Check out our second post from Terron Wharton in his multi-part guest post on the non-commissioned officer role in mentorship. Hopefully this sparks an idea in you to think of those senior enlisted folk who have done something for you along the way. Start a conversation, spark a transformation!
I met my Platoon Sergeant, SFC(R) Victor Gutierrez, on a late afternoon deep in the Fort Hood training area. He was waiting at the CO CP to grab me, and as I exited the HMMWV he walked up, saluted, and laid out the next 12 hours: What would happen, what I’d say when I met the platoon, how I would brief my OPORD, the things I’d say to my Tank Commanders, and the way I’d deliver my OPORD. I gave a rather stunned “Why, yes, Sergeant, that sounds good.” Over the next three hours I saw that SFC Gutierrez had set me up for success, ensuring I made an excellent first impression with the platoon and my NCOs. It was the start of a great relationship that lasts to this day.
SFC(R) Gutierrez acted as a sounding board, gave advice, and taught me our craft. He possessed never ending patience and would let me step in it (as long as it didn’t violate ethics or place a Soldier at risk) so I would learn from my mistakes. Most of all, he led by example. That example, attention to detail, adherence to standards, and the importance of presence made a permanent impact that I’ve carried forward through my whole career.
NCOs are the Army’s primary teachers, trainers, and instructors and SFC Conrad Vasquez believes that role covers officers as well as Soldiers. SFC Vasquez served as a PSG for nearly four years, a 1SG for two more, and is now on his way to teach ROTC. His opinion on the NCO role was very blunt: “If you see a jacked up Company Commander, chances are he had a jacked up PSG when he was a Platoon Leader.”
SFC Vasquez served as one of my PSGs while I was in command. Before every range, FTX, gunnery, or lane, I would see SFC Vasquez off with his PL, helping the lieutenant rehearse OPORDs, going over parts of the plan, or teaching a new TTP. Whether employing fires or teaching shooting techniques on the range, SFC Vasquez trained his PL as much as he trained his Soldiers.
SFC Vasquez helped instill a high level of competence that manifested in his PL’s behavior, confidence, and how the lieutenant led his platoon. Did the lieutenant have potential? Yes, he did. However, Vasquez was the primary mentor who molded and developed that potential. When I look at that officer today, I see Vasquez, not me. In the end, it boils down to a level of competence.
ADP 6-22, Army Leadership, defines three categories of competencies:
“The Army leader serves to lead others; to develop the environment, themselves, others and the profession as a whole; and to achieve organizational goals. Competencies provide a clear and consistent way of conveying expectations for Army leaders.” ADP 6-22, pg. 7
Competency is how officers set leads and influences Soldiers, accomplishes missions, and maintains a positive command climate rooted in Army Values, morals, and ethics. ADP 6-22 continues that leader competencies can be grown and that growth happens somewhere very specific: the direct leadership level. For officers, it does not get more direct than being a Platoon Leader.
At the PL-PSG level, the NCO should focus mentorship on competence to build upon that foundation. Both SFC(R) Gutierrez and SFC Vasquez had a single focus: ensure their officer knows their job so they can lead effectively in combat. In both cases, character and judgment were mentored as issues arose, but the day to day focus was on teaching the Platoon Leader their craft.
We talked last time about NCOs modeling what right looks like for their cadets. Here we see that bear fruit, for good or ill. By this point in their career a new officer will have very few examples of how NCOs should act, what they should know, or what they should do. As a result, new officers typically look back on two things. First, what did their officer instructors tell them their PSGs should be like? Second, what examples did their TAC NCOs and basic course instructors set?
The officer arrives with a (relatively) blank slate while the PSG has greater experience, technical and tactical knowledge, time in service, and a higher maturity level. The PSG has seen many officers, good and bad, in their career. The officer has interacted closely with very few NCOs and draws their expectations from what their TAC NCOs and basic course instructors modeled up to this point. If those expectations are positive and the PSG understands their role and position, typically mentorship begins fairly easily. However, if the cadet saw NCOs modeling poor values, low competence, and unprofessional behavior it can breed suspicion of NCOs in general, something that makes it hard to establish the trust necessary for mentorship to occur.
The PL-PSG relationship is special. An officer never forgets his first PSG, whether the NCO was good or bad. Similarly, a PSG never forgets the first PL they train. For the officer, being a PL marks the first step in their career. For the NCO, this is their first real leadership job as a senior NCO. Instead of reducing it to clichés, we need to appreciate what it is to maximize it in developing junior officers.
Critical Takeaways
Mentorship Focus: Competence
For All: NCOs mentor PLs to increase their competence, thereby building on a character-based foundation established pre-commissioning.
For Platoon Leaders: How will I establish trust with my PSG? Does the example my TAC NCOs and instructors set match what my PSG does? Why or why not? How will I use my PSG to increase my competence?
For NCOs: How will I establish trust with my Platoon Leader? Does my Platoon Leader have a solid character based foundation? What am I doing to ensure the Platoon Leader knows their craft?