LT's writing NCOERS

When I has a Platoon Sergeant, I made sure that my PL counseled me IAW with regulations and also drafted my NCOER.  After his draft, we sat down and we talked over each section and each bullet.  That was what I like to call professional development for my PL.  While my PLs usually had the raw facts there, they needed the education and development to massage those facts into bullet comments for a NCOER.  That served a few end states.  First and foremost, it ensured that we collaborated on my evaluation to ensure that everything was covered in a quantifiable way.  Secondly, I believe that I was providing that development to my PL for when he was a CO CDR rating a 1SG and into the future.

I have always followed the philosophy the LTs are PVTs with shinny things.  Sorry LTs but what I am trying to say is that, in the same way it is an NCOs job to train JR Soldiers, it is the Senior NCOs job to train the JR Officers.  As a Platoon Sergeant, I always took personal responsibility to keep my LT on the right path.  This includes counseling and NCOERs. I also believe that how a Platoon Sergeant trains his LT (same for his Soldiers) at their first duty station molds what kind of Office (Soldier) he or she will be in the future.  That said SFC Ward, if the LTs you have come into contact with recently have no idea about NCOER, I am sad to say that I think it is a direct reflection of our NCO corps.  Please take them under you wing and show them the light!  

Unfortunately next to none, and even worse they are expected to show up and write evaluations for their counterparts? Nothing scares me more but a good development tool I use for both the officer and senior NCO is for both to write the evaluation and then bring them in to discuss with me what each one came up with. It provides honest feed back to the rated and always gives the Rater an opportunity to better understand how writing evaluations for NCOs works. I have spent countless hours providing mentorship to officers on writing evaluations and have even assisted them in completing the final draft when dealing with a less than productive NCO. I truly wish the officer basic course would spend more time in this arena it would pay dividends to our NCOs futures and careers.