The Differences Between a Commissioned & Non-Commissioned Officer in the Army

Officers: Good for overthinking simple things. LOVE powerpoint. LOVE to have meetings for the sake of having a meeting for the next meeting no one has ever heard of. The "Good Idea Fairy" was an Officer. Not allowed to have a stache. Know how to eat with the proper utensils. LOVE to write regulations that are about as vague as 50 shades of grey. Actually thing they run things. Forget to brief 2LT's and 1LT's that 1SG and the CSM run everything, yet sit back and laugh when they "try" to correct either of them based off their "expert opinion" after only three days in the unit. LOVE OPORDS. Like to think they're running things in the field. CANNOT tell a joke let alone a dirty one. Get their uniforms from Marlow White. Like the ideal of company runs on Friday to build esprit de corps. Doesn't understand no one like em.
Warrant Officers...Special Breed of officers. Know what's it like to be a NCO, and understand how they feel yet they are officers and get to shake their heads at some of the ignorant mess JO's come up with, they do that to senior officers too. Have taken everything they learned while in the E4 Mafia and took it to the next level...23423332 billion levels up. Good luck finding a Warrant who doesn't want to be found (he's looking at you now, and you have no idea). Warrants like NCO's understand the purpose of "scrounging". Got a missing part on your vehicle? Not anymore. Someone ELSE is suddenly missing a part to THEIR vehicle. Warrants are the ONLY officers who can sit and laugh with the CSM/SGM and not get looked at stupidly. Warrants are technical minded. There is nothing they can't sort out, fix, or instruct a Joe or Jane to fix. A CW5, *hallowed by thy name) is one rung short of the holy Trinity. Not even a four star will mess with a CW5. NO ONE messes with a CW5, and they're the ONLY rank allowed to walk on the grass.
NCO's. where the shit hits the fan. We're charged with training snot nosed JO's to be future leaders even when we have our hands around their necks. We take those silly written regs and make sense to them and pass it down to the troops. We're the trainers who do train, and see no need for meetings or powerpoint to get the point across. We eat with hands and feet if necessary. We are feared worldwide for our lack of humor, constant carrying of strong coffee in very large mugs...black. We are also known for penchant for grass (walk on it if you dare). We are anal retentive. No other job in the world will make you blow a gasket if the vehicles aren't online. NCO's don't sleep. Their minds are always thinking of who's on CB, Staff Duty, on detail, in trouble, waiting on that 0230 phone call from the MP's, and countless other items that while our eyes are closed, we're still on duty. We're the ones who instill in our kids, walking with your left foot first, making sure your gigline is correct, no wrinkles in your clothes, and that your tennis shoes are clean. We make volleyball pits look good, so we train out Soldiers on proper ways to maintain them while low crawling in them. We can be 50 miles away from the nearest officer and will begin to have convulsions once we feel a disturbance in the force with them actually thinking. We much prefer officers to do what we tell them to and take the credit when it's done. We've been overseeing extra duty since 1775, and it won't start tomorrow. We HATE mando training, but since some officer thought it was a great idea to do it, we're stuck with it. And the bottom line with NCO's if you want it taught, QA/QC's, broken down into crayon terms, destroyed with a smile, a hill or piece of land taken, your Soldiers properly cared for, and someone who can handle things at the lowest level....CALL A NCO!! NO ONE IS MORE PROFESSIONAL THAN US!!

Thanks for sharing SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL. While commissioned officers outrank all non-commissioned officers. Those of us who have served as commissioned officer understand the dynamics of the commissioned officer and NCO working relationship as an integrated team when it is functioning properly.

SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL, great post, very informative, but don't forget about us......the Chief Warrant Officer.

"The Army Warrant Officer (WO) is a self–aware and adaptive technical expert, combat leader, trainer, and advisor. Through progressive levels of expertise in assignments, training, and education, the WO administers, manages, maintains, operates, and integrates Army systems and equipment across the full spectrum of Army operations. Warrant officers are competent and confident warriors, innovative integrators of emerging technologies, dynamic teachers, and developers of specialized teams of soldiers. They support a wide range of Army missions throughout their career. Warrant officers in the Army are accessed with specific levels of technical ability. They refine their technical expertise and develop their leadership and management skills through tiered progressive assignments and education."

“Warrant officers possess a high degree of specialization in a particular field in contrast to the more general assignment pattern of other commissioned officers. Warrant officers command aircraft, maritime vessels, special units, and task organized operational elements. In a wide variety of units and headquarters specialties, warrant officers provide quality advice, counsel, and solutions to support their unit or organization. They operate, maintain, administer, and manage the Army‘s equipment, support activities, and technical systems. Their extensive professional experience and technical knowledge qualifies warrant officers as invaluable role models and mentors for junior officers and NCOs.”

Warrant officers must be technically and tactically focused and able to perform the primary duties of technical leader, advisor, and commander. Through progressive levels of expertise in assignments, training, and education, warrant officers perform these duties during all operations and at all levels of command. While their primary duties are those of a technical and tactical leader, warrant officers also provide training and leader development guidance, assistance, and supervision. Warrant officers provide leader development, mentorship, and counsel to other warrant officers, officers, NCOs, and Army civilians. Warrant officers lead and train functional sections, teams, or crews. Finally, they serve as critical advisors to commanders in conducting organizational training.

The Army warrant officer corps is comprised of over 25,000 men and women of the active Army and reserve components. Warrant officers are technical experts that manage and maintain increasingly complex battlefield systems. They enhance the Army's ability to defend our national interests, and to fight and win our nations wars. Candidates who successfully complete Warrant Officer Candidate School are appointed in the grade of Warrant Officer One. When promoted to Chief Warrant Officer Two, warrant officers are commissioned by the President and have the same legal status as their traditional commissioned officer counterparts. However, warrant officers remain single-specialty officers whose career track is oriented towards progressing within their career field rather than focusing on increased levels of command and staff duty positions.