A Cold Warrior's Rant...

[Albany Rifles]

The Army of today is flat ass broken. We have forgotten how to do basic staff coordination. While I may be a DA civilian I still serve in the capacity of a staff officer. I manage a staff of 38 personnel (26 government 12/13 and 12 contractors) as part of an overall organization of approximately 125 personnel core to the organization. This excludes the lead contractor for our product and matrix support areas for support.

These 125 folks are divided into 4 divisions…one of which is the one I am an in. My branch is half of my division, which is half of the entire organization. We plan, coordinate, resource and manage fielding of our system to Army units both tactical and fixed base to the Active Army, Army Reserve and National Guard. Almost my entire workforce is retired senior logistics noncommissioned officers and warrant officers with a smattering of one or two commissioned officers. So you would think we would have our act together.

And I have to ask….who broke my Army? Every day and across the board I see multiple examples of plain shitty or nonexistent staff work. E-mail kills initiative and coordination. VTCs foster over interference by higher headquarters on units which are actually doing things. Large command headquarters are bloated with too many people with not enough to do. Not a day goes by that I do not get a query from the DA staff on something…which I blissfully ignore.

So here is my question….am I just a Cold War dinosaur, stuck in how we did staff operations in the 1980s, when we had huge formations, where junior officers and NCOs manned TOCs and managed battle formations from battalion task force through division, and everyone knew what was going on because we worked a plan and rehearsed it and made it work and I can’t adjust to this Net Centric, everyone is connected but no one does anything, “I sent an email” is the response to “Did you talk to him/them?” and we just make it up as we go along and I don’t need to coordinate anymore type of operations?

Or have we raised a generation of staff personnel who cannot follow the staff planning process to save their life, have no clue about doctrine and if it’s on a PowerPoint its true and gospel?

Because if that’s what we have become bring back the Cold War, leisure suit BDUs, end-to-end rotations at Graf & Hohenfels and USAREUR being the 7th US Army and not just a HQ with 2 brigades.

Maybe Putin will do us a favor….

[S2]

Think he already has.

Need to shoot, move and communicate and let everything else fall into place behind those core functions.

People have sorta forgotten what an army actually does.

Time to re-learn what we've worked so hard to forget.

[Albany Rifles]

Steve,

I hear ya!

I know it was impossible to fail CAS3, but I have to tell you, these folks would get bounced in the first week!

[Stitch]

I certainly can't speak to the military, but I see the same kind of thing happening in the corporate world, especially in my company; our upper management is getting more and more bloated, with fewer & fewer "Indians" at the bottom.

[Officer of Engineers]

I too have to shake my head at the Canadian Army re-org. We now have four divisions. We barely have enough men to man a single division. Why do we need four additional MGens and HQs is beyond me.

[Tamara]

What a read. I suppose it's the particular service but it was difficult to get the entire meaning.

Hard to say but to take an estimation of things, it might be that people take a look at things now and assume that such is as it has always been.

For example, one of the jobs I did in my short time in the Navy was being a Security Officer for a station's Captain. When I got there, the Navy's anti terrorism tasking was beginning and I had the job. Build and train (HtH, combat pistol, rifles, field first aid, personnel searching, etc) an ASF, put gate searches into effect, drill, show an active presence to the public view that we are not an easy target, we're alert, we question and investigate things, we aren't intimidated by negative reactions. Taught Rules of War to the enlisted (at that time, the definition of a terrorist was a criminal), brought in an EOD team to teach the station's watch section leaders about the device mechanics that might be involved in a bomb threat, and so forth.

Before that job, I was doing electronic warfare and intelligence (collaterial duty) which also involved writing up the lesson plans for another Captain to present to his crew about information security. The basic thing was that I read a lot and knew things in these areas that a lot of other officers didn't. For example, in a related area, during a CIC drill, the Tactical Action Officer started acting weird. He had taken my suggestion that the indication of a gas attack might be odd behavior because of LSD or other drugs being mixed in to confuse command personnel.........and added that to the drill.

Okay, that was back in the late 80's when the concept of terrorism affecting Americans was still unknown to most Americans (not to me, I had ARAMCO friends killed in the 70's)..........but these days, it is not so unknown, it seems like everyone has their own ideas about what to do, that antiterrorism means not making yourself a target and that's just common sense, and it's a pointless required exercise you have to do on a computer every year so often. (and if that is what it has become, then no wonder why we are screwed).

