What Type of Center Commander are you?
By Sgt. 1st Class Rocky Weaver, West Bend, Wis., Center Commander, USAREC
August 8, 2014
In my six years of experience in U.S. Army Recruiting Command, I’ve seen four types of recruiting center commanders.
Type 1 doesn’t accomplish the mission and doesn’t know why. Type 2 doesn’t accomplish the mission and knows why. Type 3 accomplishes the mission and doesn’t know why. Type 4 accomplishes the mission and knows why. We must all strive to be Type 4.
Type 1 - Doesn’t accomplish the mission and doesn’t know why. Hopefully you’re not this type of center commander. If you are, you need to request training. If you’re a newly assigned center commander, ensure you commit the time to close the knowledge gap. If you know a center commander that is this type, help the command by training your peers.
Type 2 - Doesn’t accomplish the mission and knows why. You fall into this category if you fail to accomplish the mission and are performing at a level that does not produce results. There are a few instances when this happens. Usually it’s because you’ve lost motivation, are going through personal issues, or your leadership doesn’t support you. If you’ve lost motivation or have personal issues that are causing you to fail the command, you must be removed from your position, as failure is unacceptable. Fix yourself, or leave our organization.
Type 3 - Accomplishes the mission and doesn’t know why. If this describes you, you’re most likely highly motivated, but a young and newly assigned center commander. You work hard, but lack the knowledge to manage your recruiters. You need to develop the leadership skills of recruiting. You make mission by pure drive and determination. The issue with this type of commander is they have a high chance of becoming fatigued and may revert back to Type 1. This type of commander must make time for professional growth and continue to learn the technical knowledge of the trade.
Type 4 - Accomplishes the mission and knows how and why. This is the type of commander we must all strive to become. This commander is tactically and
technically proficient at his or her trade, and has perfected communication with their subordinates and those in higher positions. They not only know the art and science of recruiting, but have mastered leadership and the management of personnel. This type of commander will move to the next level with ease. You will
know when you have achieved this type of success.
How do you become a type 4 commander, a leader who focuses on providing purpose, direction, and motivation? The transformation to Type 4 starts with the IPR process. Every center commander who achieves mission understands that success starts with the IPR. It must be performed every day and must cover mission oriented data as well as the welfare of the Soldier.
A Soldier is only as good as his or her mental and physical health and this needs to be talked about every day. Another key area to address during the IPR is mission accomplishment at the center, company, battalion, and higher levels. All Soldiers must be informed of what is needed to achieve mission success. The IPR is the key time to effectively communicate the purpose of the mission. Again, this must be covered daily.
Direction must also be given to the Soldier. This falls under the science of recruiting and knowing your market. As a center commander, you must study your market. You must know where the enlistments should come from, along with what market segments to target. You need to know your market better than your Soldiers know it. Complete your market analysis, then direct your Soldiers to success.
Lastly, but most importantly, provide motivation to your Soldiers. Offer them incentives and rewards. This is where most commanders fail. They forget the line in the Creed of the Noncommissioned Officer that states, “I will be fair and impartial when recommending both rewards and punishment.”
Motivation is still the key to success, as learned in basic training as a young Soldier. The only thing that has changed is you must now provide it as a leader. Make
your Soldiers feel like winners. Every chance you get, praise them in public or in front of their peers. You must provide the motivation to win. Take time to talk about incentives and rewards, don’t just focus on shortfalls.
Why is leadership important? Leadership, by definition, is the process of influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation to accomplish the mission and improve the organization. What some leaders forget when assigned to USAREC is that we have a live mission that cannot be compromised by substandard performance. Your most important responsibility as a center commander is leadership. It is our duty to provide the strength that ensures the continued success of America.
Good luck! You must choose what type of center commander you will be. Leadership comes in many forms, but does not change by definition. Center
commanders must be well rounded leaders that believe in the “be, know, do” philosophy and are tactically and technically proficient. Our nation depends on us to accomplish the mission, not at 50 percent of the time, but at 100 percent time. Don’t settle for anything less. When in charge, be in charge.
"Under my leadership, West Bend Center has been ranked the top recruiting center in Milwaukee Battalion for the past three years. Prior to West Bend, I was a center commander at the Sommerset, Pa., Center and an assistant commander in the Greensburg, Pa., Center. During my time at those centers, both consistently ranked in the top three recruiting centers in the Harrisburg Battalion. I give credit to my leadership for giving me the mentoring to be a successful center commander."
Sgt. 1st Class Weaver has a bachelor's in business and marketing and is working on his MBA.
