The Role and Impact of Army Values on Non-Commissioned Officers, Study notes of History

Download The Role and Impact of Army Values on Non-Commissioned Officers and more Study notes History in PDF only on Docsity! Argumentative Essay Army Values and the Non-Commissioned Officer Corps Introduction Throughout history, the roll of the Non Commissioned Officer (NCO) has been the vital link between, the enlisted soldier, and the commissioned officer. The primary purpose of this link is to mentor and create young professionals out of soldiers. In 1973 there was a break down in this mentoring roll, this break down was so extreme that it spurred the advent of the NCO creed. The NCO creed simply put into writing the values and goals that all Non Commissioned Officers should, not only live up to, but also teach to their young soldiers. It took one year for the creeds approval, however it took over ten years to become part of the Army’s teaching. The NCO creed became well adapted, and remained the standard for the next 13 years, at which time the same issued began to resurface, this resurfacing lead to the advent to the Seven Core Army Values. The values are simply a more in depth break down of the NCO creed. Argumentative Statement With the development of the Army seven core values, have Non Commissioned Officers become better leaders of soldiers? Has the seven Army core values replaced the importance of the NCO Creed? Has the importance of leadership from the NCO rank diminished because of the advent of the Army seven core values? The fact is if NCO’s were held accountable for their actions, and were made to uphold the standards set by the NCO creed, there would have never been the need for the advent of the seven Army core values. Support for the Argumentative Statement Quality leadership in the NCO corps is vital to the success of the Army, because without the link between the enlisted troops and the commission officer there would be a complete failure to communicate. It is imperative, that the relationship between the enlisted soldier and the NCO is strong enough to endure both the demands of training, as well as combat. The Army Non-Commissioned Officer plays a vital role in training future leaders in living the Army Values through living the NCO creed. This idea becomes clear when one looks at the NCO creed in the context of the Seven Army Core Values one by one. Loyalty -- This is clearly indicated in the third paragraph of the NCO creed with the statement “I will be loyal to those with whom I serve; seniors, peers, and subordinates alike.( NCO creed, 2009)” These are clearly parallel statements, in fact the NCO creed not only states the need to be truthful at all times, but it goes the extra step to state to whom one should be accountable to. Soldiers at every level must be loyal to and support the U.S. Constitution, the U.S. Army, their leadership, and to their fellow soldiers. Loyalty is multi-dimensional. Loyalty must be given in order for it to be received. (FM 6-22, 2006) defines loyalty as, “a two-way street: you should not expect loyalty without being prepared to give it as well… the loyalty of your people is a gift they give you when, and only when you deserve it-when you train them well, treat them fairly, and live by the concepts you talk about (FM 6-22, 2006).” Duty – Fulfill your obligations. Duties defined by the creed as the ability to “exercise initiative by taking the appropriate action in the absence of orders (NCO creed, 2009.)” The creed not only identifies what is expected of the soldier, but it places the will be if the values are not adhered to. The soldiers of the past, present, and more important the future, will not become the warriors that are expected of them in today’s volunteer Army with out the supervision and mentorship of the NCO who is living by the NCO creed. The NCO has been held responsible to train and care for the enlisted soldier prior to the advent of the seven Army core values in 1998. The fact is there should have never been a need to create the seven Army core values, because NCO’s must hold themselves accountable for their actions at all times. Regardless of the advent of the seven Army core values, the fact remains that “I am a Noncommissioned Officer, a leader of Soldiers. As a Noncommissioned Officer, I realize that I am a member of a time-honored corps, which is known as ‘The Backbone of the Army’(US Army 2009).” References Department of the Army. (2006). Army Leadership. FM 6-22 http://usacac.army.mil/CAC/CAL/FM6_22.pdf The NCO Creed. (2009). United States Army Sergeant Major of the Army. http://www4.army.mil/yearofthenco/creed.html U.S. Army Corps of Discovery, Army Values. (2003) http://www.history.army.mil/LC/The%20Mission/the_seven_army_values.htm