DIRECTIONS: 1. Reply to FOUR peer discussion papers (attached) with a minimum of 4-5 sentences. 2. Utilize active voice and consider your purpose and audience. 3. The assignment evaluation criteria: VIEW RUBRIC (attached) and read below. RUBRIC • Understanding of Readings and Outside Relevance: Discussion postings display an excellent understanding of the required readings and underlying concepts including correct use of terminology. Postings integrate an outside resource, or relevant research, or specific real-life application (work experience, prior coursework, etc.) to support important points. Well-edited quotes are cited appropriately. No more than 10% of the posting is a direct quotation. • Participation in the Learning Community: Discussion postings are at midpoint or later in the term or contributions are only posted on the last day of the term and -respond to most postings of peers several days after the initial discussion - discussion postings respond to most postings of peers outside a 48 hour period -discussion postings are distributed throughout the term (not posted all on one day or only at the beginning or only on the last day of the term) - three replies generated with essay submitted. • Etiquette in Dialogue with Peers: Written interactions on the discussion board show respect and sensitivity to peers' gender, cultural and linguistic background, political and religious beliefs, and sexual orientation. Adherence to custom, courtesies’, and basic email etiquette when address peers. • Quality of Writing and Proofreading: Written responses are free of grammatical, spelling or punctuation errors. The style of writing facilitates communication. • References: References contains more than required scholarly academic reference and text reference. Three or more provided. #1 of #4 Criteria 20 Points Discussion postings display an excellent understanding of the required readings and underlying concepts including correct use of terminology. Postings integrate an outside resource, or relevant research, or specific real-life application (work experience, prior coursework, etc.) to support important points. Well-edited quotes are cited appropriately. No more than 10% of the posting is a directquotation. 20 Points Discussion postings are at midpoint or later in the term or contributions are only posted on the last day of the term and:-respond to most postings of peers several days after the initial discussion- discussion postings respond to most postings of peers outside a 48 hour period-discussion postings are distributed throughout the term (not posted all on one day or only at the beginning or only on the last day of the term)- three replies generated with essay submitted 20 Points Written interactions on the discussion board show respect and sensitivity to peers' gender, cultural and linguistic background, political and religious beliefs, and sexual orientation. Adherence to custom, courtesies’, and basic email etiquette when address peers. 20 Points Written responses are free of grammatical, spelling or punctuation errors. The style of writing facilitates communication. 20 Points References contains more than required scholarly academic reference and text reference. Three or more provided. References DISCUSSION ASSESSMENT RUBRIC Levels of Achievement Total 100 Points Understanding of Readings and Outside Relevance Participation in the Learning Community Etiquette in Dialogue with Peers Quality of Writing and Proofreading Running head: CHARACTERISTICS OF A STAFF NCO 1 Characteristics of Staff NCO Running head: CHARACTERISTICS OF A STAFF NCO 2 Abstract The purpose of this essay is to provide a clear and concise overview of the characteristic that are essential to being a successful Staff Noncommissioned Officer (NCO). The characteristics that will be covered throughout this is essay will include: competence, flexibility, critical thinking, self-confidence, and communication. While, outlining these characteristics a brief explanation as to importance of each of these characteristics, and how each of these attributes relate to the duties and responsibilities of the Staff NCO will be provided. In addition, I will highlight a few of the duties and responsibilities associated with serving as a Staff NCO also. Running head: CHARACTERISTICS OF A STAFF NCO 3 Characteristics of a Staff NCO In 2014, while stationed in South Korea, I spent much of my time serving as the Training Room NCO for Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 23rd CBRN Battalion. Throughout my time serving in this position, I recall spending an immense amount of time working both with and alongside many of the staff shops within our Battalion, such as S-1, S-3, and S-4. While, I certainly can’t pretend to have any idea as to just how mentally and physically taxing it is to work in a staff position such as these. I do know that based on my own observations and the amount time I spent working alongside those Soldiers, that many of the Officers and NCOs within those sections were typically under an enormous amount of stress on an almost daily basis, because of serving in these types of positions. By the end of my tour in Korea, I ultimately came to two conclusions about working in a staff section; it’s no walk in the park, and not every NCO can work in that type of environment. However, what about those who can work in this type of environment? Or even those who seem to almost thrive under this sort of immense pressure? Are they inhuman? Absolutely, not! However, I do believe these types of NCOs possess a unique set of characteristics, or attributes, about them which allow them to be successful within these extremely challenging, and high-OPTEMPO environment. So, today we’re going to explorer the five characteristic that I believe are essential to an NCOs success within a staff section. Running head: CHARACTERISTICS OF A STAFF NCO 4 Competence As a Staff NCO, competence should more than just your watchword, it should be an inevitable part of your daily life, and who you are as a Noncommissioned