Training a Headquarters Company

The mission of a headquarters company commander and aline company commander remain the same - train the troops, and do it well.

Commanding a company is the most satisfying job in the Army -ask anyone who has. Now you find yourself in command of a headquarters and headquarters company (HHC). Everyone tells you how truly rewarding it is to have this comma114 everyone tells you how fortunate you are, and wishes you the best of luck; and some honestly tell you that it is one of the most demanding challenges that you may ever have. But no one tells you how to train this company-ask anyone!

As the commander, you must understand the nature of the company. Most of the responsibility for individual training falls on your shoulders. Although training directives originate from higher headquarters, they are usually oriented toward a mission goal for that day and are not part of any organized program.

Recognizing that most of the daily efforts and energies in HHCs are not battlefield oriented, it is most essential that time identified for training is efficiently and effectively used only for that purpose. Staff responsibilities, conflicting priorities, and personalities put you in the middle of the biggest tug-of-war imaginable. With this in mind, the only assumption must be mentioned -that you enjoy a sufficient amount of support to get this job done. Without the support you should seriously consider another job before the resulting polarization destroys unit cohesion. Fundamentals. Certain fundamentals are currently being stressed in the Army training program. They are sound, and for the most part hold true in a headquarters company. Some modifications are required and will be explained when applicable.

Performance-oriented (hands-on) training must be applied whenever possible. We cannot expect to succeed by issuing soldier’s manuals and operator-level maintenance manuals to every soldier with an order to learn the contents. All training must be focused on either identified weaknesses or on those tasks yet to be tested. Do not retrain on tasks which have already been satisfactorily completed. Some commanders train and retrain on the same tasks while ignoring others because of personal choice or for professional gain.

Train for the more crucial tasks before scheduling less important ones. Medical personnel may disagree, but applying a tourniquet usually should not be considered as important as marksmanship and weapons qualification. Once tasks are identified and prioritized, the instructor must be qualified, and be well prepared. Backward planning and lead time are key elements.

Following instruction, the results must be recorded in the job book to complete the loop.

Modified decentralization is required in a headquarters company. With eleven or more sections, the strain of managing a training schedule, of having the same training aids available for every section, and of having the expertise in every section to effectively teach a variety of tasks make total decentralization not only an implausible alternative, but also an administrative headache. Some argue that all NCOs should be experts at teaching all the tasks that their men must know. Let’s face the realities of time, expertise, and training aids. The PSNCO cannot do his job and train his 71L, 71D, 75B and 19E soldiers! Remembering that it takes several hours of preparation for one hour of instruction you cannot expect this supervisor to invest the time required and still do his job right. Our Army has become too specialized even at the battalion level. Those who believe that a supervisor can do all this have lost touch with reality. They don’t realize the enormous requirements placed on staffs by the higher echelons. Thus the question becomes, “How much decentralization, and when should it occur?” The answer lies in your training program and how it is implemented. Individual Training. Individual training is composed of those tasks that a soldier needs to know in order to be tactically and technically proficient. These tasks can be divided into two groups-mmmon tasks and MOS peculiar. This division also helps identify the “how and when” of decentralization. I refer to the division as “in section” training and “company training.”

“In section training“ requires that four tasks in each MOS be taught in the staff section by a qualified instructor. These tasks are duty MOS related and are listed by MOS on the training schedule. All the required training aids are found right in that section. Every soldier with that primary or duty MOS receives the instruction and evaluation on each of the four tasks. Retraining and reevaluation maybe needed, but the standard is: by close of business Friday a GO is earned on every task by every soldier. A NO-GO is not acceptable on these specified tasks. There is no prescribed time on the training schedule for this activity. At the discretion of the section NCOIC, there may be a designated time, or it can occur during “crack time” between staff requirements. A NCOIC is not limited to teaching and testing just those four tasks.

Day to day requirements may present opportunities for additional evaluation. A medic may treat an injured soldier in the motor pool or a communication specialist may need to splice some WD 1 wire. When this occurs, the supervisor must record the results in the job book. A NO-GO is acceptable here and is annotated in a similar manner. The supervisor should correct this deficiency as soon as possible, but not necessarily that week. In a section that has several MOSS, cross-training should occur. The 19E that works in the S1 section can have four books. An aggressive section NCOIC can train the 19E soldier in the four tasks which are identified for the 71L, 71D and 75B! Soldiers should also receive credit for completed correspondence courses, successful use of learning centers, PNCOC, BNCOC, and expert field medical badge testing. In every case, when a soldier demonstrates expertise in a task, the results must be recorded.

