FORT CARSON, Colo. (April 30, 2013) -- Maj. Gen. Richard P. Mustion, commanding general, U.S. Army Human Resources Command, talked to Fort Carson officers about upcoming changes in Force Structure and officer evaluation report methodology at McMahon Theater, April 30.
"Maj. Gen. Mustion, the commander of HRC, came in today to do what we call a road show tour, and there are a lot of changes going on in the personnel world right now," said Lt. Col. Michael McGregor, officer in charge, personnel, 4th Infantry Division. "There are some updates to some things in the officer evaluation report and promotion system. He just wanted to travel around to different posts and give a senior perspective on the changes that are going to take place."
Mustion talked about the current OERs, and its applicability.
"This current system has been in place since 1997, and it's a very mature system," Mustion said. "We all are very comfortable with it, and it is accomplishing the unit's intent. However, it is not reflecting our current environment."
One of the major changes is a different evaluation report form for different levels of command.
"The report we are assessing for a lieutenant isn't going to be the same for a battalion commander or general," Mustion said. "A lieutenant doesn't have the same responsibilities as a senior leader." The three forms of reports will be company, field grade and senior level.
Another change to the OER, as directed by the Secretary of the Army, is the responsibilities of the rater and senior rater.
The rater only writes about the officer's manner of performance while the senior rater reflects on the officer's potential, Mustion said. There will be training teams, starting late summer, providing instructions and guidance on the style of writing these new bullets.
"We will wait until we feel that the force is fully trained before implementing the new reporting system," Mustion said. "We will train to standard, not to time."
The third major change Mustion talked about was broadening leaders' experiences, providing the force with a deeper depth of knowledge in its officer corps.
A lot of officers have been in the same brigade their whole careers, and this is a result of the combat operations, Mustion said. The new timeline now shows officers attending the required career course before attaining their next promotion. In addition, they will be participating in a broadening position, such as serving at a strategic command center, to expand their knowledge and help them understand the bigger picture of combat operations.
"I want the officers to understand the importance in the changes to the officer evaluation report, and how it contributes to leader development in our Army," Mustion said. "The most fundamental change is that now we are going to assess officers, based on our leader's attributes and competency, as outlined in our doctrine. It's going to thrust leader development to the forefront of all of our officers, and recognize the important investment we all make. What that entails is that we truly assess our officers consistent with our Army doctrine, indentifying our very best performers and identifying those officers with the greatest potential."
Mustion also discussed officers about force shaping in the upcoming years. The Army currently has 539,000 Soldiers, officer and enlisted, in its ranks. By the end of fiscal year 2017, the numbers need to be at 490,000, which are based off of the Congress budget.
"The Army decides who stays and who goes," Mustion said. "It will be a gradual slope, and we're going to control the pace."
Mustion talked about sustaining combat proficiency, and properly taking care of those Soldiers that will be departing the service.
"Unlike the 90's, we'll treat Soldiers and Families with respect during their separation, and recognize their service; while maintaining combat proficiency," Mustion said. "We would love to keep every Soldier in the Army."
For more information contact your personnel office, utilize the HRC website at www.hrc.army.mil.
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