Army defines identity of professionalism

By Ms. Marie Berberea (TRADOC)April 3, 2015

Army professionals
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT SILL, Okla. -- The Army has been preaching professionalism for years now, but like any other word in the English language, it is meaningless unless the definition is understood.

"We do consider ourselves professionals, so what does it really mean to be a professional?" asked Col. John Delaney, 428th Field Artillery Brigade commander.

Delaney and Sgt. Maj. David Stewart, Center for the Army Profession and Ethic, clarified what the Army believes a professional is to a group of officers, noncommissioned officers and warrant officers March 26 inside Sheridan Theater.

Senior leaders also received training on the topic March 27.

Stewart asked the Soldiers if they felt identity was important, as in what it means to be a Soldier; a battle buddy; a professional.

"The fastest way to tick someone off is to tell them they're not who they think they are.

"Anybody in the Army ever hear the term, 'you're acting like a private?' Then you start thinking about what it means to be a private; this person sees you as a private; then you start changing your behavior so they don't see you acting like a private anymore.

"These are identity statements," said Stewart.

To further his point he asked the audience to participate in an experiment.

"If you doubt how important identity is, the next time you're with a significant other tell them they suck at something they think they're really, really good at."

The group laughed, but Stewart went on to serious examples of how identity shapes decisions.

For example, for many Soldiers a battle buddy is someone who looks out for the person on their left and right.

He posed the question "What if those Soldiers are doing something wrong and they're asking their battle buddy to go along with it, or to cover up for them?

In the case of the Maywand District killings in Afghanistan, Pfc. Justin Stoner wanted his peers to stop smoking hash around him and he reported the drug use. He was then beaten by Soldiers in his platoon and subsequently an investigation led to the discovery of some of the Soldiers murdering innocent Afghan civilians and collecting "trophies."

Stewart explained while yes, Soldiers need to be able to trust each other, defending the Constitution of the United States is what is most important.

He stressed how the Army wins wars is just as important as winning them.

"There's a Constitutional need for our Army. We answer to civilian leadership. They control the purse strings. And when we give them reason to question us they can pull on those purse strings and they can write laws."

Delaney agreed and said it is part of a Soldier's mission: to fight ethically.

"The Army fights our nations' wars. In order to do that the American people have to trust us to do that. So the Army ethics boil down to trust. We have a motto do you live by that motto? The Army motto is 'This we'll defend.' Are you ready to live that motto?"

As recently as June of last year, an Army brigadier general was found guilty of sexual misconduct, stripped of two ranks and forced to retire. The Army is hoping to avoid that type of misconduct as these Solders move up in command.

"It's not just a Soldier problem. It's not just an NCO problem. It's an officer, NCO, Soldier problem and we as a group, as a service, need to fix this problem. It starts with education and getting people to internalize what it truly means to be a professional," said Delaney.