The new A talent management program for Marine grunts that was developed at the behest of Commandant Gen. Joseph Dunford is will returning next year with bigger bonuses and a wider pool of eligibility — and e applicants. And, officials say, similar programs are now in the works for enlisted leaders in non-infantry fields.
On the heels of the Squad Leader Development Program's successful first year, planners are moving forward with variants on the program for every military occupational specialty. The program, which was developed at the behest of Commandant Gen. Joseph Dunford, offers its own MOS military occupational specialty, a chance for quick promotions and sizable re-up bonuses.
It's designed to offer infantrymen promising career paths so the Marine Corps can better retain seasoned young noncommissioned officers. Leaders in other fields are taking notice, Master Gunnery Sgt. Justin Aiken, an infantry occupational field specialist with Marine Corps Plans, Policies and Operations, told Marine Corps Times.
"This was deemed a pilot program by the commandant, and " Master Gunnery Sgt. Justin Aiken, an infantry occupational field specialist with Marine Corps Plans, Policies and Operations told Marine Corps Times. "And he said directly that if you want some sort of leadership program developed for every MOS, how we do that is going to be obviously MOS-specific," Aiken said. "But the tenets and backbone of it, being talent management and high-quality people, will remain the same."
With a clear mandate from the commandant to embrace the concept of leader development, Aiken said he is receiving queries daily from Marines in non-infantry fields about how the program SLDP was conceived and designed.
"So tThey're in the works," Aiken said of the programs for other MOSs. "It's always good when we can do something good for the Marines."
At the recent Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Symposium in Quantico, Virginia, the service's Marines' top enlisted leaders discussed the MOSs across which military occupational specialties in each element of the Marine air-ground task force that would be best suited for the program, said Sgt. Maj. of the Marine Corps Ronald Green, sergeant major of the Marine Corps. They looked, Green said, for jobs that would benefit from a two-track approach, with Marines having the opportunity to pursue a special duty assignment or receive intensive training or development within their MOS, he said.
"We want to make sure that we're not slowing Marines down on either side," Green said. "That's what this is all about: Marines progressing no matter what track they take, and progressing evenly."
Green said that while the launch of a squad leader development-style program for engineers or aviators is still at least a year away, he said enlisted leaders were already exploring ways to apply the concept to their own fields. In fields like cyber operations, where it has been historically difficult to attract and retain skilled personnel, like cyber operations, the format shows special promise.
"You've got that group of special individuals, high-demand, low-density, you get them out on SDAs, and how do you keep some of them within the MOS, and keep the promotion that progression equal," he said. "We didn't get solutions with any of them. Just that we think they'll work, but there's a lot of work that's got to be done before we know they'll work within those high-demand low-density MOSs."
Bigger bonuses, more flexibility for grunts
As leaders work on new While it remains unclear when development programs for Marines in fields like engineering s or logistics ians might be pushed out to the active forces, the architects of the Squad Leader Development Program for infantrymen can expect several are moving forward with bold new changes designed to attract more Squad Leader Development Program a broader range of applicants to the program.
Aiken, who briefed the senior enlisted Marines at the symposium on the topic attendees about the latest developments to the SLDP, Corps' top enlisted leaders about the program SLDP this week at the Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Symposium in Quantico, Virginia said that while the program was limited to 100 participants in Fiscal 2015, there will be are no participation caps for next year.
"It's about getting the right guys," he said. "We don't have a number we're shooting for; we're just making sure we're getting the right Marines in the program."
Lance Cpls. Tayler Huey and Brandon Parmeter, with 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, provide security during a training exercise aboard Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif. Infantrymen accepted into the Squad Leader Development Program in 2016 can expect up to $25,000 in bonuses.
