• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Commanders and staff personnel have important responsibilities before, during, and after a deployment that determine the likely success of the unit's family readiness efforts. This chapter focuses on those responsibilities by examining the operations of successful Family Readiness Groups (FRGs) and rear detachment personnel from units participating in Operation JOINT GUARD, Operation JOINT FORGE, and Operation INTRINSIC ACTION.

Studies of leadership have shown that possibly the most important responsibility a commander has is to clearly articulate his intent. In one very successful unit, the commander stated his committment to family readiness and rear detachment operations well in advance of the unit's deployment to Bosnia. His plan was to "allow soldiers to focus on the mission by enabling their families to be self-sufficient." He laid out seven supporting objectives to support this plan:

• Educate and orient families before deployment
• Enhance communication flow and rumor control
• Execute professional assistance and crisis action referral
• Provide emotional and spiritual support
• Continue sponsorship for new soldiers and families
• Keep single-soldier families informed
• Maintain facility, equipment, and personnel readiness

The commander sought to achieve these objectives by first preparing a thorough review of U.S. Army Europe (USAREUR) research on the subject, including the USAREUR Rear Detachment Commander and Family Support Liaison Course, the USAREUR Crisis Communication Handbook, and the USAREUR and 7th ATC Family Redeployment Readiness Plan. He further instructed his staff to compare the techniques employed in USAREUR to those in place at Home Station. He then had rear detachment commanders (RDCs), family readiness liaisons, and referral personnel from various installation agencies trained and certified in family readiness tasks and procedures.

The following topics should be addressed during preparations for deployment or, as a best course of action, routinely:

• Training
• Resourcing
• Command Awareness
• Predeployment Briefing
• Monitoring Activities and Caring
• Family Care Plans
• Soldier Finances
• Social Activities

Training and Preparation

Commanders should be aware of two important and different areas of training: the training and preparation of soldiers and their families, and the training and preparation of Family Readiness Groups (FRGs) and rear detachment personnel. Prior to a major deployment, personnel in Europe conducted situational training exercises designed to prepare them to effectively react to a variety of likely scenarios. The scenarios included spouses arriving at Home Station after soldiers had already deployed, children having difficulty adjusting to the soldier's absence, and a spouse not having food for themselves or their children. The deploying unit clearly identified a chain of command within the rear detachment. The commander specified the rank structure and composition for the brigade and battalion-level rear detachments, with a captain in charge at brigade level and a lieutenant in charge at battalion level. In each battalion-level rear detachment, the commander specified that the various staff sections be represented and include a variety of military specialists, such as a finance person, an armorer, and a mail clerk. The commander also identified FRG steering committees.

Resourcing of Family Readiness Centers

In one division-sized unit observed during Operation Joint GUARD/FORGE, the commander directed that DSN lines be installed in the homes of the brigade and battalion commanders deploying to the stabilization force (SFOR) to facilitate communication between the field and rear. The division also constructed a Family Readiness Center (FRC) where Soldier Readiness Preparation (SRP) tasks and family support tasks could be carried out. The FRC provided family members with email access, copy machines, printers, on-site child care, office space, and meeting areas. The commander directed that a Deputy Chief of Staff for Family Readiness be designated and that the FRC be staffed 24 hours per day, seven days a week. Finally, the commander established a Crisis Action Team, headed by the division rear chief of staff, which included the family readiness officer, the staff judge advocate, public affairs personnel, provost marshal personnel, and a chaplain. Family readiness training events were programmed into the training schedule. Overall, there was no question among personnel in Task Force Eagle that the command cared about their families and was taking significant steps to ensure their families were well cared for during the deployment.

Through careful family readiness planning, this commander was able to significantly improve his unit's effectiveness in the field during a lengthy deployment. His preparation for deployment, from the perspective of family support, was meticulously thought out, and his guidance was carefully and consistently implemented with excellent results.

