Posted on Sep 27, 2013
What's the most important thing the military should do while going through this downsizing period?
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As the military enters a significant downsizing period, it's important to talk through relevant issues and solutions. Enter your response below, and if it gets the most Up votes, you win a free iPad Mini and we will personally deliver your thoughts to our Advisory Board, which includes retired Generals George Casey and Norton Schwartz, the recent Chiefs of Staff of the Army and Air Force, respectively.<div><br></div><div>Tip: Get all your friends to vote Up your response by the end of the contest on Oct 7, 2013.</div>
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Downsizing
Downsizing
Posted 11 y ago
Responses: 502
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Unfortunately downsizing was inevitable with the dynamic conditions of conflict throughout the world. However unfortunate this may be, it is vital that the US military retain it talented and experienced personnel. Furthermore, it is vital that the military stay true to its values throughout all branches. Maintaining the valuable reputation of America's all volunteer force re-instills our nation's commitment in achieving freedom, despite the costs.
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First off, I don't want to answer this question for the votes, but rather to
energize our leaders within the military.
We have a duty to mentor our Soldiers.
If we need to cut our Soldiers, let’s provide them the best opportunity. That may be going to school, getting a job
outside the military, or joining the Army Reserves or National Guard. Educate them on how to use their education
benefits. Depending on what state they
return to, the state may have education money for them on top of their Post
9/11. If they are not ready to go to school,
help them build their resume and show them job sites that recruit military
vets. If they are a good Soldier, send
them to see a RCCC to show them their opportunity in the Army Reserves and National
Guard. This will give them an opportunity
to continue to serve.
No matter what route they choose, let’s do our part in
setting them up for success. If you need
help in locating information, please feel free to contact me.
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One of the biggest issues for me in the downsizing period after the first Gulf War was idle time. We had spent a lot of our time, energy and money in the field prior to this time and now we were in Garrison doing "busy" work that seemed uneventful comparetively. The boredom drove me nutz... lol NCO's should make sure their troops' anxed are redirected some how. Through sporting events possibly.
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I believe that the draw down in the Army force should be stopped. "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it." Case in point, pre WWII and again prior to the Korean war, we had to train new soldiers and recall recent discharges just to plug the holes that the reduction in force caused. Recalling recent discharges is an ok stop gap, but rushing to train new soldiers only provides cannon fodder for our enemies. As it is our trained soldiers are already taking rounds and explosions more often than they should be, putting quickly and poorly trained soldiers into combat billets is a miscalculation of epic proportions. STOP NOW!
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One could think of several different avenues of approach when looking at the downsizing of the military. One thing to keep in mind while our ranks become smaller is the amount of training should become our highest focus. If units are sent to combat theaters around the world with less Soldiers, then the optempo of training should be at its peak. As the budget becomes smaller, so does the training events. However, this could handled at the installation level as much as possible. The amount of money that is saved from training on the installation will free up enough funds to train at the National Training Center and Joint Readiness Training Center without to much push back from certain units that have priority.
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I can surely use one of those Ipads Mini.
I came in the service in 1976 when the Volunteer Army VOLAR started. I knew that the Army was a system and getting to know it from the eyes of a Private made me appreciate this when I rose in the ranks. When I retired from the US Army in 1996, I observed the retiree systemic resourcing and throughout the years to the present.
the most important thing the military should do while going through this downsizing period is to continually envision that the military is a system. Thinking in a systemic view point, allows for modeling the force structure according to its capacity; past, present and future...lessons learned with best practices.
Systemic thinking takes collaborative strategies and partnerships...count me in on the conversation. I like Peter Senge's book on the 5th Discipline....System thinking and during President Bush's no child left behind act, I can see Senge's model in creating change in that educational system.
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Revamp the MEB and Chapter processes to allow expedited processing for service members. There is a lot of money to be saved in streamlining of these processes that could be further invested into our training, equipping and even just manpower budgets.
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Maintain its learning capacity for change; sustain the image of a learning organization.
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We need to make sure the National Guard and Reserve are trained well enough to respond to the needs of each branch of service. And not to start any more wars till we have the funding to increase the numbers in all branches.
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