ROCK ISLAND ARSENAL, Ill. - First Army brought its new commanders, senior enlisted leaders and Army National Guard advisors here this week to better equip them to carry out their duties.
In all, 20 Soldiers attended the three-day First Army New Command Team Orientation and Senior Advisors to Army National Guard Certification, a conference designed to assist in the transition of newly assigned brigade commanders, brigade command sergeants major and SRAAGs.
Each state and territory has a First Army SRAAG whose mission is to provide military advice and assistance to the state's Army National Guard commanders concerning organization, operations, training and readiness. The goal of the certification is to ensure the new SRAAGs are ready for their mission.
"They will be shown examples of what right looks like. They will understand regulations, policies, and it will be explained how promotion and retention boards operate," said Rick Fink, First Army assistant chief of staff for training. "They will be given insights into how each state is organized, so when something comes up, they know what options they have. This also gives them a chance to ask questions about their new duties."
Three senior SRAAGs were on hand to advise their new counterparts.
"These are guys that have been doing it for a while, and they will walk and talk the newly appointed SRAAGs through the nuances and give them a better understanding of both the big picture and specific roles and responsibilities," Fink said.
This is the first time the SRAAG certification and command team orientation have been held together, Fink said.
"One of the shortfalls First Army had was that the brigade and battalion commanders would get so busy they didn't really know about the SRAAGs and never thought about incorporating them into the fight," Fink said. "They forgot that they could just call someone down the street, or at least in the same state, who has insight and could champion their issue."
The new command team members also learned what battle rhythm they can expect in their positions, especially with regard to "Bold Shift," First Army's transformation over the next two years, Fink said.
"The divisions will go away, so this is a good opportunity for them to get an understanding of what the First Army commander thinks is important and what his staff is working on," Fink said. "It also enables them to get a much more senior view than what they're normally exposed to. It gives them insight into some of the bigger issues."
That's exactly what happened, according to Command St. Maj. Dennis Bellinger, the incoming command sergeant major for First Army Divison East's 157th Infantry Brigade.
"There has been a lot of good information put out and we've been given an overview of First Army. I will be able to take that back with me," Bellinger said. "I don't assume the command sergeant major role until Sept. 5, so I was fortunate to be able to get here before then."
One of the key topics of the conference was Army Total Force Policy, which requires the Army's active, Reserve and National Guard components to train to the same standard and operate toward a common goal. Attendees were also given an overview of First Army, the reserve component, the mobilization process, the Army's Ready and Resilient Campaign, and the Sexual Harassment and Assault Response and Prevention program.
On the final day, First Army Commander Lt. Gen. Michael Tucker addressed the attendees.
"That gave them a chance to see the commanding general's vision of where he envisions us six months or a year from now. It's a chance to reinforce his priorities," Fink said. "As the divisions go away, we need to strengthen our teamwork, and that has to include the SRAAGs. When we work together and know what each element brings to the fight, we will be more efficient."
In his address to the command team members and SRAAGs, Tucker stressed transformation and the way ahead.
"If we need to change the plan in some respects, we'll change the plan. But we're doing Bold Shift," he said. "It's been approved by the Department of the Army. They're cutting orders as we speak."
First Army, as U.S. Forces Command's designated coordinating authority for implementation of the Army Total Force Policy, partners with U.S. Army Reserve and Army National Guard leadership to advise, assist, and train reserve component formations to achieve Department of the Army-directed readiness requirements during both pre-and post-mobilization through multicomponent integrated collective training, enabling FORSCOM to provide combatant commanders trained and ready forces in support of worldwide requirements.
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