Dan
12-08-2007, 14:03
RELEASE NUMBER: 071207-01
DATE POSTED: DECEMBER 7, 2007
Top USASOC NCO gives final thoughts
By Pfc. Anthony Hawkins Jr.
U.S. Army Special Operations Command Public Affairs Office
FORT BRAGG, N.C. (USASOC News Service, Dec. 7 , 2007) – Since the beginning of the Global War on Terrorism there have been many changes in the Army Special Operations community. At the forefront of many of those changes was Command Sgt. Maj. Michael T. Hall, who has served as the command sergeant major of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command since November 2001.
Hall, who will retire Dec. 10 after 31 years in service, has seen Army Special Operations Forces’ role progress in the GWOT over the past six years.
“There’s been a wider acceptance of SOF forces and their capabilities,” Hall said. “Afghanistan began with SOF forces and was almost exclusively SOF forces. They have played a significant role in Afghanistan, Iraq and, for that matter, all around the world.”
Special Operations is unique in that forces are spread out world-wide. This allows for a global impact when influencing how the Department of Defense operates, he said.
The impact SOF is having can be seen Army-wide, especially in areas like Iraq and Afghanistan.
“A lot of what’s going on in Iraq and the procedures we are using, like tribal engagement, can link directly back to what Special Forces have been suggesting for a while,” he said. “In Afghanistan, SOF participation with traditional units is having a great impact in both the east and south. They’re spread all over.”
The effect SOF forces are having in the fight against terrorism is due in a large part to the growth of the Special Operations community. Since Hall took responsibility of USASOC in November 2001, the command has grown not only in number of personnel, but also resources.
“When I became the USASOC sergeant major, we were not up to strength on many of our units, especially Special Forces,” he said. “Now, our authorizations have gone up significantly, so we’ve been able to grow the force.”
This growth has continued despite an increase in standards over the past several years.
“If you put the standards down side-by-side, the standards of 2001 and 2008, every one has been raised,” he said. “Whether that’s language, physical or weapons training, or any other kind of measurable war-fighting skill, they’ve gone up significantly.”
Hall attributes this increase in standards to mature leaders preparing Soldiers for war.
“I think our non commissioned officer corps is by far the best it’s ever been,” he said. “I’m lucky I’m a sergeant major now, because if I had to start against some of these folks, I might not be in this position.”
The freedom, authority and responsibility of NCOs in SOF are several characteristics that have always made them unique.
“For the most part, my experience is if you’re competent, you’re going to be listened to,” he said. “The majority of our commanders have always been that way. They have given us the responsibility to train, employ and fight our forces.”
Hall said this is because of the trust commanders have in their NCOs.
“As an NCO you get your responsibility from the commander, nowhere else,” he said. “So when the commander empowers you to be responsible for this or that, you demonstrate competence. That’s what SOF NCOs do; we take the ball and run with it.”
However, all the changes and growth over the past six years have not come without their share of difficulties. The biggest challenge Hall said USASOC has faced is keeping Soldiers properly resourced.
“That’s making sure they have the right equipment, adequate pay and that their families are well-taken care of,” he said. “Those three things add up to make sure they have worthwhile work.”
Even though USASOC is doing well in taking care of Soldiers and their families, Hall said there is always room to improve.
“We can always do better in how we care for our families and Soldiers overall, whether that’s dwell time, quality time or making sure they can go to the proper schools,” he said.
Part of taking care of Soldiers and their families also includes planning for the long-term.
“When we first got into this, we knew it was going to be a long war,” he said. “So, we tried to be smart and look at it from the long-term aspect. If you take a guy and deploy him, then he goes to school, then deploys again, he and his family are not going to be very happy. We try to look at that, and overall we’ve been successful. The mission is always going to come first, but I can honestly say we’ve spent a lot of time trying to treat people as people and not numbers.”
It seems the effort leaders have put in is paying off. Hall said he is constantly impressed with the work SOF Soldiers are doing around the world.
“I read the (situational reports) everyday, from our forces around the world, Columbia, the Philippines,” he said. “The remarkable has become the routine of what our Soldiers are doing out there. Every guy, from the newest one to the oldest one, is doing remarkable things that they could write books or make movies about. It’s truly humbling.”
Hall is not worried that the quality of SOF Soldiers will drop, even though the community continues to grow. However, there are some things he said leaders need to be aware of and prepare for.
“I think as we grow, I wonder, are we going to have the equipment and resources we’re going to need to train?” he said. “That’s the big unknown because no one will know what our requirements are going to be.”
While some of what the future holds is unknown, Hall said leaders also need to plan for the long run.
“We can look ahead and say we’re going to be involved at this present level of engagement for several years,” he said. “We have to accept that and plan our resources to last. We can’t pretend that it’s going to end tomorrow.”
After six years in USASOC and serving in the midst of an ever-changing war, Hall had some words of wisdom to leave with future SOF Soldiers.
“The hardest thing is to do what’s right and not easy,” he said. “There’s always a danger, especially when there’s a war going on, of doing the easy thing for today when you won’t see the ramifications of it tomorrow.”
