512

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Sir, it is absolutely a privilege and one I look forward to earning someday.<br>

2014-01-26T11:06:58-05:00 2014-01-26T11:06:58-05:00 CSM Private RallyPoint Member 44513

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Without doubt an absolute privilege sir and you're spot on about many officers viewing it as a right, at least until they are in command and fully grasp the understanding of what being in command is. It also really takes actively involved Battalion and Brigade level commanders to select the best officers for company level command, an art that is without question difficult to manage. I say difficult because it's not just about placing an officer in command but also the dynamics of that company and the pairing of that commander with that unit's First Sergeant are also crucial factors. 

2014-01-26T11:10:54-05:00 2014-01-26T11:10:54-05:00 Lt Col Luis A. Rojas 44523

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>MAJ Oberg; the equivalent in the Air Force is Flight Command.  The position of Flight Commander is a privilege and not a right.  Flight Command is followed by Squadron, Group and then Wing Command.  Although to be a Flight Commander an individual does not have to meet a selection board, but they are and should be properly vetted by the leadership.

2014-01-26T11:28:11-05:00 2014-01-26T11:28:11-05:00 MAJ Private RallyPoint Member 44543

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I have to agree that it is a privilege that an officer has to want. Now I feel that over a six year period a Captain should hit a point where he/she is "ready" for command. I will put some of the ownership on our senior leaders as well. What has the BN Commander done to mentor and prepare their Captains for command? I do like that (for the most part) company command requires an interview and endorsement for the position. I recently interviewed for command and took the time to ask some Majors and Senior Captains how they prepared. I took it one step further and chose to wear my ASUs to the interview. After an hour and a half I was offered the job. I am looking forward to taking command this June. <div><br></div><div>As MAJ Oberg stated, our Soldier, Sailors, Marines and Airmen deserve the best. I think that includes an officer who may not be a born leader but is willing to do their best and wants the burden of command. But no one should get command because they simply need it for promotion......</div>

2014-01-26T12:22:15-05:00 2014-01-26T12:22:15-05:00 MAJ Private RallyPoint Member 45211

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Any way you look at it, command is a privilege and when you read AR 600-20, it makes it pretty clear that there are very specific requirements and expectations for command. &amp;nbsp;I would counter, however, that this situation is not all company grade officers fault. &amp;nbsp;Battalion and Brigade Commanders need to, when necessary, step up and make the unpopular decision not to place a Captain in command, BUT, that needs to be accompanied by counseling. &amp;nbsp;Part of the reason why you see everyone expecting a command is that, for the past decade, practically everyone got one. &amp;nbsp;In that situation, from what I&#39;ve seen, we either A. put guys in command we hope will just get through their year without messing it up too badly (a horribly flawed strategy) or B. treat a guy like a lepper and keep him rotting away in the S3 shop without properly explaining to him what he needs to do to meet the expectations of a commander (a failure of leadership).&lt;div&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;Not selecting a Captain for command is ending his/her career (should he/she want to stay in the operational Army), so it&#39;s not a decision to be taken lightly. &amp;nbsp;Perhaps we need to do a better job of managing officer career fields between staff and command tracks. &amp;nbsp;I&#39;ve seen many very solid company grade officers who are great staff officers, but will never make great commanders. &amp;nbsp;That doesn&#39;t mean they don&#39;t have a place in our Army, but what we are essentially doing is failing to match talents with positions (something Tim Kane wrote about very effectively in &quot;Bleeding Talent&quot;), and thus placing people ill-suited for command in charge of Soldiers or not putting them into command, thus ending their careers (in some cases, of very capable staff officers).&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;My two cents.&lt;/div&gt;

2014-01-27T13:10:46-05:00 2014-01-27T13:10:46-05:00 MAJ Private RallyPoint Member 45217

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Sir,&lt;div&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;It&#39;s a privilege until there are more slots than officers to fill them. Since the Army is keen to ensure that studs (and duds) get a wholistic career experience, we can&#39;t keep the studs in command for 36-48 months. Because of this, there are constant vacancies that must be filled. Were they unfilled then we would be making the life of the 1SG and XO, not to mention the Soldiers themselves, that much harder. So, it&#39;s a privilege until it&#39;s an institutional and bureaucratic requirement.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;I think that it&#39;s a privilege inasmuch as it&#39;s an awesome job with awesome responsibility, but realistically it can&#39;t be something that is only reserved for the best of the best.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;

