The Army released the updated Field Manual (FM) 7-0 on June 14. The updated FM represents a shift in Army training doctrine and includes several changes, including the reintroduction of the Training Management Cycle as the core framework for unit training.
One of the stages in the Training Management Cycle is prioritizing training. The FM states that “Prioritizing training acknowledges that units cannot achieve or sustain trained proficiency on every task simultaneously due to limitations of time or the availability of training resources.”
Essentially, the FM, and the Army, recognizes that unit commanders are always working to balance mission requirements and the resources available to keep their units trained. The Army’s proponent for training management, the Training Management Directorate (TMD) not only ‘wrote the book’ on training, they can assist with the training management process by providing a mobile training team (MTT).
The MTT walks commanders and unit leaders through the process. When the MTT is requested, TMD works with unit leadership to customize the experience based on the unit type and the commander’s training goals. The MTT visit includes hands-on workshops with specific breakout sessions designed to help the unit select “battle tasks” for platoon and below formations, as well as develop unit training plans at the company, battalion, and brigade levels.
In April, the MTT traveled to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Ala. to present a new four-day program to the 17th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion (CSSB).
During the visit, the battalion leadership used the workshop and practical exercises to build their FY22 long-range training plan in accordance with FM 7-0. The MTT assisted the unit with the process of prioritizing Mission Essential Tasks (METs), determining the appropriate weapons systems to qualify and the collective live fire echelon and task proficiencies to achieve.
The MTT efforts were considered a success, with many of the commanders and staff expressing they wished they had more exposure to training management during their respective professional and senior leader courses.
The 17th CSSB command team, Lt. Col. Jerimiah Hull and Command Sgt. Maj. Kathy Cade, said that they thought the seminar was “where the rubber meets the road,” and that leaders at all levels need exposure to training management early in their military careers.
From a company perspective, Capt. Daniel Campa, commander of the 545th Military Police Detachment, said he was not sure what to expect going into the seminar. After the seminar’s first hour, he said he realized the seminar was going to address his needs and meet the unit’s objectives.
“In particular, the training helped me in learning and applying a process for determining the unit’s priorities,” Campa said. “Since training time is limited, especially considering my unit conducts military police operations daily, it helped me understand how to prioritize the proficiencies required to deliver the capabilities needed for the mission.”
“I think this was the most rewarding seminar I have instructed in my twelve years with the program,” said Jimmy Davis, TMD’s MTT Lead.
Davis said that the keys to success were the 17th CSSB’s command emphasis and dedicated training time. The unit’s involvement, starting with the battalion commander and battalion command sergeant major, helped emphasize how to train a unit that operates every day.
The highlight of the MTT was the company commanders’ backbrief to the battalion commander, during which company commanders briefed their priorities and the events they would need to train those priorities to make the battalion successful. This exercise allowed commanders to see opportunities for multi-echelon training and to better use time and resources to achieve their goals.
At the unit’s request, the MTT also provided a two-day Digital Training Management System (DTMS) Operators Course. The DTMS course provided battalion operators the chance to improve their understanding of the system capabilities by working through the Training and Readiness Dashboards. The course also showed operators how to assist commanders with training management and with implementing DTMS standard operating procedures.
For more information on how to schedule the seminar at no cost to the unit, follow this CAC-enabled link to the Army Training Network (ATN): Unit Training Management MTT Request
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