Posted on Feb 23, 2015
What is the biggest issues that military leaders fail to address or admit exists?
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As we move through the ranks many of us have seen military leaders fail to act or admit that a problem exists. What do you think the biggest issue is that leaders do not address or fail to admit exists?
How do we solve it?
How do we solve it?
Posted in these groups: 
Leadership
Issues
Leadership Issues
Edited 11 y ago
Posted 11 y ago
Responses: 8
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I think John Q. Public sums it up pretty well here. There is excessive "dog and pony" type leadership, where a VIP will visit for a "look" at operations... but that visit is NEVER an accurate reflection of actual operations. It's actually very disruptive to operations, with man hours wasted "painting the grass green" (something I actually did at Beale!) and planting hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of flowers (something they did at McGuire) to impress those VIP visitors. The whole ethic of gripes going up and orders coming down is stunted. Most gripes do not make it up. Each branch of the military is expected to do "more with less" but there is a natural conclusion to that. Eventually, they will be expected to do everything with nothing... and all the 4 star visits in the world won't save them. http://www.jqpublic-blog.com/look-were-involved-air-force-constellation-visits-minot/
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SGT Jim Z.
I remember when I was a young PFC stationed in DC when SMA Kidd was on his farewell tour. We met briefly in Korea and he ask where I was PCSing to and I told him the Pentagon, fast forward a month in half later and SMA Kidd was visiting the Old Guard who lived on the 3rd and 4th floor of my building and I told my 1SG he does not care for the dog and pony show. Well the next day SMA Kidd was peeved to see an Old Guard Soldier still buffing and waxing the floor when he arrived. He proceeded to chew out the Old Guard 1SG. Yes I agree dog and pony shows are disruptive and do not accurately give the picture.
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Well, LTC (Join to see), we obviously can't talk about it without admitting it exists!
I agree with MAJ (Join to see) that junior leader (officers and NCOs) development is sorely lacking in the Army Reserve (although it may go further than that). I would add actual mission readiness. Readiness metrics are fine, but getting to the battlefield means very little if units don't know what to do when they get there.
I have been out of the mainstream Army Reserve for over a year now, so perhaps the focus on the more base readiness aspects has abated.
I agree with MAJ (Join to see) that junior leader (officers and NCOs) development is sorely lacking in the Army Reserve (although it may go further than that). I would add actual mission readiness. Readiness metrics are fine, but getting to the battlefield means very little if units don't know what to do when they get there.
I have been out of the mainstream Army Reserve for over a year now, so perhaps the focus on the more base readiness aspects has abated.
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Honestly, I think the biggest issue within the military is that the military doesn't seem to think there are any big issues. Sure they pounce on the little issues like what to do for PT, Chow, Dress Codes and etc. But there are problems in the military that have been in place for years and never seem to get resolved. Here are my top 5.
1. Sexual harassment. It has been around ever since the inception of the military. It has only gotten worse in time with certain policies being approved.
2. Homosexuality. The military defines and redefines its policies on this issue so much that even the troops are unsure of what is allowed and what isn't. 'Do I ask, Do I tell'. Who knows!
3. Unfair treatment towards race. Executive Order 9981 abolished racial discrimination and segregation in the military in 1948, but this issue is still there. It just found a better way to camouflage itself.
4. Non-equal rights to females. They can hold a combat MOS. We just choose to not let them. We just keep hanging the carrot in front of them to keep em interested.
5. Last but not least. The care of soldiers after they leave the service. Its the VA's problem, not theirs.
So when the military sidesteps or totally ignores a problem, I believe that is the biggest issue.
1. Sexual harassment. It has been around ever since the inception of the military. It has only gotten worse in time with certain policies being approved.
2. Homosexuality. The military defines and redefines its policies on this issue so much that even the troops are unsure of what is allowed and what isn't. 'Do I ask, Do I tell'. Who knows!
3. Unfair treatment towards race. Executive Order 9981 abolished racial discrimination and segregation in the military in 1948, but this issue is still there. It just found a better way to camouflage itself.
4. Non-equal rights to females. They can hold a combat MOS. We just choose to not let them. We just keep hanging the carrot in front of them to keep em interested.
5. Last but not least. The care of soldiers after they leave the service. Its the VA's problem, not theirs.
So when the military sidesteps or totally ignores a problem, I believe that is the biggest issue.
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LTC (Join to see)
SSG Adam Reed what do you suggest for equal rights for females? Do we change standards for MOS training or adjust for females? Do we keep the standards that If we go down that route then are the APFT treating genders equally by physical capabilities or another thing that divides the genders? (NOTE: just a few things I have heard during my time, I do not necessarily agree with all of these)
As far as they do not want the job...I am in the engineering world and I have only seen a handful of female officers in the Army. Is this because they do not want the jobs or how the Army assigned them? I know I ranked the branches I qualified for and then the Army assigned me with a job. Is the system selecting them in a way that needs to be adjusted?
As far as they do not want the job...I am in the engineering world and I have only seen a handful of female officers in the Army. Is this because they do not want the jobs or how the Army assigned them? I know I ranked the branches I qualified for and then the Army assigned me with a job. Is the system selecting them in a way that needs to be adjusted?
