New Army video gives NCOs inside look at promotion boards

If you’ve ever wondered what goes on during a promotion selection board or if the system is rigged, the Army has just the video for you.

A new interactive training video launched Thursday gives noncommissioned officers first-hand insight into what goes into selecting soldiers for that next higher rank.

“This immerses the noncommissioned officers into the process as if they are doing it,” said Sergeant Major of the Army Dan Dailey. “It really shows you how boards are conducted and how important board guidance is.”

The training, which focuses on centralized selection boards, also allows soldiers to act as if they’re a board member and vote on mock promotion packets, Dailey said.

“With all the misperceptions about what happens during promotion boards, this goes a step beyond that and puts you in the environment of being a board member,” Dailey said. “You actually will vote on mock packets, just like a board member would, to show you exactly the process and how it works and answers all your questions.”
The Army — led by the G-1 (personnel) and Human Resources Command — has been working on this training for about seven months, said Master Sgt. Tamika DeVeaux-Wallace, the senior enlisted soldier for the Department of the Army Secretariat, which is responsible for active Army and Active Guard and Reserve senior enlisted and officer selection boards.

The Enlisted Mock Board comes about one year after the Army released similar training for officer selection boards, DeVeaux-Wallace said. The Army waited to release the NCO version, which is 49 minutes, until after it introduced the new NCO Evaluation Report, she said
The Army — led by the G-1 (personnel) and Human Resources Command — has been working on this training for about seven months, said Master Sgt. Tamika DeVeaux-Wallace, the senior enlisted soldier for the Department of the Army Secretariat, which is responsible for active Army and Active Guard and Reserve senior enlisted and officer selection boards.

The Enlisted Mock Board comes about one year after the Army released similar training for officer selection boards, DeVeaux-Wallace said. The Army waited to release the NCO version, which is 49 minutes, until after it introduced the new NCO Evaluation Report, she said
The training video covers selection boards for sergeant first class, master sergeant, sergeant major and nominative sergeant major positions.

There are many misconceptions about how the selection boards work, DeVeaux-Wallace said.

Some soldiers think it’s OK for board members to talk during the selection board process, she said. In reality, they’re not authorized to talk or discuss individual soldier files. They can only discuss the guidelines they must follow, as outlined in Army Pamphlet 600-25.

Still other soldiers think board members only view a soldier’s last five evaluations, DeVeaux-Wallace said. In reality, they are authorized to view all of them.
It’s natural for soldiers to have questions about the selection board process, Dailey said.

“It’s a very, very serious process,” Dailey said about selection boards. “This is an opportunity to show [soldiers], to be very transparent on how the process works.”

The training video walks soldiers through the entire selection process, “everything down to what the room looks like, how [board members] are viewing the packets, how many packets they view a day, what they have to view in the packets, what’s a requirement, what can they see in the records, what can’t they see,” Dailey said.

At the end of the training video, soldiers get to vote on mock packets.

“This is going to open a lot of NCOs’ eyes to the process and how fair the process is,” Dailey said. “It’s immersing them in that environment. That’s what’s key to this."
The goal is for this training video to quell some of the misconceptions while better preparing soldiers for promotion, DeVeaux-Wallace said.

“Most importantly, we’re hoping that soldiers will gather what they need to make themselves a little more successful and enhance their knowledge in the selection board process,” she said. “Soldiers have always been taught how to prepare for their board, like updating their enlisted record brief, updating their [Army] photo, being within weight regulations, doing well on PT. This video shows why all these things are important in the promotion selection process.”

Soldiers will not be required to watch the training video, Dailey said. Instead, it will be sent to senior NCOs to be incorporated into NCO professional development.

“I’d rather have them seek it out themselves than mandate it,” Dailey said. “I want NCOs to want to learn this for themselves. They’ll retain it much longer and better.”

To watch the training video and download training aids, visit the HRC site here and click on "Enlisted Mock Board Video" and "Enlisted Mock Board Video Training Aids" under the "Board Preparation" section. To view the video directly, go here.