It was noted in other units which had good family readiness programs that commanders enhanced unit family readiness activities by also making provisions for office space and other support for FRG personnel during a deployment. By providing workspace, copier access, telephones, and computer and printer access for the FRG during the period of the deployment, commanders enhanced the quality of the FRG effort. Additionally, access to these resources encouraged FRG personnel to be a visible presence within the unit area. These actions increased the likelihood of personal contact between the FRG and family members, and facilitated coordination between FRG leaders and rear detachment personnel.

Command Awareness

Senior commanders must maintain a careful watch over their subordinate commands' family support activities. When interviewed, some soldiers (both active and reserve component) assigned to Task Force Eagle in Bosnia indicated that company-level family support operations in their particular units were either mediocre or dysfunctional. In most cases, soldiers identified two common causes that led to FRG problems. Lack of command influence was a major problem. Frequently the unit commander appeared to have little interest in the family support portion of the operation. The second problem involved companies where the unit leadership had significant personnel issues which seriously impacted family support operations. In these cases, corrective action required vigilance on the part of battalion and higher-level commanders.

Higher-level commanders should be aware that disinterest on the part of a subordinate commander or personnel turmoil within the leadership of a subordinate command will invariably have a detrimental effect on the unit's family support operations. In those cases it may be necessary to step in and manage the unit's FRG operations to facilitate success.

Predeployment Briefing

Another method to show support for the family readiness program is for the commander to personally conduct predeployment briefings to both soldiers and family members. This sets the tone for family readiness and demonstrates the commander's commitment to soldiers and family members. The most effective commanders were those who took personal responsibility for the preparation, scheduling, and execution of predeployment briefings. One commander used a format in which he offered the "Top Ten List of Most Frequently Asked Questions" (number one question was, "When are they coming home?") as a means of engaging his audience and assuring them that their concerns were also his concerns. Another commander outlined the unit's schedule of activities upon arrival, showing pictures of the area of operations, and giving an unclassified analysis of the upcoming mission. Most briefings included brief participation by various installation support agencies, whose representatives outlined the resources and assistance available to soldiers and their families prior to and during the deployment.

Commanders at all levels are accustomed to individualized (unit) servicing by installation support agencies prior to deployment; however, most of these support agencies have experienced budget cuts and concurrent personnel reductions. At the same time, the pace and changes inherent in even routinely scheduled deployments have meant that commanders need some flexibility in their predeployment activities. As such, it has been the case that many units made last minute changes to their Family Readiness Group briefing schedules. Because some family members often have to miss work or make child care arrangements to attend FRG briefings, many were unable to attend the meetings due to the change. Some installation support agency briefers missed the meetings as well, which led to adverse consequences for the unit's family readiness efforts.

One remedy is for commanders to consider very carefully the impact on personnel before scheduling changes to predeployment briefings. When the situation allows, briefings should be scheduled well in advance with strict adherence to the timetable if possible. Additionally, if changes to scheduled briefings cannot be avoided, commanders should use the division G1 for installation agency scheduling, rather than contacting the support agencies directly. This helps prevent conflicts with other units over available resources.

Monitoring Activities and Caring

Another method a unit may use to enhance its Family Support Program is for the unit commander to track activities on the monthly Unit Status Report (USR) and include family readiness operations in the command information (CI) program. In addition to providing clear command guidance, the unit commander can demonstrate his commitment to family readiness through the inclusion of family readiness indicators in these activities. Additionally, the commander can track the viability of the FRGs through a detailed "Family Readiness Group Checklist" and a "Risk Reduction Program Checklist" as part of the unit CI program. The Family Readiness Group Checklist requires that each unit provide the soldier with a current phone tree, a copy of the unit FRG SOP, and a unit predeployment book. Additionally, the checklist identifies FRG office space, equipment access, and Internet access requirements, and outlines various command-directed FRG support requirements as specified in locally produced FRG regulations. It also sets forth requirements for leader training, routine exercising standards, and funds accountability. The Risk Reduction Program Checklist includes family advocacy briefing standards, child and spouse abuse briefing requirements, and other safety information.

