Should Battery / Company / Troop Command be a "Right" or a "Privilege"?

Any way you look at it, command is a privilege and when you read AR 600-20, it makes it pretty clear that there are very specific requirements and expectations for command. &nbsp;I would counter, however, that this situation is not all company grade officers fault. &nbsp;Battalion and Brigade Commanders need to, when necessary, step up and make the unpopular decision not to place a Captain in command, BUT, that needs to be accompanied by counseling. &nbsp;Part of the reason why you see everyone expecting a command is that, for the past decade, practically everyone got one. &nbsp;In that situation, from what I've seen, we either A. put guys in command we hope will just get through their year without messing it up too badly (a horribly flawed strategy) or B. treat a guy like a lepper and keep him rotting away in the S3 shop without properly explaining to him what he needs to do to meet the expectations of a commander (a failure of leadership).<div><br></div><div>Not selecting a Captain for command is ending his/her career (should he/she want to stay in the operational Army), so it's not a decision to be taken lightly. &nbsp;Perhaps we need to do a better job of managing officer career fields between staff and command tracks. &nbsp;I've seen many very solid company grade officers who are great staff officers, but will never make great commanders. &nbsp;That doesn't mean they don't have a place in our Army, but what we are essentially doing is failing to match talents with positions (something Tim Kane wrote about very effectively in "Bleeding Talent"), and thus placing people ill-suited for command in charge of Soldiers or not putting them into command, thus ending their careers (in some cases, of very capable staff officers).</div><div><br></div><div>My two cents.</div>

Without doubt an absolute privilege sir and you're spot on about many officers viewing it as a right, at least until they are in command and fully grasp the understanding of what being in command is. It also really takes actively involved Battalion and Brigade level commanders to select the best officers for company level command, an art that is without question difficult to manage. I say difficult because it's not just about placing an officer in command but also the dynamics of that company and the pairing of that commander with that unit's First Sergeant are also crucial factors. 

Sir, it is absolutely a privilege and one I look forward to earning someday.