Broadening Experiences Builds Strategic Readiness

Broadening Experiences Builds Strategic Readiness

By Col. Gregory S. Johnson, Director, Officer Personnel Management Directorate, U.S. Army Human Resources Command

Tactical readiness building and maintaining manning levels in our operational units is a core task for the Officer Professional Management Directorate (OPMD) and the Army’s Human Resources Command (HRC). Focusing on distribution and execution of the marketplace for Officers and Non-Commissioned Officers to achieve Army Manning Guidance thresholds is a daily event and one of our primary responsibilities.

This focus however, cannot overshadow the critical task that HRC has on shaping the Officer Corps’ strategic skills, experiences and knowledge development. Strategic readiness building is also a core task of HRC and it doubles as a powerful retention tool, helping to keep our most talented in the Army.

We are in a war for talent, but we are also in a race with our near-peer competitors and adversaries in the development of skills that are more technologically based and that fit into the multi-domain operating construct. The future battlefield we will participate on will be very different than what we have seen in the past. New technologies and capabilities are emerging rapidly. One only needs to look at operations in Ukraine to see a shifting environment that is more information and technology dependent where the ability to make rapid decisions requires new talents and skills to foster success.

The complexity of running our enterprise systems is also of special note when building strategic skills. We must facilitate experiences that broaden strategic skills and prepare officers for the Title X readiness and manning functions of the Army and for running the Army enterprise. The development of these skills is strategic in nature, and will shape our Army’s readiness over the next century.

There are other strategic skill sets that are beyond technology. Those include how to lead from the tactical to enterprise level. Critical to these skills are creating experiences that expose our officers to different organizations, stakeholders and processes that impact how our Army runs within the context of our nation’s congressional budgeting and legislation cycles, and the competition for resources. Joint positions also provide a different experience and are critical to enhancing our effectiveness as Joint Warfighters.

       The Broadening Opportunities Catalogue on the HRC website includes many programs that shape and impact strategic readiness skills building. These programs generally link a graduate degree and a follow-on utilization assignment, exposing officers to experiences that are different than the operational Army. Examples include:

·       Army Futures Command, Artificial Intelligence Scholar Program

·       Army Congressional Fellowship

·       Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies Fellowship

·       Interagency Broadening Fellowship

·       General (R) Wayne A. Downing Scholarship

·       Harvard Strategist Program

·       George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies Fellowship

·       JCS/OSD/ARSTAF Internship

·       Maj. Gen. James M. Wright MBA Program

·       Cyber Program

·       Functional Area Programs

       Graduate degree producing education programs also shape the strategic skills development of Army officers. Examples of these programs are:

·       Performance Based Graduate School Incentive Program

·       Visited States Military Academy Instructor Program

·       Federal Law Enforcement/Judge Advocate General Accessions Program

·       Foreign Area Officer Program

       The intent of these strategic broadening programs is simple! Build critical skill sets that boost our strategic readiness for the Army. We must continue to prioritize these experiences while simultaneously building tactical readiness in our operational force. Tricky to juggle but doable and necessary.

We also should review these programs and continue to iterate and expand them in order to meet the strategic outcomes the Army wants. Strategic skills development is just as important a core task for HRC and we must focus on it.

              Interested officer should reach out to their career managers at HRC.

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Col. Johnson is a career Army Adjutant General Corps Officer. He was a Distinguished Military Graduate of the University of San Francisco, earning a Bachelor of Arts in United States History. He also holds a master’s degree from the United States Army War College, a master’s degree of Policy Management from Georgetown’s Public Policy Institute, and a master’s degree in Education from the University of Oklahoma.


Rebecca Kitto

Dedicated Case Management

2y

Some valuable insight. Can you also highlight RPMD at some point? I understand their side is quite interesting.

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