Army Contractual Standards

The situation in today 's Army is clearly much different from what existed years ago. Many changes have occurred, moving the Army 's EO program from a strictly educational and training initiative to a multifaceted management program with clear goals and objectives. These goals and objectives are also an integral part of human relations and are nurtured and developed through a professional military education system.

Army leaders must balance the link between the Army’s culture and it’s climate and institutional practices. When there is a proper balance it has a huge impact on the mindset of the Army’s Soldiers. Their actions or inactions impacts the five key attributes of the profession, and the four fields of expertise, and have long term effects on the Army’s culture and climate. These actions influence Soldiers’ perceptions that they are serving professional who have answered the call of service to the republic, it is important that Soldiers understand that their role is a calling and not just a job.

Stewardship of the Army Profession is the last of the Five Essential Characteristics of the Army Profession, but in terms of importance, it is just as, if not more important than the other four. The United States Army’s ADRP-1, or Army Doctrinal Reference Publication 1, even defines stewardship as “the responsibility of Army professionals to ensure the profession maintains its five essential characteristics now and into the future”. Such importance is placed on this characteristic because Stewardship of the Army Profession is the one that ensures the other four are maintained. I sought out the definition of stewardship because despite having spent almost three and a half years and West Point, I was not entirely sure what the doctrine behind Stewardship was. In doing this, I felt like I was better prepared for both this paper and ensuring that the corrections I made were stewarding the profession. With this newly acquired knowledge, I set out to make my corrections.

As stewards of our profession, commanders ensure that military expertise continues to develop and be passed on to aspiring professionals through operational development. It is during this developmental phase that Professional Soldiers put their knowledge and skills to the test. Operational Army units certify and recertify their Professional Soldiers through repetitive and realistic training events including the Combat Life Saver Course, platoon live fires, and exercises at the National Training Center. In the course of these challenging and realistic experiences, the Army’s operational units develop Soldiers and leaders prepared to maintain high standards, discipline, and operational readiness. Operational development and adaptability will continue to drive changes in Army doctrine, organization, leadership, and education as we enter the post-war era. Without this kind of development, the Army could not maintain a well-disciplined professional fighting force.

The Army has been working over many years to give find programs to give Service members credit where credit is due no matter whether you are still in service or preparing to exit and head into the civilian sector. As the Army is going through its largest draw down in ten years, all Army Officials are working harder than ever to revamp and reorganize the Army Credentialing Program, which is designed to gives all Service members the opportunities to earn

The draw down the Army is currently experiencing introduced changes to the Army’s retention program and the service of some Soldiers is no longer a given. A tri-signed memorandum from senior Army leadership changed the way retention will operate in the future. As a result, Army leadership implemented the Order of Merit List (OML) causing commanders at all levels to face tough decisions that will challenge their ethical demeanor. Subjecting our Soldiers to this type of treatment is unjust. The use of the OML determines the best-qualified Soldiers throughout formations. Though the OML may identify the top performers, it does not take into account the Soldiers future potential. Looking at the situation through the ethical decision-making

Throughout history, the U.S. military has enjoyed a reputation of being one of the most respected and reliable organizations in the United States. Although the military continues to make every effort to achieve excellence, the very real threat of drawdowns and budget cuts have constrained and forced leaders to change the way they conduct business. Even though the objective remains to be building a stronger and superior force, the latest changes to policy have ushered in a destructive zero-defect attitude within its ranks.

The OPAT is used as a screening process for new recruits in order to decide what MOS they can physically qualify for (Eberhart, 2016, para. 6). The OPAT “includes the Standing Long Jump, Seated Power Throw, Strength Deadlift and the Interval Aerobic Run (beep test)” (Eberhart, 2016, para. 10). This tests sole purpose is to display the new Soldiers physical fitness abilities and ensure they will be able to handle the physical demands of combat MOS’s. The issue is, once the Soldier makes it through the prescreening phase and qualifies for combat MOS’s, they entry the Army and go right back to the unequal standards of the APFT.

Dictionary.com gives the following definition of reporting: an account or statement describing in detail an event, situation, or the like, usually as the result of observation, inquiry, etc..In the United States Army Reporting is one of the most important actions a soldier can display. Reporting is used to keep track of a soldiers location and or activities. Without some form of reporting, it would be impossible to monitor the actions or location of any given soldier. In a garrison environment, there are many reasons and situations, in which someone in a soldiers team would need to know where or what a soldier is doing. For instance, with our unit we dispatch trucks every Thursday for the following week. The order to dispatch a truck

1. The new OCCUPATIONAL PHYSICAL ASSESSMENT TEST will enhance the future readiness of our Army by ensuring we are putting the right people in the right jobs based on both mental and physical aptitude.

Contract support has become a mainstay of every major military operation. Their ability to provide services ranging from base support to armed escorts make contractors a versatile option for military commanders. However, increased budget cuts and force reductions have brought into question the Army’s continued reliance on operational contract support (OCS). The question isn’t should we utilize contractors, rather, it is to what extent contractors are used?

leadership decisions that further degrade the military influencing enlisted members to end their careers early.

The Army Physical Fitness Test is designed to test the muscular strength and cardiovascular respiratory fitness of an individual. you are given a score based on their performance in three events consisting of the push-up, sit-up, and a two-mile run. Possible scores range from 0 to 100 points in each event. A passing score is a total of 180 or higher with a minimum score of 60 in each event.

Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) leadership has recently announced that the Advanced Individual Training Platoon Sergeant (AIT PSG) Program will be coming to an end. This is in response to a growing sentiment in the Operational Force that new Soldiers are increasingly undisciplined and untrained in Warrior Tasks. The AIT PSG, introduced in 2008, will be replaced in favor of the Drill Sergeant as early as Fiscal Year 2020. (“State of the NCO,” 2017) The theory behind the transition is that the Drill Sergeant is immediately recognized as disciplinarian, and new Soldiers’ will benefit from increased exposure to these individuals by becoming more disciplined. While the return of the Drill Sergeant is widely welcomed, alone they will not solve the issue of untrained and undisciplined Soldiers. Leadership must address the root cause of the lack of discipline perceived of Soldiers entering the Army, the systemic under manning of AIT cadre.

The physical demands for military service is a requirement to meet unit readiness, day to day missions, and tasks. Each service branch, Army, Airforce, Navy, and Marines determines the type of physical fitness training to maintain minimal levels of fitness required for day to day jobs. Currently, the United States deploy soldiers more often and in areas of the world that are most physically demanding. The deployment’s operational tempo is demanding for soldiers and at times challenging for leaders to maintain effective readiness levels. The training requirements are different for day to day jobs, such as a paratrooper who will do regular foot patrols in rough terrain, is not the same for an armored vehicle tank driver who regularly drives and fire missiles. Annual physical fitness tests support military mission. Each service branch conducts a variation of physical fitness test consisting of a distance run, timed sit-ups, and upper body event, but “The Marine Corps physical fitness test is considered to have the most difficult physical standards by including the longest distance run (3 miles), a sit-up requirement, and a pull-up/hang requirement” (Bartlett, Phillips, & Galarneau, 2015, p. 513). The three-event test must be completed within 2 hours and a minimal score is required for each event. Female marines are required to do the same events as males with exception of pull-ups, they must do flex-arm hangs. The Marine Corps holds physical fitness as a necessary part of