CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Understanding the role logistics plays in readiness is tremendously important for Army senior leaders, said the head of the Army Command responsible for providing global materiel solutions to the joint force.
Army Materiel Command's Commander Gen. Dennis L. Via talked logistics, maintenance and readiness with 15 Army Fellows at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Public Policy in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Feb. 17.
"As strategic leaders, I think it is important for you to know about logistics. I find that the more senior you are, the more heavily engaged you are in understanding logistics, sustainment and readiness," he said.
The chief of staff of the Army has three priorities and the first is readiness, Via noted.
"You don't get to readiness unless you understand maintenance and sustainment," he said. "Every Soldier has the basic task of move, shoot, communicate. All three of those require readiness and maintenance. You can't move unless your platform is ready. You can't shoot unless weapons function properly and have the proper munitions. You can't communicate, which is a critical component of the mission, unless you have the systems to do so."
In the face of reduced resources, leaders are faced with the delicate dance of providing readiness today while also preparing for tomorrow, Via said.
"The future force is where we critically have to have our senior leaders thinking about and making strategic investments during a declining environment," he said. "Since I've been in the Army, I've had the challenge of balancing resources against requirements. I've always had more requirements than resources."
Via personally mentors four Army Fellows with whom he meets about three times a year.
"Our Fellows are tackling challenging issues for our Army, and their research is invaluable," he said.
Col. Tim Walsh, a National Security Fellow at Harvard University, said the Army gains better and more open-minded leaders from the Fellows program.
"Fellows learn to be open to different ways of thinking and more critical, out-of-the-military-box thinking, and form bonds that will last even after their military career is over," Walsh said.
While working in logistics at the U.S. Central Command, Walsh said he heard Via speak on materiel solutions and knows AMC's mission firsthand.
"AMC was behind the expertise, knowledge, experience and materiel to resource a lot of the requirements in that area," Walsh said, reflecting on train and equip missions he witnessed there.
As a Fellow, Walsh said he has enjoyed hearing senior leaders like Via and feels a great responsibility to use the lessons learned when he finishes the program.
"Any time a senior leader visits here, it reminds you that this is a great opportunity the Army has given you," Walsh said. "It's never lost on us. It's a great experience with lots of responsibility."
The Fellows included Army, Army Reserve, Army National Guard and DOD civilians who currently study at Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Tufts University.
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