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APPENDIX B

LEADER DEVELOPMENT

This appendix illustrates how a unit's leader development program might
be structured. It also contains information on the leader book.

UNIT LEADER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

The unit leader development program consists of three phases: reception and integration, basic skills development, and advanced development and sustainment. The commander determines subordinate leaders' developmental needs and begins unit-related development training during the reception and integration phase.

For noncommissioned officers, the CSM and 1SG are key players in the reception and integration phase. Prior to arrival of new leaders, the commander or key NCOs review the Officer Record Brief (ORB) or the Enlisted Record Brief (ERB) and DA Form 2-1, Personnel Qualification Record-Part II. The commander or CSM interviews the new leader as soon as he arrives to clearly define his training needs. They discuss the leader's--

• Assigned duty position.

• Previous experience and training.

• Personal desires.

• Possible future assignments.

In addition to the records review and interview, a diagnostic test may be used to identify the new leader's school qualifications, and training strengths and weaknesses. The information gathered during the reception and integration phase is used to design a formal developmental program tailored to the individual leader's needs.

After the interview with the commander or CSM, the leader receives his unit orientation and his leader development program. He receives introductions to and briefings by the unit's key personnel. He also receives instruction in the profession of arms and in the unit's history, traditions, and mission. He is made to feel welcome and a vital part of the unit.

The leader then progresses to the second phase of the program, the basic skills development phase. This phase occurs within the first few months. It ensures that the new leader attains a minimum acceptable level of proficiency in the critical tasks necessary to perform his mission. The responsibility for this phase lies with his leader, assisted by the other key officers and noncommissioned officers.

The last phase is the advanced development and sustainment phase. This phase involves sustaining those tasks already mastered and developing proficiency in new tasks. The commander uses additional duty assignments, technical courses, and developmental courses to broaden the leader's perspective and skills for current and future duties. Training and duty in special emphasis areas, such as the arms room, maintenance, and supply, help the leader to prepare for future assignments. Also during this phase, the leader starts a self-development program consisting of professional reading and correspondence courses. The self development program focuses on those skills that the leader needs or desires to develop. It is designed with the assistance of the commander or CSM and 1SG.

Future assignments are important in a leader's development program. The commander uses assignments to provide junior leaders with the experience required for professional and personal development. To maximize leader development in subordinates, the commander should--

• Assign missions and tasks that challenge without overwhelming.

• Move subordinate leaders into positions of increased responsibility as they demonstrate their capability.

• Base reassignment on their level of development.

• Supervise and mentor their development.

The commander should know his leaders so well that he can identify when they have mastered their current assignment responsibilities and either increase their responsibilities, expose them to developmental activities, or move them to positions of greater responsibility if appropriate.

Each commander's leader development program will be unique. To be most effective, the commander must continually listen to, understand, challenge, and mentor junior leaders. The quality of the program and results obtained depend on the commander and his emphasis on the program. The following example shows a unit's leader development program.

The S1, 1st FSB, notified the commander and the CSM that 2LT Wright and SSG Snow were being assigned to the battalion. Sponsors were assigned to assist them in their transition. The sponsors sent welcome packets to 2LT Wright and SSG Snow which included information on the unit's physical fitness program and leader development program.

The battalion commander reviewed their records. He discussed the lieutenant's assignment with the S1 and the staff sergeant's assignment with the CSM and S1. The commander decided to assign the staff sergeant as the Automotive Repair Section Sergeant and the lieutenant as the Ground Support Equipment Platoon Leader.

When the lieutenant arrived, the battalion commander interviewed him. He told 2LT Wright that all assignments are important and vital to the success of the unit's mission. The key to his professional development is not only which jobs he is holding, but also how well he learns and performs the duties he is assigned.

