Capt. Gregg Verhoef, Tampa Battalion
Alleviate
Summer Slump, Start Planning Now
By Capt. Gregg Verhoef, USAREC, Tampa Battalion
Dec. 19, 2014
In U.S. Army Recruiting Command, if today you’re planning for tomorrow, you likely will not succeed.
USAREC, as a command, historically struggles every summer as recruiters lose access to schools and are, therefore, unable to capture the target market in a mass environment. With that said, many units are able to assess and adapt to the environment and come out ahead by not waiting until June to have a summer attack plan.
To truly prepare to succeed for a long-term (annual mission) strategy, planning and preparing for summer lows starts now. At the conclusion of the summer months, leaders start assessing what worked, what didn’t work and what can be improved for future planning. Adjustments need to be made and implemented based on intelligence and accomplishments through the summer months. It is also the time for leaders to evaluate and identify what they can change next year to get ahead of these challenging months.
Last summer enlistments dipped nationwide and losses surged throughout the force. One positive, proven tactic to manage this loss is the early planning for summer to prepare a company for the upcoming challenge. This challenge is something new recruiters have not encountered.
PLAN, PLAN, PLAN. It’s said in recruiting, a solid school recruiting plan will build a center’s graduate market as those recent grads will remember the recruiter and seek them out after their initial plan may have fallen through. Recruiters must concentrate on building their Future Soldier pool early, focusing specifically on seniors, as they have a higher propensity to deliver quality referrals.
The goal from August to December while the Future Soldier pool is the lowest is to work all Future Soldiers for referrals. This process should involve the entire center. Recruiters should also be creative when working these referrals; stop asking “who do you know that wants to join the Army?” Instead ask who they know, what are they planning for next year, and ask Future Soldiers to seek out their friends.
Preparation for summer months must start well in advance of high school graduation; it is critical to start summer shaping operations even before the December holidays to ensure the unit is well prepared. This process involves everything from Future Soldier leadership to main prospecting efforts. While this cannot happen overnight, leader planning will advance the unit to the next level. Regardless of how many enlistments a company achieves, a high Future Soldier loss rate can quickly derail that success.
MOTIVATE FUTURE SOLDIERS
A continuous emphasis on Future Soldiers is crucial for everyone. Motivating Future Soldiers through hard, realistic Army training can help sustain their commitment to serve. Company commanders must take ownership of their Future Soldier Training Programs and drive home commitment and motivation within. Quarterly mega Future Soldier functions keep Future Soldiers interested in the program while motivating them to outperform their peers. Involving local veterans and media is also a great asset in the program because it increases publicity for current members and attracts other potential applicants to the program.
To plan for a mega Future Soldier events, recruiters should reach out to local high school news television programs for coverage. In many cases, educators will jump at an opportunity for the students to cover the event acting as a reporter. This benefits the Army with the publicity in the school, as well as the school, giving these students more experience.
All options must be looked at to keep Future Soldiers committed to ship including using former Future Soldier parents to talk to a Future Soldier who may have second thoughts. These parents have typically supported the program in the past and have seen the transformation of their son or daughter. Glowing reviews of the Army from someone other than a recruiter can make the difference.
RECRUIT TO POTENTIAL
Leaders must understand their true capabilities and potential. Furthermore they must identify what resources and assets will be needed as well as forming initial plans based off an intelligence analysis. A company level intelligence preparation of the battlefield must be performed so that all aspects of the mission are identified and initial planning can begin. The four steps to this process include:
This process helps analyze the recruiting environment in a specific geographic area. Threat courses of action will be determined through this process.
Leaders must also look at recruiting to their potential (not the mission) in their area based off historical averages. For example, if a company is taking 30 percent market share and still makes its assigned mission, it has a higher potential when looking at the DoD enlistments overall. An understanding of how many enlistments were obtained thus far in the fiscal year in comparison to a four-year average is important. What’s left over allows leaders to target specific zip codes where a historical potential still remains. Targeting quality enlistments, based on intel-driven assessments is absolutely critical for mission success.
THINK AHEAD
When planning long-term, leaders must build Future Soldier losses into their prospecting plan. This should be done throughout the year but specifically the summer. Months that start with “J” typically have a higher volume of losses and need to be prepared for to succeed at the end of the fiscal year. Everyone will take losses, those who anticipate and plan for them will be affected less than those who do not.
Even with a solid FSTP, a strong prospecting plan and motivated recruiters, the adage could apply where no plan survives first contact. Continuous ongoing analysis during the execution phase along with the ability to adapt to changing environments will allow the original plan to form into a successful operation. If face-to-face prospecting is not providing a return on investment as first thought, telephone prospecting may be the way to go, still utilizing IPB results and targeting the hot zip codes.
Proactive leaders who validate the execution of this plan will bring success in summer operations but the process cannot start in June. It’s a continuous process that revolves around intelligence and execution over an extended period of time.
