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Cover: U.S. Army Forces Command’s Command Sgt. Maj. Michael A. Grinston speaks
to Soldiers of E Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team,
101st Airborne Division at Ft. Campbell, 22 May, 2018. Photo by Sgt. Steven Lopez.
iii
Preface
Tis report documents research and analysis conducted as part of a project titled
Te
Value of Experience in the Enlisted Force
, cosponsored by the Assistant Secretary of the
Army for Manpower and Reserve Afairs and by the Deputy Chief of Staf, G-1, U.S.
Army. Te purpose of the project was to provide information on the relationships
among tenure, experience, and productivity within key noncommissioned ofcer lead-
ership positions and to inform ongoing decisions about achieving reductions in Regu-
lar Army end strength that reduce personnel costs while maintaining or improving the
quality of the noncommissioned ofcer corps.
Te Project Unique Identifcation Code for the project that produced this docu-
ment is HQD156887.
Tis research was conducted within RAND Arroyo Center’s Personnel, Training,
and Health Program. RAND Arroyo Center, part of the RAND Corporation, is a fed-
erally funded research and development center sponsored by the United States Army.
Te RAND Corporation operates under a “Federal-Wide Assurance”
(FWA00003425) and complies with the
Code of Federal Regulations for the Protection
of Human Subjects Under United States Law
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tion Committee) and by the U.S. Army. Te views of sources utilized in this study are
solely their own and do not represent the ofcial policy or position of DoD or the U.S.
Government.
v
Contents
Preface .iii
Figures .vii
Tables ..ix
Summary ..........xi
Acknowledgments ...........xv
Abbreviations ...xvii
CHAPTER ONE
Introduction .......1
Achieving Competence Trough Experience .......1
Relevant Measures of Experience ........2
Description of Methodology ..2
CHAPTER TWO
Literature Indicates Good Leaders Can Increase Efectiveness.....5
Academic Literature on Leadership.....5
Te Literature on Army Leadership and Attrition .7
Conclusions .........8
CHAPTER THREE
Leader Experience and Soldier Performance ....9
Performance Indicators .......12
Results: Attrition ..16
Results: Promotion 19
Results: Demotion 19
Defning Junior-Senior Army Personnel Relationships .......21
CHAPTER FOUR
Does the Army Capture Good Leaders in the Promotion Process ...........23
Army Doctrine Defnes Leadership Requirements ..........23
Qualitative Interviews with Soldiers Aligned with Doctrine ...........24。。。。。。