The battalion commander told 2LT Wright that he was assigning him as a platoon leader so that he could gain experience leading soldiers. That assignment also would help him learn the basics of maintenance operations. He could then be assigned as the shop officer of the Maintenance Company, with a possible follow on assignment to the Maintenance Operations Section, Forward Support Battalion. The battalion commander explained that these assignments would provide an excellent foundation for his future utilization as an ordnance officer. He also explained the battalion's leader development program and how it was molded to fit him.

The commander and CSM interviewed SSG Snow later that day. The commander told the sergeant that she was being initially assigned as the Automotive Repair Section Sergeant. In six months, the current platoon sergeant was departing and SSG Snow might be assigned to that position. SSG Snow said she hoped to be selected to attend Advanced Noncommissioned Officers' Course (ANCOC) within the next eighteen months. The CSM told SSG Snow that if she did attend ANCOC she would be assigned to a new duty position upon her return. Support Operations Section NCOIC might be a possibility. Assignment to the Division Material Management Center was also a possibility prior to SSG Snow departing the division.

After leaving the commander's office, SSG Snow received detailed information from the battalion CSM about the battalion and its leader development program. The CSM provided SSG Snow with a packet describing the unit's history and traditions, the battalion's structure, and the key leaders within the battalion. Lieutenant Wright also received a similar packet from the battalion commander.

Also during the reception and integration phase, 2LT Wright and SSG Snow participated in the following:

• A tour of all unit facilities including billets, motor pool, arms room, NBC room, and dining facility.

• A tour of the division area including the division museum.

• Information briefings provided by each battalion staff section.

The Bravo Company commander provided 2LT Wright with a copy of the battalion's basic skills development program for platoon leaders. The program was based upon the company's METL and focused on leader tasks associated with the Ground Support Equipment Platoon. Within 60 days of assignment, 2LT Wright would have to demonstrate a thorough knowledge of the platoon's wartime mission and proficiency in mission essential tasks. These tasks might include Conduct a Tactical Road March, Prepare Unit Status Report, Supervise PMCS, Check Open Job Orders and Repair Part Requisitions, and Plan DS Maintenance Workload.

SSG Snow was assessed as having the basic skills necessary to perform her assigned duties; therefore, she was entered directly into the advanced proficiency and sustainment phase of the leader development program. To prepare herself for duty positions in different types of units, SSG Snow decided to learn more about supply operations. The CSM and 1SG worked with SSG Snow to identify correspondence courses and other professional development tools that would expand her knowledge of CSS operations.

After 2LT Wright had begun the basic skills phase, the battalion commander met with him and discussed his continued development. The commander pointed out that the MQS II common and branch guides define those skills required prior to his attending Officer Advanced Course. He explained to 2LT Wright that he was personally responsible for acquiring these skills either through his branch or functional area schooling, the unit leader development program, or his self-development program. The commander further encouraged him to develop a better understanding of CSS operations by reading professional books, magazines, and bulletins. In addition, the commander emphasized broadening his awareness of Army organizations, combat operations, and military history. He provided a list of books which he wanted 2LT Wright to read.

Concurrently, 2LT Wright and SSG Snow were integrated into the unit's ongoing advanced and sustainment phase. This phase focused on the unit's METL-based tasks which are linked to the unit training plan. In four months, the battalion will be going to the National Training Center (NTC) to support the 1st Brigade. Hence, 2LT Wright's training was accelerated on SOPs and doctrine and tactics. To better prepare himself for the NTC, 2LT Wright also learned each leader's role in executing the battalion mission. SSG Snow was involved in similar training at company level under the supervision of the company commander and 1SG.

The commander wanted 2LT Wright and SSG Snow to become familiar with the needs of the customers they serve. He directed the S3 to coordinate their spending time with key combat arms, CS, and CSS organizations supported by the battalion. For example, 2LT Wright and SSG Snow visited the Division Material Management Center; the DISCOM Security, Plans, and Operations Section; the Main Support Battalion; and selected corps support command (COSCOM) organizations. These visits assisted the leaders in understanding the CSS system and its capabilities. The leaders also spent time with a mechanized infantry battalion and an armor battalion from the brigade that the 1st FSB supports. This orientation was a key part of the leader training program. It provided the leaders with insights into the requirements and support of the supported combat arms units. Most important, it provided the leaders the opportunity to meet face to face those they support and those who support them.