Task force commanders in Operation INTRINSIC ACTION units and the SFOR established clear-cut and well-publicized guidelines for the redeployment of soldiers from the theater of operations. The commanders enhanced unit morale and better prepared families for the difficulties of separation. In many cases, commanders adopted policies that allowed for the return of a soldier to Home Station just prior to the birth of a first child, or authorized those soldiers whose wives were in the midst of complicated pregnancies to remain in the rear. Additionally, many commanders, upon receipt of a Red Cross message, authorized soldiers to redeploy when there was a serious illness or death in the soldier's immediate family (usually including a brother, sister, mother, or father). Also, commanders generally authorized a return to Home Station for any soldier whose grandfather or grandmother was in a similarly serious situation if that grandparent had raised the soldier. While these standards were fairly common, some problems arose (from the soldiers' perspectives) from the uneven application of those standards. By formulating and stating policies up front prior to deployment, commanders avoided later questions of fairness or morale problems that might have resulted from any perception of inequity.

Soldiers benefit from having adequate time to plan when the operational situation permits passes or leaves for them. At various times during implementation force (IFOR) and stabilization force (SFOR) operations, the threat situation allowed commanders to grant passes to task force soldiers. In some cases, soldiers and civilians on extended duty in theater (generally 270 days or more) were granted two-week leaves at approximately the midpoint of their tour of duty. Most personnel, however, did not receive notice of approval until about two weeks or less prior to the pass or leave dates. With this late notice, they were generally forced to pay higher airfares if they traveled to the United States. Similarly, those personnel hoping to meet with their families in Germany were also forced to pay higher fares, assuming flights and hotel accommodations were available at the late date. Given that the SFOR deployment took place over Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's, the inability to meet with family members during approved leave periods caused additional morale problems for the soldiers and civilians.

Family Care Plans

One of the most visible actions a unit conducts that impacts the family support aspect of deployments is to place command emphasis on the creation of feasible and effective Family Care Plans (FCPs) prior to deployment. This will greatly reduce the number of personnel problems associated with single-parent and dual-military couple soldiers. Operation INTRINSIC ACTION commanders who emphasized the careful preparation of feasible FCPs well before deployment notification were rewarded for their efforts during deployment. Single parents and dual-military couples had few problems that required the soldier's presence at Home Station. FCP information was given to FRG leaders, thus enabling those personnel to facilitate the care of children separated from their parents during a unit deployment. These units identified the need for FCPs as part of soldier in-processing, but also periodically reviewed the plans with the soldiers.

Soldier Finances

Installation support agency leaders and FRG leaders consistently identify financial problems as the most prevalent type of problem when soldiers deploy for lengthy periods of time. In one unit that deployed to Bosnia, the division commander developed the Command and Financial Specialist Program (CFSP) to help remedy recurring financial problems and to improve mission readiness and soldier quality of life. The program involved training by a CFSP NCO to improve soldiers' and spouses' consumer and financial management skills. The CFSP NCO remained in the rear detachment during the unit's deployment to provide counseling and assistance to families that found themselves in financial hardship during the period of separation. A local regulation (24th IN Div (Mech) & FS Pam 608-1, Family Support Group (FSG) System, March 1994) set forth the specific terms for implementation of the program, including responsibilities, installation agency support tasks, qualifications and personnel requirements, and the CFSP job description. The course involved three days of training for a soldier in the rank of staff sergeant or above. Referrals for the program came from unit leadership and from Army Emergency Relief and other support agencies.

Social Activities

To protect unit morale, commanders must maintain a careful balance between predeployment programs directed toward single soldiers and those toward soldiers with families. A variety of soldiers from Task Force Eagle were concerned about the scope and balance of single soldier and married soldier unit activities in the predeployment phase of the operation. While the soldiers uniformly appreciated the efforts made by the chain of command to provide interesting and relevant unit activities prior to deploying to Bosnia, comments varied from unit to unit in the assessment of how well these activities were thought out and scheduled. In some cases, soldiers felt that their commanders had focused squarely on family support while ignoring single soldiers. Other soldiers felt that commanders had focused primarily on activities for the single soldiers, leaving the soldiers with family members to navigate the command's emphasis on family readiness on their own. Some soldiers, both married and single, noted that some activities set up by the units prior to deployment were not only expensive, but also took personal time away from their families or from other pursuits. Junior leaders felt they had to attend unit-sponsored predeployment activities to demonstrate their commitment to the unit whether they wanted to participate or not. Obviously, a carefully thought-out balance of events is necessary.