Many of the common tasks such as PT, NBC, first aid, map reading, weapons qualification, and maintenance are usually scheduled, taught, and evaluated at company level. Although this relieves the section’s NCOIC from these responsibilities, he is still responsible for recording the results in the job books. The results of this company-level activity are improved levels of instruction, increasing the number of evaluated tasks weekly and easing the strain on training aids and supervisor.

There are several methods that can be used for scheduling. I have tried the “everybody at one time with make-up periods later” method, which usually nets less than 25 percent of your enlisted personnel and even fewer of your NCO corps. The after-hours training has resulted in even fewer people and in more elaborate excuses. Experience has proven to me that splitting the company into two groups (Group A and Group B) is the best method. Most of the staff sections are divided into these groups with an equal number of NCOs and EMS in each group. Certain sections (HQ tank sections or commo platoon) may find it easier to have all personnel in the same group. This is acceptable as long as all critical sections are well-manned with an effective element during duty hours. The days of the week may vary but Thursday and Friday mornings are usually not as busy as the other days. This method can also be used for scheduling training holidays. You can get maximum participation while the staff section gets their “pound of flesh.” While we are discussing MOS individual training, let’s not overlook the “special duty” types. Official and unoficial troop diversions, drivers, typists who are 19Es, and the myriad of soldiers placed in a 19E slot (but not on a tank) need to be trained in their MOS tasks as well. Why should you wony about these soldiers? Should it be higher on your priority list, or should it be down with the “if the boss doesn’t mention it, I won’t” topics? Let’s look at some figures. In a tank battalion headquarters there are currently 36 19Es that are not working on tanks. In a brigade headquarters company in Germany there were well over 70 soldiers assigned or attached that were not working on their MOS tasks. These numbers do not include the “unoficial” diversions. These numbers represent over one-half of aline company’s 19E strength. The point to be made is that replacements may or may not be forthcoming at a time when replacements are needed, or serviceable weapons systems are ready to enter or re-enter the battlefield. At a certain time all personnel in a headquarters (minus the commander) become expendable. Thirty-six well-trained soldiers represent 12 ambush teams. In the European theater they can assist in creating ambush sites and choke points, buying time and refusing a flank. These soldiers also represent 9 tank crews. The training of this asset can not in clear conscience be overlooked. You will have earned your day’s pay when the boss asks for them and they are ready!

The implementation of this program is not as difficult as it may seem. If you are in a tank battalion headquarters, the instructors are as close as your HQ tank section. In other cases, the instructors and training aids may be as close as another company in the same or adjacent battalion. You must make it happen, but it may take some high-power stroking. The 19Es in my brigade headquarters company were taught by the HQ Tank Section in the 1st Bn 33d Armor. The time for training is specifically designated on the training schedule and attendance is mandatory. For tankers, the tank crew gunnery skills test, the mini-tank range, and maintenance must be taught repetitively. For idan-trymen, the annual EIB training period and SQT preparatory phases offer an excellent opportunity for training. Seek out other opportunities such as firing the LAW and throwing grenades.

When these programs are implemented, the benefits are multifold. The cumulative effect of every facet has a great impact on the combat readiness of your unit. For instance, with the PSNCO teaching his subordinates the four tasks for 71L, 71B, and 75B; and the 19E getting additional training by the HQ Tank Section along with the common tasks taught at company level, the soldiers will know their garrison duties as well as their combat duties. Additional skill iden-triers and secondary MOSS can be awarded, everyone passes their respective SQT test, and because there are fewer “specialists” and more cross training, better service to the members of the battalion await them in the S1 shop. The soldier benefits; the Army benefits. Maintenance. In many respects maintenance is an individual task, thus being individual training. It is also collective training-a series of individual tasks oriented toward a common end. There are many officers who like to make the distinction between maintenance and maintenance training. Wherever the differentiation exists, a maintenance program should incorporate both maintenance and maintenance training for operators, supervisors, mechanics, and motor officers.