LEADER BOOK

Leaders are responsible for identifying and training essential soldier tasks that support the unit's mission essential collective tasks. To ensure soldiers are trained on their critical tasks, leaders must fully understand the unit's collective tasks and how soldier tasks are planned, trained, and evaluated to support their accomplishment. Because of limited training resources and time, soldiers normally cannot train on and reasonably sustain every task. Therefore, leaders must use the battle focus process to refine the list to mission-related soldier tasks essential to the soldier's duty position and responsibilities. A tool to aid in this process is the leader book.

Leaders record in the leader book information addressing administrative data, common tasks, skill qualification assessment, and specific collective tasks which support the unit's METL. They also record personal information that affects soldiers' training performance and that leaders need to know to provide training which meets their soldiers' personal needs. The information recorded is tailored to meet each unit's specific needs. An example of one way to record administrative and basic soldier information, using SATS, is at Figure B-1. Units should develop and use their own format based upon desired information.

The information can be in any format the leader chooses. A small, pocket-sized memo book or a full-sized multipage notebook can be used. The bottom line is that leaders should have a way of recording information. The information is invaluable to the leaders as they--

• Track and evaluate their soldiers' training status and proficiency on essential soldier tasks.

• Provide administrative input to the chain of command on proficiency of their units; for example, platoon, section, squad, team, or crew.

• Conduct soldier performance counseling.

Leaders list in the leader book the common tasks found in the Soldier's Manual of Common Tasks that support the METL. They track soldier proficiency on these selected tasks. They may also record the results of Army soldier training requirements, such as marksmanship, APFT, and UCOFT.

Leaders should record MOS-specific tasks which support the METL and annotate evaluation results. They can quickly identify weaknesses and plan and conduct training to improve proficiency.

The leader book should contain only collective tasks and drills required to support the METL. Section, squad, and crew collective tasks and drills are derived from applicable MTPs. Units without a published MTP will have to examine each company METL task, determine which collective tasks and drills support it, and enter those tasks in the leader book.

For each task listed in the leader book, soldiers first need to be trained and then evaluated to determine if they can actually perform the task. Leaders may perform either a formal or an informal evaluation; however, they should always adhere to the performance standards contained in the appropriate soldier's manual, the Soldier's Manual for Common Tasks, and applicable MTPs. Once the leader determines the proficiency of a squad, team, crew, or soldier, he should record the date of the evaluation as go/no-go opposite the task (as in Figure B-1).

The leader book should not be inspected. Leaders need to refer to it when talking about the proficiency of their soldiers and units. The CSM and lSGs must teach and mentor NCOs on the importance and use of the leader book. This should be done as a part of leader development.

A leader may use information in the leader book to provide input on his unit during daily "huddles" and company training meetings. For example, if three of five squad members cannot perform "Practice Preventive Medicine" to standard, the squad leader may want to train this task during the next available training period. Some units devote blocks of time for soldier training. In such units, the leader book is an excellent tool to determine what tasks to train during those periods.

Figure B-1. Example administrative soldier information.

Figure B-1 (continued).

Leaders may use the information in the leader book during soldier performance counseling to quickly identify the tasks or group of tasks soldiers are having difficulty mastering. This helps the leader decide what to tell each soldier about how to improve his performance. For example, leaders can use this information in conjunction with DA Form 2166-7, Noncommissioned Officer Evaluation Report (NCO-ER), to provide specific bullet examples for parts III, IV, and V.

Demonstrated performance determines training effectiveness. The leader book is a handy record of how well soldiers and elements have performed tasks. For example, when a platoon leader or platoon sergeant and a squad leader are discussing the training proficiency of the squad or soldiers in the squad, they should have the book available as a reference. The leader book helps them determine which tasks need to be trained.