My best friend's son just informed me he received Military Police branch as his assignment for when he graduates college/Army ROTC this spring.
Any words of advice for a new officer in this branch as he starts his military career?
My best friend's son just informed me he received Military Police branch as his assignment for when he graduates college/Army ROTC this spring.
Any words of advice for a new officer in this branch as he starts his military career?
Do not piss off the wives. Back in the day, my unit had a practice alert in the middle of the night (I lived on post on Fort Ord). I had to roust my wife out of bed to drive me into barracks area (I was a young PLT LDR not far from ROTC) and she was not happy (we could not take our POVs). On the way back to our post housing, a MP pulled my wife over for not coming to a complete stop. She proceeded to emphatically announce her displeasure with everything related to the US ARMY. He wisely just let her go.
Thanks for his service from someone who retired 2 years ago. Main advice is listen to his NCOs and make sure he puts the needs of his soldiers before himself - make sure they are fed and housed before he eats and sleeps. Find balance between the admin BS that comes with the job and never forget that ultimately his role is to defend the nation and win our Nation's wars.
Congratulations are in order - MP postings, as I understand, require a fairly high placement within an ROTC class. He did well to earn that assignment!
First and foremost - Remember that the service members he is charged with policing are peers and fellow soldiers first and foremost. Stomp out adversarial attitudes toward non-MP soldiers and do that emphatically. Encourage an approach and attitude that his MP's are stewards of the Army profession and are charged with the very serious responsibility of enforcing lawful conduct among soldiers.
If his own MP's are accused or suspected of unlawful conduct or abuses of power, encourage him to firmly maintain an 'innocent until proven guilty' attitude toward his accused subordinate. Tell him to be his subordinate's advocate in all things, until there's hard evidence otherwise - and in that case, he needs to be firm and swift, even harsh. As MP's, he should make it clear that he holds them to a higher standard. He should hold himself to an even higher standard.
To re-iterate what Ranger said - while the Mission always comes first, his Soldiers should be such a top priority that it'd be difficult to discern which is really the #1 priority.
He should avoid and refuse any luxury that he can't provide for all of his Soldiers. He should be the first one to the PT field, and the last one in the chow line. If his Soldiers are eating MRE's, he's eating an MRE and he's the last one to grab one. It seems cliché, but that kind of stuff is visible and his Soldiers will notice, and they'll respect him for it.
Similarly, don't make anything harder on his Soldiers and their families than is absolutely necessary - the example Ranger gave about the midnight practice alert with no POV's is an excellent one. Don't make things suck for the sake of making them suck. When planning, always consider the impact to the Soldiers and their families.
Listen to his Platoon Sergeant. If he decides to go against the Plt Sgt's recommendation, offer the Plt Sgt an explanation and go through his reasoning when possible. It's likely, probable even, that there's an unforeseen factor the Plt Sgt is tracking that he isn't. Doing this, especially in his first 6 months, will help establish that he respects the Plt Sgt's experience and wants to learn, and has a rational, valid reason if he orders something else. This will make the Plt Sgt respect an order without explanation that much more, which in turn encourages respect in his whole formation.
To that end, let the NCO's handle NCO business. Focus on planning, policy, advocating for his troops, ensuring they have what they need, and getting the mission done as fast and effectively as possible. Basically all the rest is NCO business.
On his troops having what they need - if they don't all have ACOG's or CCO's, his own rifle shouldn't have one. Don't avoid rifle qual and stick to an M9 just because he can. Same goes for any other high-speed gear or field luxuries that are not required for mission planning/OPSEC/etc.
Chow time is an OK time to sit with some of his troops and be a little more friendly and open, but nowhere else. His conversation and topics with his Soldiers should always be cleanly professional - no gutter humor, no excessive swearing.
He should try to learn at least one specific thing about every one of his Soldiers. That is incredibly important.
If he's a smoker, he should avoid his troops in the smoke pit if at all possible. If he must share a smoke pit with a group of his E3/E4's, he should not engage them in conversation AT ALL.
I wish I could better explain why that's important, but the smoke pit is where troops get very familiar and buddy-buddy with each other, and it does damage his command presence if he's seen as being too friendly with Jr enlisted, specifically if he's only friendly with some but not others. The smoke pit is a cesspool of rumor mill and gossip and BS like that.
Similarly, he should choose a driver based on a specific metric or combination of metrics. Highest APFT score, highest rifle qual, etc. This ensures a rotating assignment of drivers and it's effective at mitigating any 'oh but he/she is the LT's driver so they get special treatment' BS. If they're on a bus or in an aircraft, he should always be seated next to his Plt Sgt or other Platoon Leaders whenever possible.
Don't fall prey to the 'Good Idea Fairy'. Keep a consistent SOP and don't change things up for the sake of changing things up. Have a clear objective or reason for any change in policy or planning.
His unit's success is his own success. If his unit performs well enough to make him look good in front of a specific higher superior, and that superior praises him for his unit - he should be fast with group praise to his Soldiers, and rewarding them appropriately.
Never forget the reason he's wearing the uniform. To engage and destroy the enemies of the United States of America in close combat. In today's Army, sadly, it can be difficult to remember that.
As a former enlisted Army MP I will chime in.
What has already been said is sage advise. That said, if he is assigned to a garrison (regular police duty) unit he needs to back his “officers”. Granted they may do some silly shit but when they're right...they're right, regardless of what the commander of another unit thinks. He should prepare himself for one of his MP’s who will inevitably tell a higher ranked officer not to “confuse their rank with their authority “. MPs carry the authority of the base commander and that phrase will get used. I never used that it because the opportunity never presented itself but just prior to my ETS a private I was training did. I almost shit myself thinking of all the possible outcomes which included me getting UCMJ treatment just before I got out. Thankfully it worked out.
