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I was told that when you have a good NCO, he or she is asked to go become an officer. on the same hand when you meet a good officer they are asked "what NCO trained you?" When I came into the Army people would say "keep it up and you'll be te next SMA!" Given it was far fetched and rhetorical, it was something to aspire to become. Are senior NCOs still regarded as the image of competence and the most knowledgable people in the unit? Or have they become glorified baby sitters and grounds keepers? #GetOffMyGrass
Green to Gold
Competence
Legacy
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 6
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During a time when only the rich, well endowed citizens were chosen to become officers, being picked out of the ranks to become an officer was of the highest honors.
Centuries later, th Army has changed! No longer do we give a silver dollar to the stellar NCO who teaches us and mentors us as an officer, which was a substantial amount of money back in its hay day, we give a coin that is a silver dollar to the person who renders our first salute, to honor the age old tradition. Ask any officer if they gave a silver dollar, 99.9% will say yes. Ask any officer if they gave an NCO who mentored them $1,000. You get the idea.
The changes the country and our military has made does change the dynamic between us. No longer are lower enlisted uneducated soldiers, there are times when the lower enlisted have more civilian qualifications than their leadership. To be "chosen" to become an officer is just a piece of paper and a school away, not just being an exemplary soldier that is highly proficient.
Senior NCO's in the Army are held to a different expectation, not standard. While officers are judged by their demeanor, how many degrees they have, and how well they treat others, senior NCO's are judged by how hard they work for their subordinates and how high they hold up the military standards.
More to the point of your question, recruiting officers out of the enlisted ranks is still a great place to build our military. It is just another way to utilize and hone the skills of a soldier than has the opportunity to serve in a different capacity.
Centuries later, th Army has changed! No longer do we give a silver dollar to the stellar NCO who teaches us and mentors us as an officer, which was a substantial amount of money back in its hay day, we give a coin that is a silver dollar to the person who renders our first salute, to honor the age old tradition. Ask any officer if they gave a silver dollar, 99.9% will say yes. Ask any officer if they gave an NCO who mentored them $1,000. You get the idea.
The changes the country and our military has made does change the dynamic between us. No longer are lower enlisted uneducated soldiers, there are times when the lower enlisted have more civilian qualifications than their leadership. To be "chosen" to become an officer is just a piece of paper and a school away, not just being an exemplary soldier that is highly proficient.
Senior NCO's in the Army are held to a different expectation, not standard. While officers are judged by their demeanor, how many degrees they have, and how well they treat others, senior NCO's are judged by how hard they work for their subordinates and how high they hold up the military standards.
More to the point of your question, recruiting officers out of the enlisted ranks is still a great place to build our military. It is just another way to utilize and hone the skills of a soldier than has the opportunity to serve in a different capacity.
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SFC (Join to see)
CW2 Brooks, great reference! Your explanation provided a lot of insight and highlighted the reality of today's Army. We have tons of degree holding NCOs that continue to serve and mentor in a elite capacity. Thanks for your awesome input.
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As someone that has been on both sides, NCO and Officer, this is my take:
We don't need to recruit the best NCOs to be officers. The best NCOs usually, but don't always, have the right skills to be an officer. Officers have different responsibilities, and the skills that are necessary to be a good officer are different than those to be a good NCO.
The are some great NCOs that are just that, great NCOs. However, they would be miserable stuck behind a desk doing training schedules, meetings, and safety forms all day. They would hate the paperwork and planning that is often required of officers. The NEED to be out there with the troops training and teaching. They would be especially miserable as a junior Major, I would imagine.
It's not that most NCOs don't have the intelligence, knowledge, skill, etc. to be good officers, they are just better at taking care of NCO business.
From my experience, most of my NCO time was spent with soldiers. While I did do staff work, even that time was spent more with the soldiers in my staff section executing the mission rather than planning. During my time as an officer, I spent mush more time meeting and planning than I did as an NCO.
In the end, great NCOs are crucial to the success of the Military. Most of the NCOs I worked with were intelligent, educated, and professional. Nearly all of them could have been great officers, but it might have killed their enthusiasm and they would have been miserable.
We don't need to recruit the best NCOs to be officers. The best NCOs usually, but don't always, have the right skills to be an officer. Officers have different responsibilities, and the skills that are necessary to be a good officer are different than those to be a good NCO.
The are some great NCOs that are just that, great NCOs. However, they would be miserable stuck behind a desk doing training schedules, meetings, and safety forms all day. They would hate the paperwork and planning that is often required of officers. The NEED to be out there with the troops training and teaching. They would be especially miserable as a junior Major, I would imagine.
It's not that most NCOs don't have the intelligence, knowledge, skill, etc. to be good officers, they are just better at taking care of NCO business.
From my experience, most of my NCO time was spent with soldiers. While I did do staff work, even that time was spent more with the soldiers in my staff section executing the mission rather than planning. During my time as an officer, I spent mush more time meeting and planning than I did as an NCO.
In the end, great NCOs are crucial to the success of the Military. Most of the NCOs I worked with were intelligent, educated, and professional. Nearly all of them could have been great officers, but it might have killed their enthusiasm and they would have been miserable.
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Absolutely NCOs are in high regard. I credit my success as an officer to the NCOs I had riding shotgun with me. Its a team effort - Os as the managers, NCOs as the supervisors. Not all supervisors will choose to become managers, that is the difference between good NCOs that choose to become Os or stay as NCOs.
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SFC (Join to see)
That's an awesome perspective! A great point to see it from, one I never really thought about. Thanks
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