I don't talk about much these days, at least with non police types, of what I did back then because it is often degraded to the perceived level it is held at "today".

Why are people like that today, leaning back to the first post? I would say two reasons, short attention span and information overload. My world has been "here is the textbook; be up to speed in a week.". It is a skill that is very valuable to me.....and it is a skill that I suspect is rapidly disappearing in this world. Why? Perhaps because people expect things to come in videos now. Or that it should come out of a search engine and the complete answer should be in a second.

Secondly, our electronic world makes it very easy to send stuff.....any stuff. "I saw a funny picture of a bird and a cat and I think everyone should see it." "There are cookies in the break room." "What can we name the new golf cart?". "I am going to be 5 minute late, walking up now, sent from smartphone." With so many meaningless messages out there, sooner or later, people will miss other messages just from the load, if not due to intentionally skipping because either it is like the meaningless "social" stuff, or it is misaddressed, or the boss expects everyone to read all his messages.....but never says that. I've had bosses who have sent out scheduling messages, scheduling that didn't apply to me, but then put other data in those messages and then wonder why I didn't see it.

Perhaps, if it was slightly more difficult to send messages, we would be more concise in the information we put out. We would make our point.

Finally, one thing, in a different direction. Perhaps we should do training like how we did crashed helo on deck FF training. The instructor would grab the lead hose man, say "He's dead! Next man (in line) take over!".....and whittle down the line, getting into our minds that we all had to be ready to step into the next's boots.

[Stitch]

Tamara - I think you touched on something with the "information overload" comment; we are drowning in information, and 95% of it is meaningless. We're like the NSA where we are getting just WAY too much information to process in a timely manner. I hear stories of Twitter with people giving up-to-date, minute-by-minute commentary about what they're doing, even though it's totally meaningless. Really? Do you think I REALLY want to know exactly what you're doing (or not doing) at this exact instance? REALLY?!?!?!?!

Example: I try not to send too many e-mails to my boss because I know he's already overloaded with e-mails from everybody else (just like any other corporate middle manager), but there have been several times when he's missed my e-mail, or blown right past it in his queue, and then it's MY fault. How is that my fault? I know it's easier to blame the sender than admit you're wrong but, really? And most of that is due to information overload. That's part of the reason that, like Tamara, I stick to reading actual, physical books if I want to know something; 90% of the stuff I pull up on the internet is either crap, disinformation, totally meaningless, or all of the above (either that, or I'm TERRIBLE at searching for stuff!).

[Albany Rifles]

I think you touched on something with the "information overload" comment; we are drowning in information, and 95% of it is meaningless.

Stitch, then it is data not information.

Noise.

My complaint is not with the information sources sources.

Its the ability to make a cogent plan and execute said plan.

We seem lacking there.

[Tamara]

Well, things do change over time and for those of us who were there before, we probably often think not for the better.

Consider what "we" did that is not now forbidden to some degree. Can't drink, can't smoke, can't ride the jetskis in port, can't associate with hookers either. Of course, I'm not saying that I did all that, just that it is a much different place now.

Should that affect the managerial skills of the leaders? One would think not.........but maybe, just maybe, it does.

[Albany Rifles]

Sorry Tamara....you lost me.

What do behavioral standards have anything to do with proper staff work?

[Doktor]

I think you touched on something with the "information overload" comment; we are drowning in information, and 95% of it is meaningless.

Stitch, then it is data not information.

Noise.

My complaint is not with the information sources sources.

Its the ability to make a cogent plan and execute said plan.

We seem lacking there.

Desertswo agreed the NAVY has this issue of not many people enrolling there, let alone the best. If the same goes with the Army, you guys should think how to attract those.
That's wrt planning. For executing said plans remove the politically correct guys who keep lowering standards.

[Albany Rifles]

Desertswo agreed the NAVY has this issue of not many people enrolling there, let alone the best

Enrolling where?

Naval Postgrad School?

Naval War College?

You don't get to enroll, you are selected by central bopards for attendance at these schools.

In the Army we used to have a course for captains called Combined Arms Services Staff School.