If he is in a field unit dont be one of those officers that seeks the comforts that his guys dont have. If you want to piss Off any Joe, regardless of MOS, act like you’re special...and the E4 mafia guys will call him out...if he can find them. He should be one of the guys so to speak. Dont be afraid/ashamed to ask for guidance. He will gain leadership points with his people by being human.
And by all means he shouldn’t paint himself into a corner. As an E3 I told a 1st Lt he was wrong on an Army regulation. I probably could have done it in a more politically correct way but being 19 I wasn't having it. Pissed him off to no end because I told him in front of other lower enlisted. He pushed for an Article 15 but my 1Sgt and CO weren't having it either...mostly because I was right on the AR and he was a fucking idiot. I think the 1Lt finally made it into Special Forces (yes I’m serious).
All in all his people expect him to be a leader but also one of the guys. There is a way to be both and do well in his MOS. He just has to find that fine line and walk it.
Last edited by KeeFus; 11-17-2017 at 05:05 AM.
I was National Guard, 6 years. I was an MP during drills, ATs, and deployment. My regular job in the guard was Honor Guard detail (With a little time as a predeployment instructor) though. I got out as an E5.
First rule: Shut the fuck up.
You're a new Lt on the block. The majority of senior E4s and pretty much every E5 has more experience than you do. So before you stick a foot in your mouth shut up. You need to learn first. It doesn't matter if you like your platoon Daddy or not. He likely has quadruple your length in service and experience. He knows what he is doing, or he wouldn't be in that position. Watch closely and learn.
Second rule: First awake, last asleep, hardest worker, last to eat. This is your goal. If you find yourself actually the hardest worker than you may need to press your E5 and E6 NCOs harder. But be damn sure they aren't doing more than you realize before you do.
Third rule: Be an expert. Anything worth doing is worth doing well. You need to know your 5 MP tasks and exactly how to do them. Right now. If you don't you are going to be left in the dark when Daddy talks to you. At the same time, you need to listen some to what your E6s and E5s have to say on TTPs. They might have a way to do something that isn't in the book and is only covered in hip pocket stuff. That shit is invaluable and really only comes from experience. If platoon Daddy drops nuggets like this you should especially remember them.
Rule four: It's always weird when Mommy and Daddy get into a fight at dinner in front of the kids. Cause Daddy wins.
I never seriously did L&O work although I've trained on it alot, and while I've spent plenty of time on active posts I've never lived on one. So there is a lot I can't clue you in on. I can tell you that you need to remember that when the call comes you aren't going to be wearing a duty belt and writing tickets. You need to really, really, really, understand every aspect of convoy security operations and PSD work. Get good at classes. Have your Joes get good at classes.
You need to be moto as an officer. Period. Being all jazzed up and pumped about Army shit is important for officers. Even to the point of having it be comedic. It seriously helps the joes. As long as you don't try to BS your guys and you listen and actively put in effort at improvement you should get to where you need to be. Just don't let your head outgrow your ability. .
-Cory
Last edited by Cory; 11-17-2017 at 09:08 AM.
As a retired O-5 who works as a contractor on a military base and who has a son about to get commissioned, I'll add that he needs to be in shape. The APFT is not tough and maxing it should be the norm for a leader. There are enough fat field grades now that the post PT policy for CGSC students was changed; he needs to be better than that and set the example. He also needs to stay humble and realize that luck has more of an impact on one's career than most want to admit. Lastly, its an honor to serve soldiers and their families and he should treasure his PL and command time because it goes quick.
Most have covered the points exceptionally well. I'd suggest reading "The Mission, The Men, and Me" before leaving MPOBC.
Lead from the Front, and By Example.
Thanks everyone. And thanks for that book suggestion. It looks outstanding. I am going to read it myself.Originally Posted by psalms144.1
Agreed, one of the absolute best books I've ever read.
Agreed for the most part, but there is a fine balance in the PL/PSG relationship. Too often it’s said to shut the hell up and listen to your NCOs. Just like officers, there are more garbage NCOs than good ones. From what I’ve seen when it comes to advice for new officers, too much credit is often given to the NCOs corps. If “daddy” isn’t right, then he has no place winning. You have to be smart enough to know when you’re wrong, and if you don’t know, you probably shouldn’t say anything until you find out. But a young officer has to take charge and actually make the decisions, otherwise they’ll never grow and learn. Better to have a company commander that is on top of things because he actually was a leader, than a clueless one who can’t make a decision without Top. All of that being said, there are plenty of LTs that just need to watch and learn for quite some time. That stereotype just gets overplayed.
Solid book, I’d also recommend A Warrior’s Path: Lessons in Leadership by Robert Trivino. Those are two of my favorites.
I will disagree with you on the last point though. My personal opinion is that it’s the NCO’s job to lead from the front, but of course the officer must still lead by example. This depends slightly on branch as an IN PL has a much more active role in directing the PLT then some others, but in the general sense, I believe that is is a better school of thought.
Like I said, things are slightly different depending on the branch and MPs are kind of unique. But if nothing else, the guys need to look the part. They’re the only armed service members on the post and they are the garrison Army’s first responders. As was said, they should be held to a very high standard and really should be coached and mentored to be true professionals.
I don’t know much about MPs, but I am a company grade officer and was able to hold two different PL slots so I had my fare share of experiences. Just my opinions.
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