2014-01-27T13:16:50-05:00 2014-01-27T13:16:50-05:00 CW2 Joseph Evans 45231

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Where is the "Responsibility" option?<div>Accepting the "Privilege" without accepting the responsibility seems to be one of the big problems we are having with some of our units today.</div>

2014-01-27T13:40:53-05:00 2014-01-27T13:40:53-05:00 CPT Mike M. 45236

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Should absolutely be a privilege.  Frankly, it gets under my skin a bit when a Captain is considering getting out of the Army so the Chain of Command offers him/her a Command as an incentive to stay in.  It's not an incentive, not a bargaining chip, it's one of the most important leadership roles in the US Army and needs to go to those most deserving.  It's not fair to the Soldiers to give them anyone but the best.

2014-01-27T13:45:13-05:00 2014-01-27T13:45:13-05:00 COL Private RallyPoint Member 45244

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Of course, it goes without saying that command is a privilege. But rather than complain about the fact that there are terrible commanders out there, I think it's important to look at the underlying cause.<div><br></div><div>For most/nearly all officer AOCs, command is considered a necessity for a branch qualification and advancement to the field grade ranks. I think the Army should consider whether that is a necessity.</div><div><br></div><div>I've worked with Western European (French/German) and Commonwealth (British/Aussie) militaries. In each of those systems, command is not a requirement for progression. Sure, non-commanders will not likely get to the flag level, but they can have successful careers as staff officers and specialists. That's incredibly important. Some officers have incredible aptitude at staff levels and only do a command as a "check the block" to get to those staff jobs. Should we chastise them? or should we chastise the system that forces them to do so? I think there's merit in letting officers pursue career tracks that allow those who do not seek command to progress in their careers without it.</div><div><br></div><div>So rather than ask an easy question (whether or not command is a privilege), maybe we should be asking why the Army has systemically considered it to be a necessity for advancement and thus created a faulty "right" to command, which arguably hurts our troops more than it helps the officer corps.</div><div><br></div><div>Just my $.02.</div>

2014-01-27T13:53:56-05:00 2014-01-27T13:53:56-05:00 CMC Robert Young 45250

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Command no matter what the circumstances is always a privilege. It is predicated not only a member's technical expertise, but more importantly on their capacity to create positive relationships that produce quality results. Command is far more about the led as opposed to the leader....a fact that many who aspire to those positions forget the moment the change of command ceremony is over.

2014-01-27T14:05:02-05:00 2014-01-27T14:05:02-05:00 SSgt Lonnie Montgomery 45360

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Always a "privilege".  Never ever a "right".

2014-01-27T18:29:33-05:00 2014-01-27T18:29:33-05:00 CPT Aaron Kletzing 45404

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>This is a tough one. I think of it as a privilege -- but not strictly so, because I believe there are some Officers who can really develop while in command in such a capacity.  So perhaps they may not have earned the 'privilege' 100%, but they are given the chance by the Battalion Commander to command a company-level element because the BN CDR sees potential for further development.  

2014-01-27T19:59:32-05:00 2014-01-27T19:59:32-05:00 MAJ Private RallyPoint Member 711803

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Like most on here I agree that it is in fact a privilege. But there is so much that goes into deciding if someone has earned it enough to have command. Over the course of the two wars we were engaged in we have shuttled Captains in and out of command, those who earned the right and those that were probably not ready for it but senior commanders had no choice. Commanders (who oddly enough were company commanders early in the war years) will now be charged with deciding and putting those people in command. They have to apply some critical thinking by looking at where the Army was when they were in command, where we are currently, and where the Army is going. We are getting smaller, that is going to raise the competitiveness of earning the opportunity to take command. I do not want to see the Army revert back to a "Zero Defect" Army but senior commanders are going to be charged with making some very difficult decisions regarding who gets command. There will be Captains that no doubt should and will be company commanders and they will get command. Then you are going to have two categories (in my opinion) of Captains that is going to cause that senior commander to think. (A) The Captain that you see the potential in but they are not there yet that will require effort on the part of the Senior NCOs in the Company to help them realize their potential. (B) The captain that while great as a staff officer (maybe) but has no ability to lead Soldiers. While it may seem not seem right the senior commander has to have the professionalism to relay to them that they are not going to take command and that not everyone gets to lead troops at that level. Yes I realize doing so may grind that Captains career to a halt but you must have Company Commanders who have the ability to take their formations into battle and execute the mission.

2015-06-01T02:52:22-04:00 2015-06-01T02:52:22-04:00 2014-01-26T10:09:27-05:00