Photo Credit: Lance Cpl. Clarence Leake/Marine Corps
In all, 78 Marines were selected for the program the first year. Aiken said he was pleased with that turnout, considering it was a new concept in 2015 with a how new the concept was and the tight application period. But several changes will be made to attract more applications in 2016, including:
- More eligible MOSs. In 2016, more Marines will be eligible to apply for the program. This year, only Applicants were also required to be And while the first iteration of the program required applicants to be corporals and sergeants in five MOSs — infantryman, machine gunner, mortarman, infantry assaultman and anti-tank missileman — who were to be currently serving in infantry units could apply. Next year But in 2016, all NCOs noncommissioned officers in those MOSs who meet the training and time-in-service prerequisites will be are now eligible to participate, regardless of their parent units, Aiken said.
- Bigger bonuses. Infantrymen accepted into the program can expect their selective re-enlistment bonuses to increase by about $4,500 in 2016, Aiken said. That will bring the totals up to about $23,000 for corporals and roughly $25,000 for sergeants. Bonuses are also going up. While the Corps offered selective re-enlistment bonuses of $18,500 for corporals and $20,500 for sergeants for the first group of participants, Aiken said the figure is expected to increase by about $4,500, spread across the four-year commitment the program requires.
- More flexibility. Marines will have more time to apply for the program in 2016 and they will no longer be required to make a four-year commitment, Aiken said. Marines Officials are adding in more flexibility, too: troops can opt to re-enlist for two years instead of four, he Aiken said, and still claim half the bonus cash. They'll also be able apply to apply to the program year-round next year in order to account for deployments or resident professional military education requirements. Officials don't want to pull Marines out of leadership positions when they're needed most, Aiken added. While the application period was limited to two months in 2015, Marines will be able to apply to the program on a rolling basis next year."We wanted to allow more flexibility for young Marines and their commanders to forecast out when they put in the [application] package," Aiken said. "It gives a greater flexibility for young Marines and their commanders so they don’t pull troops out of a position of leadership when they're needed most," Aiken said.
- Choice of duty station. Marine leaders are also considering allowing applicants to choose their preferred duty station, adding another incentive to the program: a choice of preferred duty station, said Green said. "We have to make sure we’re not keeping Marines in place too long. ...We when we’re talking about keeping them in their MOS," he said. "And we want to make sure that they’re not there so long that they become stagnant."
The timeline on those changes has not yet been determined. For all these potential changes, the timeline is hazy. Green said the Squad Leader Development Program remains ed in a "beta testing" phase, as nd officials work to refine were committed to refining the program before launching any new ones. Studies that will better determine the way forward for the Marine Corps are still ongoing, and a timeline for their completion has not been made public.
Officials with Marine Corps Manpower and Reserve Affairs, which is assisting with an inventory of all MOSs throughout the Marine Corps to determine NCO gaps and shortfalls across the Corps, deferred all inquiries to Aiken and Plans, Policies and Operations &O.
To make sure that Marines in the program achieve the ultimate goal of leading a rifle squad in the operating forces, Aiken said planners were also encouraging senior leaders to advise SLDP applicants about whether to pursue the program's combat instructor track or its operational forces squad leader track.
"What's best for the Marine Corps is to get that squad leader in front of the squad," Aiken said. "For a sergeant who's got two years [in grade] already, if he goes with the combat instructor track, he'll probably never be a squad leader because he'll be promoted before he can."
Despite all the changes, Aiken said the basic tenets of the program will remain are staying the same. In exchange for a service commitment, corporals and sergeants with between three and six years' time in service can apply for a leadership fast-track that offers professional education, faster promotions, a dedicated MOS and a guaranteed operational tour as a squad leader in a soon-to-deploy unit.
According to a Marine administrative message 393/15 released Aug. 10 this week, interested NCOs must apply through their unit structure, and applications must receive the endorsement of the first general officer in their in the applicant's chain of command.
In keeping with the priorities Dunford set out in his planning guidance earlier this year, the program was launched in order to address a shortfall of NCOs in key leadership positions within the operational forces, and to provide incentives for Marine squad leaders who might otherwise pursue a special duty assignment or other career option.
To promote the improved program for infantrymen squad leader program, Aiken said he plans to organize a Marine Corps-wide roadshow that will likely reach Marine units around the Corps later this fall.
"Everybody is on board with this program because " he said. "Because it’s all about making better-trained, better-educated squad leaders," he said.