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SSG Adam Reed
In no way am I saying I have the answers. I'm just pointing out issues the military has had for years and can't seem to fix. But if I was the one to make the changes, I wouldn't lower standards or requirements for anyone when it comes to getting certain job. If a certain job demands a certain performance then all who apply for that job must be able to perform to that standard. As for equal rights for females. Simple. If we offer a male a job, that same job should be offered to a female. Whether or not either of them perform to the fore mentioned standards is up to each individual.
As for the APFT. I believe it has been a tool for Commanders that doesn't show absolute physical potential of soldiers. Just because I can't do so many push ups doesn't mean I can't hang on a 12 mile road march. Been there, done that. And even though I believe male and female should have the same APFT standard, biology demands other wise. Thanks for the conversation.
As for the APFT. I believe it has been a tool for Commanders that doesn't show absolute physical potential of soldiers. Just because I can't do so many push ups doesn't mean I can't hang on a 12 mile road march. Been there, done that. And even though I believe male and female should have the same APFT standard, biology demands other wise. Thanks for the conversation.
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Suspended Profile
Most things EO related. Sex, race, and religion, are not supposed to be factors in military matters, but I think a blind eye is turned on trespasses in these areas.
LTC (Join to see)
SSG Christopher Adame can you explain further? Is too much time being devoted to making sure that they are not a factor or not enough energy being put forth to ensure that they are not being used as a factor?
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Suspended Profile
Of course, in this day and afe, there are checks and balances in place. There are people more conscious of the injustices that surround these areas of interest, but you can't change a culture overnight.
There is majority in the american military that largely reflects the majority of the American population. Whether it be males, non-Muslims, or western European americans, someone who does not fall into toe categories are at the mercy of the majority and the cultural biases held onto by said culture.
For example, there has been a string of media hype about white cop violence against black males. The wave of media is met with up rage on both sides, both with valid points. One claiming racism still exists, as exhibited by police brutality, the other claiming that most of those black males provoked the cops in some way shape or form... I'm not here to say who is right. I will say, that the action, overall, only solidifies dominant cultural beliefs of the two sides, within the two sides, and about the two sides.
That is to say that, we tend to favor people who look, act, think, and believe similarly to how we do. It is basic human nature, and survival of the fittest. It is hard to break out of that mentality, especially I'd you are constantly immersed in that cultural environment. It's even harder to show empathy for those outside of your culture or preferences, and attempt to understand their understanding.
It's even harder to bring the hammer on those who share those cultural similarities for many reasons. One being, you may understand why that person, acts or thinks a certain way, even if you don't. Secondly, they may not understand where you're coming from when you do. Therfore the message can be lost right there.
Fear then becomes the basic driving force of your next action. Risk alienation or just accept what "can't" be changed?
I could expound on this subject all night, sadly, I am using the mobile app and will allow my thumbs to rest for now. Please address anything you find worth developing and I will gladly respond.
There is majority in the american military that largely reflects the majority of the American population. Whether it be males, non-Muslims, or western European americans, someone who does not fall into toe categories are at the mercy of the majority and the cultural biases held onto by said culture.
For example, there has been a string of media hype about white cop violence against black males. The wave of media is met with up rage on both sides, both with valid points. One claiming racism still exists, as exhibited by police brutality, the other claiming that most of those black males provoked the cops in some way shape or form... I'm not here to say who is right. I will say, that the action, overall, only solidifies dominant cultural beliefs of the two sides, within the two sides, and about the two sides.
That is to say that, we tend to favor people who look, act, think, and believe similarly to how we do. It is basic human nature, and survival of the fittest. It is hard to break out of that mentality, especially I'd you are constantly immersed in that cultural environment. It's even harder to show empathy for those outside of your culture or preferences, and attempt to understand their understanding.
It's even harder to bring the hammer on those who share those cultural similarities for many reasons. One being, you may understand why that person, acts or thinks a certain way, even if you don't. Secondly, they may not understand where you're coming from when you do. Therfore the message can be lost right there.
Fear then becomes the basic driving force of your next action. Risk alienation or just accept what "can't" be changed?
I could expound on this subject all night, sadly, I am using the mobile app and will allow my thumbs to rest for now. Please address anything you find worth developing and I will gladly respond.
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In the Army Reserve, I am going have go with junior leader development and mentorship. It gets a lot of lip service, but not a great deal of actual attention.
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MAJ (Join to see)
In the TPU world, the bulk of the time that leaders would otherwise have to devote to mentoring and developing their subordinates for advancement has been consumed by the seemingly never-ending barrage of competing and mandatory MONTHLY training requirements - SHARP, ASSIST, Master Resiliency... Granted, these trainings cover issues of key concern to senior Army leadership, but when everything's a priority, something is going to take it in the shorts. Whereas mentorship and leader development is formally covered through the OES and NCOES, the informal mentoring and leader development that many of us recall from years ago has been greatly eroded; and much to the detriment of our next crop of leaders and the institution as a whole.
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I think overall we don't think as proactively as we should. We are very reactive to things, and in the long-run I think spent too much money.
Also I believe that like other things, personalities and egos get in the way for what is best for the country. This includes elected officials all the way down to the private at times.
We could really save on certain things but of course we don't want to save in the location where a senior Congressperson doesn't want to lose the jobs. So stuff like this I think in the long-run only hurts us.
Also I believe that like other things, personalities and egos get in the way for what is best for the country. This includes elected officials all the way down to the private at times.
We could really save on certain things but of course we don't want to save in the location where a senior Congressperson doesn't want to lose the jobs. So stuff like this I think in the long-run only hurts us.
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