Key Lessons Learned

• Commanders must clearly articulate their intent in the area of providing family support.
• Training is necessary, not only for soldiers and their families, but also for FRG and RDC personnel.
• FRCs need to be properly resourced with people and equipment.
• A commander conducting the predeployment briefing gives the impression to those attending that he is wholeheartedly behind the FRG program.
• FRG briefings should be scheduled once, and any effort to change the briefing should be received with strong resistance.
• Redeployment plans must be well thought out in advance, published with RDC personnel, and part of the training for all FRG and RDC personnel.
• Family Care Plans must be enforced and reviewed annually.
• Financial issues will be the first and last concerns to surface during a lengthy deployment. Educating spouses can help alleviate this problem.
• Do not forget single soldiers in the FRG program. They have needs also.

Unit Responsibilities for Family Readiness While Deployed

Every Army unit has certain inherent responsibilities to the FRP while the unit is deployed. One of these responsibilities is in the area of disseminating information. Rumors will harm a unit; the quickest way for a unit to begin rumors is to create a void of information. People tend to fill the void with any information they can reasonably come up with. To prevent this situation, every commander has the responsibility to disseminate correct and relevant information in the quickest and broadest methods possible. The use of newsletters and the Internet are two of those methods.

Support from the Theater of Operations

Support from the theater of operations is very important to the health of any Family Readiness Program. To prove to families that the program will be successful, information must be disseminated quickly. A message should be sent from the unit to Home Station as soon as the unit arrives in country. As an example, due to local contracting problems in the Kuwaiti Theater of Operations (KTO), establishing routine communication between the deployed Operation INTRINSIC ACTION units and their Family Readiness Groups took 13 days, which was much longer than the task force had been told to expect, and longer than was promised to the FRGs prior to deployment. As arriving soldiers immediately moved to desert training areas after signing for their equipment, opportunities for them to call home were limited. The delay in the establishment of communications meant that it was some time before soldiers could contact their families or the FRGs could put their information-dissemination plans into practice.

In light of these problems, deploying unit commanders and soldiers should caution family members that there may be unforeseen delays in establishing routine communication between deploying units, FRG leaders, and individual family members. Additionally, many uncertainties can be avoided through a thorough and detailed predeployment briefing in which unit commanders lay out soldiers' work schedules and initial requirements on arrival in the theater of operations.

Command Information Program

Disseminating command information in support of unit family readiness initiatives is one very important aspect of family readiness. One Task Force Eagle commander used a wide variety of innovative techniques to disseminate information to Family Readiness Groups and to the family members of deployed soldiers. The task force commander effectively used email, video teleconferencing (VTC), town hall meetings, an Internet site, a command information newspaper, and various other media to spread information about the command's family support, predeployment, and deployment activities. To capture the widest possible audience while allowing the flow of information both to and from the deployed unit, the commander used a variety of information media resources. First, soldiers were authorized to use and were supplied with email capability, thus enabling them to communicate with family members on a routine and inexpensive basis. Family members without a computer or Internet capability at home used computers at the FRC to send emails. Also, soldiers were given personal access to the VTC at various base camps, and family members participated in conferences from the FRC. The commander and key staff members held weekly VTC sessions with FRG personnel to answer any questions family members had asked over the preceeding week and to disseminate information on upcoming command activities. In similar fashion, prior to deployment to the theater of operations, the commander conducted weekly town hall meetings in which he addressed questions from family members regarding the deployment and other issues. The commander also used the Talon (a command information newspaper) and the unit's own family readiness website as an additional format to disseminate family support, deployment, and redeployment information. With the toll-free family readiness telephone number and Internet site available, even family members away from the unit's Home Station could stay in contact with the unit.