Because of personnel turbulence and numerous staff requirements, the ever-changing list of operators in HHCs demands a repetitive, cyclical program. As the commander, you should first list the topics that you want to cover-don’t forget PMCS on radios, generator maintenance, communication techniques, maintenance forms, seasonal driving, and licensing. With this maintenance training usually scheduled for Tuesday morning and actual maintenance scheduled for Wednesday morning, you then organize the topics in sequence and bracket the time on the calendar. The length of the cycle should fall out from these computations. Allow at least one week in every six to fall through the crack for “hot items” or “immediate requirements” in the staffsec-tion. Shorter cycles on needed tasks may be needed to fit the gap between and should be completed just before major training events. A short cycle may preclude necessary topics from being addressed while along cycle may waste time or allow an experience gap to develop between changes in operators.

The final type of individual training is called “training the trainers.” The BTMS program is as effective and necessary in a headquarters company as it is in aline company. NCO and officer professional classes improve the supervisor and the subordinate. Training supervisors reduces the span of direct responsibility, improves the leadership, and ensures that your leaders are setting the example. You can not expect the soldier to care for his TA-50 if his supervisor cannot inspect it properly; you cannot expect an operator to take maintenance seriously if his supervisor doesn’t know where the motor pool is.

Collective Training. This should occur after individual training. It encompasses any collective effort from tank crew drills through battalion ARTEP any time two or more soldiers perform different tasks which seek a common end. Ideally, the long-range plan focuses initially on individual training, then collective training at squad, platoon, or section level, and finally collective training at unit level such as an ARTEP or AGI. In a headquarters company it is important to stress that all levels of training occur simultaneously. Section OICs, platoon leaders, and the “boss” are continuously training their sections and staffs. It is their responsibility.

The maintenance sergeant still has the responsibility to evaluate his mechanic when he troubleshoots an electrical system on a vehicle; medics must still be evaluated while they conduct sick-call during the AGI. This multiecheloned training reemphasizes the need for all supervisors at all levels to constantly seek out training opportunities and evaluate their subordinates when training occurs. The Training Schedule. One of the most important tools of the HHC commander is the training schedule. This sequence of events outlines the week’s activities. As a commander in a HHC, you so seldom see your NCOICs that their priorities may push your requirements to the back of their minds. It is your operations order for this week and, when it applies, the training schedule becomes your hammer to hold over the heads of those that choose not to support you. An abbreviated schedule may look something like the following: Unit HHC (-)

’/&ton Club Driver HQ 33 Driver HQ 16 19E Monday Time 0600-0630 0630-081 5 081 5-0830 0830-1 530 0830-0900 0830-1 530 0830-1 530 0830-1 530 Topic Linen exchange Standard calls Formation Mission support (Note 1) Weigh-in Vehicle painting Semiannual service Tank Table 1, II, 111, IV (Note 5) (Note 2) (Note 4) Tuesday HHC

0630-081 5 Standard calls HHC

081 5-0830 Formation HHC (-)

0830-1 530 Mission support (Note 1) Driver HQ 33 0830-1 530 Vehicle painting (Note 5) Armorer 0830-1 000 Update hand receipt (Note 3) 19E 0830-1530 Tank Table 1, II, 111, IV (Note 4) All other drivers 0830-1 130 Generator maintenance (Continued on page 34) t t t ( c [ iHC iHC >river HQ 8 >river HQ 36 iHC (-) 311 other drivers 311 NCOs iHC iHC;roup A ’,miin A iHC (-1

0630-081 5 Standard calls 0730-081 5 Training meeting

081 5-0830

0830-1530 Mission support (Note 1) 0830-1 530 Vehicle painting (Note 5) 0830-1 530 Quarterly service 0830-1 130 1600-1 700 NCO development 0630-081 5 Standard calls 081 5-0830

0830-1 530 0830-0900 Command information

PMCS checks (Note 6)

Mission support (Note 1) 1006; 031 -503-1 01 5, 081-831-1009 >river HQ 8 0830-1 530 Vehicle painting )river HQ 36 0830-1 530 Quarterly service

0730-0900 Open wall locker standby inspection

0900-1 530 Mission support Group 0 0900-0930 Command information Group 0 0930-1 200

1006; 031 -503-1 01 5, 081 -831 -1009

1530-1 700 Officer professionalism 1.