Over the past two decades, the focus of operational doctrine has changed from counterinsurgency to large-scale combat and multi-domain operations. Supporting these changes requires adjusting training processes to prepare units, leaders, and Soldiers to meet current and future challenges. As the Army lead and proponent for Training Management capabilities, the Training Management Directorate (TMD) within the Combined Arms Center-Training (CAC-T) develops and sustains Training Management doctrine, processes, products, and systems to enable units and institutions to train, educate, and develop Soldiers and Army civilians. TMD’s four divisions - Doctrine, Products, Systems, and Capabilities – works with HQDA G/5/7 (DAMO-TR), Army Commands, and across TRADOC to support Training Management across the Army.
Doctrine is the foundation for how the Army operates. Field Manual (FM) 7-0, Training, published in June 2021, provides critical guidance for how the Army trains Soldiers and units to compete, fight, and win. The Training Management Doctrine Division (TMDD) is responsible for developing, coordinating, and sustaining FM 7-0. Developing the manual was a collaborative effort between the TMDD authors, Army senior leaders, operational unit commanders, the Centers of Excellence (CoE), and the Combat Training Centers. The most significant change to previous training doctrine is the reintroduction of the Training Management Cycle. The cycle simplifies doctrine by using a framework of prioritizing, planning and preparing, executing, and evaluating and assessing training.
Inculcating new doctrine across the Army takes time and requires education and training at multiple echelons for units and individuals. TMDD supports leader education through the development of Unit Training Management (UTM) lesson plans. These lesson plans provide institutional instructors with doctrinally correct materials and a recommended program of instruction to teach UTM concepts to Soldiers attending Professional Military Education (PME). TMDD tailors the lesson plans to address the needs of leaders at differing points in their career and their leadership level. Each lesson includes practical exercises enabling officers, warrant officers, or noncommissioned officers (NCO) to learn and understand Training Management doctrine and be prepared to apply them upon return to operational units.
As part of TMD’s support to education and training, UTM Mobile Training Teams (MTT) are available to provide seminars supporting institutional instructor understanding as they prepare for the academic year. MTTs are also available to support operational unit training. Units can request in-person or virtual UTM MTT training workshops. TMD tailors MTT workshops to address the type of unit and the unit’s training objectives. A typical workshop walks the unit through the Training Management Cycle to assist commanders at the brigade and below in developing annual training guidance. Schools and units can request and schedule the MTT through the Unit Training Management page on the Army Training Network (ATN).
In addition to education and training, effective training management requires the right enabling tools. TMD developed and continues to sustain the Army Training Management System (ATMS) which provides a suite of tools to assist with access, management, and development of information critical to training management. ATMS consists of ATN, the Digital Training Management System (DTMS), and the ATMS Development Tool.
ATN serves as a portal to connect Soldiers and leaders with training and training management information, resources, and links in support of the Army. TMD’s Products Division (TMPD) manages the content delivered and hosted through ATN to ensure it remains current, relevant, and secure. ATN contains a wealth of information to include home station training enablers, leader development, proponent pages, recent changes to the Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT), and tutorials and “how to” videos.
Until a new system is fielded, DTMS remains the Army’s system of record for recording, tracking, and planning training. The Training Management Systems Division (TMSD) maintains and sustains DTMS through software releases to resolve issues or implement Department of the Army directed enhancements. With each software release, TMSD publishes release notes on ATN to inform users of functionality changes.
TMSD also sustains several training management tools on ATN developed in response to customer needs. Examples include the Small Unit Leader Tool (SULT) and the Digital Job Book (DJB) which are in line with the Sergeant Major of the Army’s “This is My Squad” initiative. The SULT allows commanders to provide junior leaders with streamlined access to manage their assigned Soldier’s individual training records (ITR) in DTMS. The DJB allows Soldiers to access and view their ITR in DTMS. Both are accessible through personal hand-held mobile devices using the individual’s username and password. Other examples include the Jump Record and Expert Badge training tabs. The Jump Record tab resulted from an XVIII Airborne Corps request to support jump record management and collection automation in DTMS. The Expert Badge training tab allows leaders and Soldiers to track Soldier preparation for the Expert Infantryman, Expert Field Medical, and Expert Soldier Badge competitions.
The ATMS Development Tool is another important component to assist with training management. TMSD maintains the Development Tool in direct coordination with TMPD. The Development Tool provides Army Proponents a capability to develop and sustain Combined Arms Training Strategies (CATS) based on the unit’s designed capabilities and functions in their Table of Organization and Equipment (TO&E). TMPD provides oversight for the development and delivery of CATS to the Operational Force with personnel supporting each of the Army’s CoEs. Once the proponent approves the CATS, units can find their proponent’s recommended training strategies using the CATS Viewer on ATN. As an integral part of the Long-Range Planning Tool (LRPT) in DTMS, CATS assist commanders and leaders with developing their training guidance. Units can find more information on CATS and request instruction or assistance through the CATS Knowledge Base on ATN.
The ATMS Development Tool also automates the development, approval, and delivery of Headquarters Department of the Army (HQDA) Standard Mission Essential Tasks Lists (METL). After proponents develop a recommended unit METL, TMPD executes the HQDA G3 Standards for Training Readiness Advisory Group (STRAG) process to gain Army G3 approval as a Standard METL. Once approved, units can see their HQDA METL using the METL Viewer. Commanders can also input their METL assessment after training events through DTMS.
While using the available ATMS tools, individuals may have questions or experience issues. Mitigating the impact of any issues or questions is the responsibility of TMSD’s ATMS Customer Support Center. ATMS Help Desk agents are available from 0500 – 2100 (Central) during the standard work week to assist ATMS users. Customers can call, email, or chat with Help Desk agents. In addition, there are a variety of lesson plans, guides, tutorials, and “how to” videos available on ATN’s Knowledge Bases that are an excellent means of conducting self-development or self-help to gain a better understanding of the available tools.
In addition to addressing current needs, TMD must look to the future to identify and support long-term requirements. The Training Management Capabilities Division (TMCD) supports future training initiatives such as the future Army Training Information System (ATIS). TMCD provides training management proponent input to the ATIS development and fielding effort. It also serves as the lead for ATMS to ATIS capability transfer, ensuring the Army retains needed capabilities for future systems. Finally, TMCD conducts training management capability development and integration analysis across the doctrine, organizational, training, material, leadership and education, personnel, facilities, and policy (DOTMLPF-P) domains. One example is the ongoing Operational Training Products Gap Analysis which identifies gaps between current and future requirements and recommends solutions to mitigate those gaps.
Training and training management are essential for the Army. TMD supports current training management requirements through doctrine development, training and education products, information access, and providing the tools necessary to effectively execute training management. It supports the future through the analysis of future requirements and by ensuring the requirements are integrated into developing systems. The result is continuing support to training management across the Army helping to build a combat ready force now and for the future.
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