Units that produced an FRG newsletter on the Internet effectively reinforced the message that the unit cared about its soldiers and their families, and that the most current FRG information would be available to everyone. One Task Force Eagle commander directed that his staff produce a family readiness website that could be accessed by any soldier or family member in the task force. The family readiness website provided information about family counseling and how to communicate with family members, and information about the FRC and various other programs available to soldiers and their families. The site was frequently updated to keep information current. The website also included the task force's toll-free family readiness telephone number so that any family member with a problem could easily call for assistance. Additionally, some units and staff sections created their own unclassified websites to allow their families the opportunity to see what they were doing on the mission. A family support website can be a significant part of the campaign to get out the word about family readiness operations. When updated periodically, it can serve as an effective medium through which to pass along changes and points of access to the family readiness effort.

During Operation INTRINSIC ACTION, some units were visited by a variety of upper-echelon leaders, among them the Secretary of Defense and the Chief of Staff of the Army. Soldiers identified these visits as valuable morale boosters while they were deployed. Moreover, the visits enhanced the command's information dissemination efforts. Specifically, soldiers noted that national-level leaders who took the time and made the effort to visit the theater of operations and acknowledge family separations, personal sacrifices, and importance of unit efforts had a positive impact on unit morale.

Task Organization and Family Readiness

During some deployments, units are attached to the higher headquarters for a variety of reasons. When this is the case, the higher headquarters should make every effort to incorporate these units into their Family Readiness Program. This consolidates many repetitive actions, primarily in the area of communications. Operation INTRINSIC ACTION task force commanders integrated the Family Readiness Groups of attached units into their family readiness operations to take care of those soldiers and to enhance the task force's effectiveness in the field. This effort included the apportionment of email accounts and other scarce communications resources. The commanders also included the attached unit FRG leaders in routine dissemination of information to Home Station. As such, attached units had two effective avenues through which to seek assistance for assigned soldiers with personnel services and family care problems, since they could contact the task force headquarters or their own parent headquarters in the rear. Additionally, since the task organization for routinely recurring deployments, such as NTC or Kuwait rotations, is generally known well ahead of the actual deployment, task force commanders were able to perform this integration of effort well before deployment notification. This afforded FRG leaders the opportunity to become familiar with each other prior to the actual deployment event, which enhanced their overall efforts.

Communicating with Home Station

Communicating with the home front is very important for soldiers and their families. The most obvious method is, of course, the telephone. Although the soldier may be located in another country, the telephone has the potential to link families together and to ease some of the stress back home. One Task Force Eagle commander directed that DSN lines be installed in the homes of the brigade and battalion commanders deploying to the SFOR to facilitate communication between the field and rear. He authorized soldiers to use DSN lines for MWR calls home twice per week (fifteen minutes per call) to talk to family members. For those soldiers whose families had departed Home Station or for those soldiers who did not originate from an active duty Army post, a DSN directory was available which enabled soldiers (in most cases) to locate a post near their family's location. This enabled them to either place a local call or greatly reduce the cost of the call.

Another method of communication is the use of the video-teleconference (VTC). A Task Force Eagle commander used the VTC in a variety of innovative ways to assist the unit's FRG operations and to bolster his command information program. He conducted weekly VTC conferences with FRG personnel at Home Station. He also resourced his subordinate units to enable their soldiers to use the VTC as a means of contacting their families. Soldier use of the VTC was managed by blocks of time, with each unit authorized a window of electronic pipeline commensurate with their assigned strength. Each unit then managed the allocation of the VTC time in accordance with its own unit policies. While the VTC made major demands on the information highway capacity, the results were clearly worth the technological challenge and cost. At the beginning, commanders had to deal with the usual soldier rumors about "this person getting extra access" and "that unit having more than its fair share;" however, soldier morale was improved overall with the use of the VTC. In some cases, soldiers became very emotional after seeing and talking to their family members; unit leaders had to be prepared to deal with that possibility. It should be noted that this capability is theater-dependent, given the great electronic resources the system requires.

