NOVEMBER 23, 2021 – In 2015, the Army determined it needed to create a specific strategy to set the standards of right and wrong within the noncommissioned officers corps. With this need, the NCO Corps created the NCO Strategy.
Six years after the first NCO Strategy was released, the NCO Corps revised the document to make it a better aligned, enduring, and adaptable strategy that will guide the Army into the future.
“It was created with the Army’s greatest strength and most important weapons system in mind; its people,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Daniel Hendrex, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command.
The NCO Strategy needed a design improvement to allow it to better adapt with the ever-changing needs of the Army.
When it came to making edit, the NCO Corps worked alongside Army leaders to ensure the changes continue to reflect Army Values and NCO Common Core Competencies.
“This newly modified strategy shows what an NCO must BE, KNOW, and DO to compete and win in multi-domain environments,” Hendrex said.
It was revamped to reach its new goal; building cohesive teams that are highly trained, disciplined, and fit; that are ready to fight and win; and where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.
“A staff sergeant in the Army can read this new NCO Strategy, understand it, and know what it means for them and their squad,” Hendrex said. “It will mean something to NCOs now and in the future.”
The main focuses of the strategy include how NCOs can create disciplined teams by enforcing standards based on Army Values, and how NCOs can build physically fit Soldiers by identifying stressors providing their units with the skills to overcome them.
To provide NCOs with the framework of how to do this, the “This is My Squad” initiative, which aims to cultivate an environment in which Soldiers can train and grow with their squad, was added to the strategy. NCOs are responsible for the implementation of TiMS which enhances learning, and technological tools that they can use to adequately plan, authorize, and support their missions.
“NCOs will gain and maintain a Soldier’s lifelong trust and commitment with their honesty and accountability,” Hendrex said.
Another addition to the new strategy is how NCOs will develop Soldier’s for Life, by preparing Soldiers and helping them transition from military service to the civilian sector.
The changes to the NCO Strategy will allow the Army to create Soldiers who are mentally, physically, and socially connected, and capable of competing, fighting, and winning in multi-domain operations.
This upgrade was announced during the Initiative Briefing at the Association of the United States Army 2021 Annual Meeting and Exposition, by the Sergeant Major of the Army, Michael A. Grinston.
Read the full strategy here: https://www.armyupress.army.mil/Portals/7/nco-journal/images/2020/October/NCO-Strategy/NCO-Strategy.pdf
Story by Cierra Clark
U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command