It was held at FT Leavenworth, KS, and EVERY captain in the Army had to attend sometime between their 5th & 10th year of service. The 10 week course was all about the military decision making process. It trained you to operate as a primary staff officer at battalion or brigade and as an action officer on division and higher staffs. Small groups of 10 - 14 captains were thrown together with a senior major or lieutenant colonel as their mentor to work through problems using the staff planning process. There was also a robust voleyball program to help build a team atmosphere...and a damn good officers club.

Some people claimed it was a waste of time but most found it to be a very good use of their time. That 10 weeks formed a core competency in our officer corps where we could communicate with each other by using a common language. I had a nurse, 2 signal officers, an MP for class leader, ordnance, quartermaster, Special Forces, medical service, infantry, armor, aviation and judge advocate general officers in my group. Even though I went in my 9th year and I had already been a primary staff officer at battalion and brigade level and served in a division G3 & G4 it was still a good course for me.


Somewhere at the end of the Cold War the decision was made synthesize that course and tack it onto the Advanced Course. Bad move. The Advanced Course was all about teaching you to be a Company Commander...it was all about the tactics needed in a combined arms environment within a company/battalion task force.

It was a move based on funding...bad move.

A parrallel course were battle staff courses for NCOs and warrant offiers taught at the Sergeants' Major Academy at FT Bliss. Excellent course for those who could attend. Usually the folks who went were the ones in troop units and wanted to stay in troop units. Unfortunately there were and are too many opportunities for support warrants and NCOs to avoid troop units for large swaths of their careers...much to the detriment of tehir being effective staff personnel later.

[Tamara]

Sorry Tamara....you lost me.

What do behavioral standards have anything to do with proper staff work?

"The Harder You Let them Play, The Harder They will Fight".

[Doktor]

Desertswo agreed the NAVY has this issue of not many people enrolling there, let alone the best

Enrolling where?

Naval Postgrad School?

Naval War College?

You don't get to enroll, you are selected by central bopards for attendance at these schools.

Good Captain's exact words:

Naval officers practically have to be dragged kicking and screaming to the Naval War College, and then when they are there, they often put more effort into sailing and golf than academics.

In the Army we used to have a course for captains called Combined Arms Services Staff School.

It was held at FT Leavenworth, KS, and EVERY captain in the Army had to attend sometime between their 5th & 10th year of service. The 10 week course was all about the military decision making process. It trained you to operate as a primary staff officer at battalion or brigade and as an action officer on division and higher staffs. Small groups of 10 - 14 captains were thrown together with a senior major or lieutenant colonel as their mentor to work through problems using the staff planning process. There was also a robust voleyball program to help build a team atmosphere...and a damn good officers club.

Some people claimed it was a waste of time but most found it to be a very good use of their time. That 10 weeks formed a core competency in our officer corps where we could communicate with each other by using a common language. I had a nurse, 2 signal officers, an MP for class leader, ordnance, quartermaster, Special Forces, medical service, infantry, armor, aviation and judge advocate general officers in my group. Even though I went in my 9th year and I had already been a primary staff officer at battalion and brigade level and served in a division G3 & G4 it was still a good course for me.


Somewhere at the end of the Cold War the decision was made synthesize that course and tack it onto the Advanced Course. Bad move. The Advanced Course was all about teaching you to be a Company Commander...it was all about the tactics needed in a combined arms environment within a company/battalion task force.

It was a move based on funding...bad move.

A parrallel course were battle staff courses for NCOs and warrant offiers taught at the Sergeants' Major Academy at FT Bliss. Excellent course for those who could attend. Usually the folks who went were the ones in troop units and wanted to stay in troop units. Unfortunately there were and are too many opportunities for support warrants and NCOs to avoid troop units for large swaths of their careers...much to the detriment of tehir being effective staff personnel later.

So, in essence, you know what works and what doesn't work, now all you have to do is to make those with stars on the shoulders and few politicians make it happen. If they need incentives, make a chant "Putin, KJU, Mullahs...". And yell it loud. Very loud!

[lemontree]

Staff work - now imagine a Second Lieutenant officiating as the battalion Adjutant.
I did that for 2 weeks, and did'nt not realise that by day two my CO almost had a heart attack, because I would tell the Bde Major "No" for some flimsy request.
I was happier commanding my rifle company than minding the Ps and Qs....lol