By Sgt. 1st Class Rocky Weaver, West Bend, Wis., Center Commander, USAREC
August 8, 2014
In my six years of experience in U.S. Army Recruiting Command, I’ve seen four types of recruiting center commanders.
Type 1 doesn’t accomplish the mission and doesn’t know why. Type 2 doesn’t accomplish the mission and knows why. Type 3 accomplishes the mission and doesn’t know why. Type 4 accomplishes the mission and knows why. We must all strive to be Type 4.
Type 1 - Doesn’t accomplish the mission and doesn’t know why. Hopefully you’re not this type of center commander. If you are, you need to request training. If you’re a newly assigned center commander, ensure you commit the time to close the knowledge gap. If you know a center commander that is this type, help the command by training your peers.
Type 2 - Doesn’t accomplish the mission and knows why. You fall into this category if you fail to accomplish the mission and are performing at a level that does not produce results. There are a few instances when this happens. Usually it’s because you’ve lost motivation, are going through personal issues, or your leadership doesn’t support you. If you’ve lost motivation or have personal issues that are causing you to fail the command, you must be removed from your position, as failure is unacceptable. Fix yourself, or leave our organization.
Type 3 - Accomplishes the mission and doesn’t know why. If this describes you, you’re most likely highly motivated, but a young and newly assigned center commander. You work hard, but lack the knowledge to manage your recruiters. You need to develop the leadership skills of recruiting. You make mission by pure drive and determination. The issue with this type of commander is they have a high chance of becoming fatigued and may revert back to Type 1. This type of commander must make time for professional growth and continue to learn the technical knowledge of the trade.
Type 4 - Accomplishes the mission and knows how and why. This is the type of commander we must all strive to become. This commander is tactically and
technically proficient at his or her trade, and has perfected communication with their subordinates and those in higher positions. They not only know the art and science of recruiting, but have mastered leadership and the management of personnel. This type of commander will move to the next level with ease. You will
know when you have achieved this type of success.
How do you become a type 4 commander, a leader who focuses on providing purpose, direction, and motivation? The transformation to Type 4 starts with the IPR process. Every center commander who achieves mission understands that success starts with the IPR. It must be performed every day and must cover mission oriented data as well as the welfare of the Soldier.
A Soldier is only as good as his or her mental and physical health and this needs to be talked about every day. Another key area to address during the IPR is mission accomplishment at the center, company, battalion, and higher levels. All Soldiers must be informed of what is needed to achieve mission success. The IPR is the key time to effectively communicate the purpose of the mission. Again, this must be covered daily.
Direction must also be given to the Soldier. This falls under the science of recruiting and knowing your market. As a center commander, you must study your market. You must know where the enlistments should come from, along with what market segments to target. You need to know your market better than your Soldiers know it. Complete your market analysis, then direct your Soldiers to success.
Lastly, but most importantly, provide motivation to your Soldiers. Offer them incentives and rewards. This is where most commanders fail. They forget the line in the Creed of the Noncommissioned Officer that states, “I will be fair and impartial when recommending both rewards and punishment.”
Motivation is still the key to success, as learned in basic training as a young Soldier. The only thing that has changed is you must now provide it as a leader. Make
your Soldiers feel like winners. Every chance you get, praise them in public or in front of their peers. You must provide the motivation to win. Take time to talk about incentives and rewards, don’t just focus on shortfalls.
Why is leadership important? Leadership, by definition, is the process of influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation to accomplish the mission and improve the organization. What some leaders forget when assigned to USAREC is that we have a live mission that cannot be compromised by substandard performance. Your most important responsibility as a center commander is leadership. It is our duty to provide the strength that ensures the continued success of America.
Good luck! You must choose what type of center commander you will be. Leadership comes in many forms, but does not change by definition. Center
commanders must be well rounded leaders that believe in the “be, know, do” philosophy and are tactically and technically proficient. Our nation depends on us to accomplish the mission, not at 50 percent of the time, but at 100 percent time. Don’t settle for anything less. When in charge, be in charge.
"Under my leadership, West Bend Center has been ranked the top recruiting center in Milwaukee Battalion for the past three years. Prior to West Bend, I was a center commander at the Sommerset, Pa., Center and an assistant commander in the Greensburg, Pa., Center. During my time at those centers, both consistently ranked in the top three recruiting centers in the Harrisburg Battalion. I give credit to my leadership for giving me the mentoring to be a successful center commander."
Sgt. 1st Class Weaver has a bachelor's in business and marketing and is working on his MBA.