One very creative Task Force Eagle commander devised a way to communicate with families at Home Station while concurrently affecting a community awareness program by using the VTC. The commander organized an initiative in which the deployed unit participated in a teaching partnership with local school districts to provide a learning experience for students, enhance the command information program, and promote positive relations with the local community. The commander and his staff briefed the children and their teachers on the unit's mission and location and other aspects of the tour of duty in Bosnia. By working with local school districts, the commander was able to accomplish several objectives. First, he enhanced the unit's command information program by using the briefings as one more way of disseminating information about the specifics of the unit's mission in Bosnia. He also used the forum to foster a better understanding of the military among the civilian population in and around Home Station. Furthermore, he supported the school districts' teaching efforts by providing interesting information that the schools could incorporate into their social studies curriculum. Lastly, he supported Family Readiness Group efforts by giving the deployed soldiers' children in those schools a sense of pride in the service of their parents.

Theater Maturity and Task Organization

Theater maturity and task organization also impact greatly upon the type and likely effectiveness of FRG operations. Without question, the relative maturity of the theater of operations and the task organization of a deployed unit can affect efforts to execute FRG operations. In the case of the SFOR4, Task Force Eagle benefited significantly from the maturity of the theater of operations. However, the unit was simultaneously at a disadvantage due to the task organization of elements throughout the various camps. While the maturity of the theater allowed innovations such as soldier use of DSN lines, VTC, and email, the division of units among different base camps presented challenges to leaders seeking to achieve FRG objectives and remain aware of FRG issues. Additionally, the common assignment of individual reserve component (RC) and active component (AC) augmentees throughout all of the camps meant that, in general, there were small units and individuals that were either isolated from their higher headquarters or poorly informed about available resources. Some units overcame this problem by consolidating the various FRG supporting hardware and personnel into what they called "morale tents," which were then available to all soldiers assigned to the camp regardless of unit assignment. Nonetheless, some soldiers in various camps did not receive information regarding available resources.

Finally, units preparing to deploy must tailor their FRG activities to the theater's capabilities. By conducting a thorough reconnaissance of the theater of operations, units can ensure that they do not promise a capability they cannot deliver. It should not be assumed that because one unit was able to provide a particular level of support, subsequent units will be able to do the same. Similarly, units should carefully think through how they will continue and monitor FRG operations for all soldiers once the inevitable task organization takes effect within the theater of operations.

Key Lessons Learned

• Spouses view using the Internet to distribute information as a positive sign that the command cares about them.
• A commander should strive to provide up-to-date information to families as quickly as possible.
• Families should understand that a soldier's first duty is to get to his position in theatre as soon as possible. Consequently, there may not be sufficient time for the soldier to call home as quickly as the family may wish.
• Family Readiness Group newsletters are an effective avenue to get information to families and to notify them of upcoming events.
• Family Readiness Plan websites are the latest method to inform families about what the soldiers are doing and when they should be returning home.
• The video-teleconference is a method to allow families to see and feel close to the soldier even though they are thousands of miles away.
• Higher headquarters should incorporate attached units into their family readiness plans for economy of effort.

Redeployment Considerations

There are certain issues that a commander must consider when the unit is returning from a lengthy deployment. Commanders should provide redeploying soldiers an opportunity to "decompress." Several task force commanders in Operation INTRINSIC ACTION scheduled a variety of activities intended to both bring their units back to a satisfactory state of readiness and to afford soldiers a short period of decompression prior to releasing them for leaves. Activities included Soldier Readiness Processing (SRP) updates (i.e., SGLI revisions and DEERS corrections), POV inspections, and finance briefs, all of which took place after 48 hours of administrative downtime. Units then scheduled block leave for two weeks. Coupled with redeployment briefings administered by unit chaplains, commanders, and Family Readiness Group personnel, these activities allowed soldiers to ease back into the family setting rather than being thrust back after such a long absence.

Key Lessons Learned

• Decompression time is necessary to allow soldiers time to relax from the usual OPTEMPO of a deployment.
• Redeployment briefings from the chaplain and FRG leaders are very important to prepare not only the families to accept the soldier back home, but to prepare soldiers after a lengthy deployment.