--usasoc--
DATE POSTED: DECEMBER 7, 2007
Top USASOC NCO gives final thoughts
By Pfc. Anthony Hawkins Jr.
U.S. Army Special Operations Command Public Affairs Office
FORT BRAGG, N.C. (USASOC News Service, Dec. 7 , 2007) – Since the beginning of the Global War on Terrorism there have been many changes in the Army Special Operations community. At the forefront of many of those changes was Command Sgt. Maj. Michael T. Hall, who has served as the command sergeant major of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command since November 2001.
Hall, who will retire Dec. 10 after 31 years in service, has seen Army Special Operations Forces’ role progress in the GWOT over the past six years.
“There’s been a wider acceptance of SOF forces and their capabilities,” Hall said. “Afghanistan began with SOF forces and was almost exclusively SOF forces. They have played a significant role in Afghanistan, Iraq and, for that matter, all around the world.”
Special Operations is unique in that forces are spread out world-wide. This allows for a global impact when influencing how the Department of Defense operates, he said.
The impact SOF is having can be seen Army-wide, especially in areas like Iraq and Afghanistan.
“A lot of what’s going on in Iraq and the procedures we are using, like tribal engagement, can link directly back to what Special Forces have been suggesting for a while,” he said. “In Afghanistan, SOF participation with traditional units is having a great impact in both the east and south. They’re spread all over.”
The effect SOF forces are having in the fight against terrorism is due in a large part to the growth of the Special Operations community. Since Hall took responsibility of USASOC in November 2001, the command has grown not only in number of personnel, but also resources.
“When I became the USASOC sergeant major, we were not up to strength on many of our units, especially Special Forces,” he said. “Now, our authorizations have gone up significantly, so we’ve been able to grow the force.”
This growth has continued despite an increase in standards over the past several years.
“If you put the standards down side-by-side, the standards of 2001 and 2008, every one has been raised,” he said. “Whether that’s language, physical or weapons training, or any other kind of measurable war-fighting skill, they’ve gone up significantly.”
Hall attributes this increase in standards to mature leaders preparing Soldiers for war.
“I think our non commissioned officer corps is by far the best it’s ever been,” he said. “I’m lucky I’m a sergeant major now, because if I had to start against some of these folks, I might not be in this position.”
The freedom, authority and responsibility of NCOs in SOF are several characteristics that have always made them unique.
“For the most part, my experience is if you’re competent, you’re going to be listened to,” he said. “The majority of our commanders have always been that way. They have given us the responsibility to train, employ and fight our forces.”
Hall said this is because of the trust commanders have in their NCOs.
“As an NCO you get your responsibility from the commander, nowhere else,” he said. “So when the commander empowers you to be responsible for this or that, you demonstrate competence. That’s what SOF NCOs do; we take the ball and run with it.”
However, all the changes and growth over the past six years have not come without their share of difficulties. The biggest challenge Hall said USASOC has faced is keeping Soldiers properly resourced.
“That’s making sure they have the right equipment, adequate pay and that their families are well-taken care of,” he said. “Those three things add up to make sure they have worthwhile work.”
Even though USASOC is doing well in taking care of Soldiers and their families, Hall said there is always room to improve.
“We can always do better in how we care for our families and Soldiers overall, whether that’s dwell time, quality time or making sure they can go to the proper schools,” he said.
Part of taking care of Soldiers and their families also includes planning for the long-term.
“When we first got into this, we knew it was going to be a long war,” he said. “So, we tried to be smart and look at it from the long-term aspect. If you take a guy and deploy him, then he goes to school, then deploys again, he and his family are not going to be very happy. We try to look at that, and overall we’ve been successful. The mission is always going to come first, but I can honestly say we’ve spent a lot of time trying to treat people as people and not numbers.”
It seems the effort leaders have put in is paying off. Hall said he is constantly impressed with the work SOF Soldiers are doing around the world.
“I read the (situational reports) everyday, from our forces around the world, Columbia, the Philippines,” he said. “The remarkable has become the routine of what our Soldiers are doing out there. Every guy, from the newest one to the oldest one, is doing remarkable things that they could write books or make movies about. It’s truly humbling.”
Hall is not worried that the quality of SOF Soldiers will drop, even though the community continues to grow. However, there are some things he said leaders need to be aware of and prepare for.
“I think as we grow, I wonder, are we going to have the equipment and resources we’re going to need to train?” he said. “That’s the big unknown because no one will know what our requirements are going to be.”
While some of what the future holds is unknown, Hall said leaders also need to plan for the long run.
“We can look ahead and say we’re going to be involved at this present level of engagement for several years,” he said. “We have to accept that and plan our resources to last. We can’t pretend that it’s going to end tomorrow.”
After six years in USASOC and serving in the midst of an ever-changing war, Hall had some words of wisdom to leave with future SOF Soldiers.
“The hardest thing is to do what’s right and not easy,” he said. “There’s always a danger, especially when there’s a war going on, of doing the easy thing for today when you won’t see the ramifications of it tomorrow.”
--usasoc--