SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (15 March 2017) - More than 100 leaders and planners gathered at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, March 6-10, for a Mission Command Training Program (MCTP) seminar hosted by the U.S. Army's Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command (SDDC). The seminar focused on making SDDC's operational staff synchronization process more effective and provided an opportunity to improve SDDC's command planning, communication and staff synchronization through a full understanding of mission command.
"This is probably the most important training event I'll host all year," said Maj. Gen. Kurt Ryan, SDDC commanding general.
According to Ryan, the MCTP seminar will improve the command's capability to successfully execute its wartime mission.
"We've got to be able to plan, execute and provide effective mission command for large-scale joint force deployments," said Ryan, "and this training will help to ensure that, if called, SDDC is ready to fight tonight."
To ensure his staff got the most from the training event, Ryan brought in a team of experts from the Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, to lead part of the training.
Operations Group-Sierra (OG-S) conducts about 10 MCTP seminars every year for brigade and higher-level sustainment units such as theater sustainment commands, expeditionary sustainment commands and sustainment brigades. The team also supports five warfighter exercises annually.
In addition to its band of experienced trainers, the OG-S team included an experienced senior mentor, retired Maj. Gen. Yves Fontaine, who provided senior leader insight to the discussion.
"We're here to help the unit see themselves, improve performance, recognize challenges, and develop their leaders and teams," said Lt. Col. Erik Hilberg, one of the OG-S trainers on hand for the seminar.
The MCTP training audience is much wider than just the SDDC staff, explained the seminar's lead planner, U.S. Navy Cmdr. Jason Brianas from SDDC's operations directorate.
"The seminar is also designed to improve SDDC's Total Force capability," said Brianas. "In addition to participants from the SDDC headquarters staff and all five of our active duty transportation brigades, we have leaders and staff planners from SDDC's Reserve force, the Deployment Support Command."
"It's critical that DSC is involved in this process," confirmed Ryan.
Maj. James Quillen, a mobilized Reservist serving a year-long tour with DSC as a plans officer, agrees. "Few people seem to have a very firm grasp on what mission command is, so this is a great opportunity to ensure we are all operating with a common understanding," said Quillen. "In time of war, there is no difference between SDDC's active duty or Reserve Soldiers because we are all working together to accomplish the same mission."
Effective mission command helps to create the common understanding that Quillen describes.
Col. Matthew Morris, OG-S chief observer and trainer, explained that while the concept of mission command is not well understood, it is critical to well-performing organizations.
Referencing Army leadership doctrine, Morris explained, "Mission command conveys purpose without providing detailed direction. It provides the greatest possible freedom of action to subordinates, facilitating their abilities to develop the situation, adapt, and act decisively in dynamic conditions within the commander's intent. It focuses on empowering subordinate leaders and sharing necessary information."
The mission command training presented by the OG-S team created great interest and active discussion among the seminar participants, providing a solid foundation for the remainder of the training conducted during the seminar.
In addition to group exercises and topic-specific breakout sessions, the OG-S trainers and subject matter experts from the SDDC staff also briefed a wide variety of additional topic areas. Subjects included the SDDC deployment process, rail operations, strategic and commercial sealift, contracts, Cyber planning and the DSC mobilization process, among others.
"As a starting point to the synchronization effort this week, we realized that the additional material would add great value to our understanding of the staff synchronization process," said Brianas.
"Leadership saw the seminar as a springboard to drive further mission analysis and staff planning throughout the year in an effort to get the staff ready for future exercises and requirements, allowing us to come together more effectively as a total force," Brianas added.
Many participants commented that they thought the seminar was a valuable event and would pay dividends for the command in the future.
"We have a leadership team that really gets it and is moving the command in the right direction," said Clay Carter, director of SDDC's human resource directorate.
"But, we have to determine how we will maintain the gains we've made here over the long term," cautioned Carter. "We have to keep up that momentum."
Noting that one of the main principles of mission command is shared understanding, Len Grzybowski from SDDC's Transportation Engineering Agency added, "It's important that the information presented here in this seminar is carried forward by leaders and supervisors to the entire SDDC workforce."
Ryan concurs, "It's been an incredibly productive week of training. Now we've got to take what we've learned and put it into action."
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