Officer. The term competence is defined as the ability to do something successfully or efficiently (XXX, XXX). Therefore, if you want to be a successful Staff NCO you must first be successful and/or efficient at performing your primary duties and responsibilities in all facets of your area of expertise. A true subject matter aspect of your chosen profession. Why is competence so important you might ask? Consider the primary function of the G-3 (S-3), which is planning and operations. Meaning that the S-3 Staff NCO oversees the development of things such as fragmentary, warning, and operation orders for integral unit missions, such as the movement/maneuvering of the unit and its resources on a battlefield. While, the Commanding Officer of the unit is the ultimate decision maker in these instances, the Commander is the not the one who published these orders, it’s S-3. Therefore, having competent Staff NCOs, one who is not only subject matter expert, but NCOs who fully understands the commander’s intent and how to articulate that intent to the subordinate units can greatly impact the overall success of the unit’s missions. Flexibility Another, essential characteristic to being a successful Staff NCO is being flexible. This can be achieved by not allowing yourself to become overwhelmed or derailed when things such as requirements and/or priorities suddenly change at a moment notice. It’s evitable! These types of things are going to happen, sometimes daily for a various assortment of reasons. However, as Running head: CHARACTERISTICS OF A STAFF NCO 5 a Staff NCO, you can’t allow these sudden changes to hinder you from performing your duties and responsibilities to best of your abilities. As you have one of the most important jobs within your respective section, which is being a senior advisor to the Commanding Officer within your area of expertise. Critical Thinking The ability to recognize and effectively solve problems is an essential skill for leaders (Department of the Army, 2011). Furthermore, as a Staff NCO you’re going to be presented with a lot of problems. Sometimes the solution to these problems are obvious, and can be solved quickly based on a leader’s knowledge and experiences. However, not all decisions are that simple, and will require much more thought and objectivity on your part as a Staff NCO. This process of applying objective analysis and evaluation for a problem in order to generate a solution is known as critical thinking. Throughout the military, critical thinking is approached in either one of two ways; adaptively (which means to draw from previous similar circumstances) or innovatively (coming up with completely new/innovative ideas) (Department of the Army, 2011). Therefore, when you consider the degree of difficult to the problems in which many Commanders face daily, it easy to see how vital a Staff NCO can be to the overall success of the unit’s missions. Self-Confidence Another, essential characteristic to being a successful Staff NCO is being self-confident. As a Staff NCO, you must understand your role within the decision-making process. Although, they are certainly a viable aspect to the decision-making process, it is again the Commander who has the final say as to what direction or course of action the unit will take in these situations. Do Running head: CHARACTERISTICS OF A STAFF NCO 6 not view this sort of rejection as failure. Take everything in stride. Find a way to learn from that experience, build upon it professionally, and come back eager and ready to take a crack at it the next time around. Communication Lastly, as a Staff NCO, being able to articulate yourself orally, in writing, and visually, is absolutely paramount to your success within a staff section. Again, this all goes back to your primary duties and responsibilities as a Staff NCO, which is providing the Commander with timely, accurate information as it pertains to area of expertise. However, what use is that information if no one outside you knows what to do with it? C.W. Ceram once said, “Genius is the ability to reduce the complicated to the simple” (AZ Quotes, n.d.). In my opinion, the same principal holds true when it comes to communicating effectively. The better you are at taking complex ideas and information, and conveying this information in a way in which is simple and easily, the more effective you can be as Staff NCO. Conclusion To summarize, there is absolutely nothing easy about serving as a Staff NCO in today’s Army, and it’s certainly not for the faint-hearted. As a Staff NCO, you have to be competent, flexible, a critical thinker, self-confident, and able to communicate effectively, in order to succeed in the fast-paced world of staff operations. While, it’s certainly a very challenging arena in which to work in, I also believe it can be one of the most rewarding also. In my personal experience, most NCOs who can perform at an extremely high-level in a staff section have often promoted faster than those who didn’t perform as well or hadn’t ever served in a staff level position at all. However, when you start to consider all of the very aspects one Running head: CHARACTERISTICS OF A STAFF NCO 7 must possess in order to truly thrive in this type of environment, it’s easy to see why the Army might promote these hard-charging individuals a litter quicker than they would many of their peers. Running head: CHARACTERISTICS OF A STAFF NCO 8 References AZ Quotes. (n.d.). Retrieved May 08, 2017, from http://www.azquotes.com/author/31822- C_W_Ceram Competence [Def. 1]. (n.d.). In English Oxford Living Dictionaries. Retrieved May 08, 2017, from https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/competence United States, Department of the Army (2011), Army Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures 5-0.1 Command and Staff Officer Guide (p. 2-2) Fort Leavenworth, KS United States, Department of the Army (2011), Army Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures 5-0.1 Command and Staff Officer Guide (p. 11-1) Fort Leavenworth, KS