By Capt. Gregg Verhoef, USAREC, Tampa Battalion
Dec. 19, 2014
In U.S. Army Recruiting Command, if today you’re planning for tomorrow, you likely will not succeed.
USAREC, as a command, historically struggles every summer as recruiters lose access to schools and are, therefore, unable to capture the target market in a mass environment. With that said, many units are able to assess and adapt to the environment and come out ahead by not waiting until June to have a summer attack plan.
To truly prepare to succeed for a long-term (annual mission) strategy, planning and preparing for summer lows starts now. At the conclusion of the summer months, leaders start assessing what worked, what didn’t work and what can be improved for future planning. Adjustments need to be made and implemented based on intelligence and accomplishments through the summer months. It is also the time for leaders to evaluate and identify what they can change next year to get ahead of these challenging months.
Last summer enlistments dipped nationwide and losses surged throughout the force. One positive, proven tactic to manage this loss is the early planning for summer to prepare a company for the upcoming challenge. This challenge is something new recruiters have not encountered.
PLAN, PLAN, PLAN. It’s said in recruiting, a solid school recruiting plan will build a center’s graduate market as those recent grads will remember the recruiter and seek them out after their initial plan may have fallen through. Recruiters must concentrate on building their Future Soldier pool early, focusing specifically on seniors, as they have a higher propensity to deliver quality referrals.
The goal from August to December while the Future Soldier pool is the lowest is to work all Future Soldiers for referrals. This process should involve the entire center. Recruiters should also be creative when working these referrals; stop asking “who do you know that wants to join the Army?” Instead ask who they know, what are they planning for next year, and ask Future Soldiers to seek out their friends.
Preparation for summer months must start well in advance of high school graduation; it is critical to start summer shaping operations even before the December holidays to ensure the unit is well prepared. This process involves everything from Future Soldier leadership to main prospecting efforts. While this cannot happen overnight, leader planning will advance the unit to the next level. Regardless of how many enlistments a company achieves, a high Future Soldier loss rate can quickly derail that success.
MOTIVATE FUTURE SOLDIERS
A continuous emphasis on Future Soldiers is crucial for everyone. Motivating Future Soldiers through hard, realistic Army training can help sustain their commitment to serve. Company commanders must take ownership of their Future Soldier Training Programs and drive home commitment and motivation within. Quarterly mega Future Soldier functions keep Future Soldiers interested in the program while motivating them to outperform their peers. Involving local veterans and media is also a great asset in the program because it increases publicity for current members and attracts other potential applicants to the program.
To plan for a mega Future Soldier events, recruiters should reach out to local high school news television programs for coverage. In many cases, educators will jump at an opportunity for the students to cover the event acting as a reporter. This benefits the Army with the publicity in the school, as well as the school, giving these students more experience.
All options must be looked at to keep Future Soldiers committed to ship including using former Future Soldier parents to talk to a Future Soldier who may have second thoughts. These parents have typically supported the program in the past and have seen the transformation of their son or daughter. Glowing reviews of the Army from someone other than a recruiter can make the difference.
RECRUIT TO POTENTIAL
Leaders must understand their true capabilities and potential. Furthermore they must identify what resources and assets will be needed as well as forming initial plans based off an intelligence analysis. A company level intelligence preparation of the battlefield must be performed so that all aspects of the mission are identified and initial planning can begin. The four steps to this process include:
- Define the operational environment
- Describe the environmental effects on operations
- Evaluate the threat
- Determine threat course of action
This process helps analyze the recruiting environment in a specific geographic area. Threat courses of action will be determined through this process.
Leaders must also look at recruiting to their potential (not the mission) in their area based off historical averages. For example, if a company is taking 30 percent market share and still makes its assigned mission, it has a higher potential when looking at the DoD enlistments overall. An understanding of how many enlistments were obtained thus far in the fiscal year in comparison to a four-year average is important. What’s left over allows leaders to target specific zip codes where a historical potential still remains. Targeting quality enlistments, based on intel-driven assessments is absolutely critical for mission success.
THINK AHEAD
When planning long-term, leaders must build Future Soldier losses into their prospecting plan. This should be done throughout the year but specifically the summer. Months that start with “J” typically have a higher volume of losses and need to be prepared for to succeed at the end of the fiscal year. Everyone will take losses, those who anticipate and plan for them will be affected less than those who do not.
Even with a solid FSTP, a strong prospecting plan and motivated recruiters, the adage could apply where no plan survives first contact. Continuous ongoing analysis during the execution phase along with the ability to adapt to changing environments will allow the original plan to form into a successful operation. If face-to-face prospecting is not providing a return on investment as first thought, telephone prospecting may be the way to go, still utilizing IPB results and targeting the hot zip codes.
Proactive leaders who validate the execution of this plan will bring success in summer operations but the process cannot start in June. It’s a continuous process that revolves around intelligence and execution over an extended period of time.