When it comes to retaining NCOs,
Army’s V Corps comes out on top
By Eric B. Pilgrim,
Stars and Stripes
Photo courtesy of U.S. Army
Capt. Donovan A. Rickel swears in. Spec. Octavio Nuņez, who said he re-upped in Germany
because he wanted to stay in Europe longer. Nuņez, a mechanical infantryman with
Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry, expects to deploy to the Balkans. |
The fact that the Army needs to keep its best non-commissioned
officers is nothing new.
The Army is watching V Corps closely because it seems better at
retaining its NCOs than any other corps.
This should comes as no surprise to V Corps officials. V Corps beat
out the other three Army corps last year.
But the oddity may be the reason why so many soldiers sign up for
another tour. They list real-world deployments as their No. 1 reason, according to
retention officials.
“I know it sounds crazy, but we always see an influx of
re-enlistments whenever we deploy,” said Army Staff Sgt. Douglas Goodwin, retention
non-commissioned officer for 2nd Brigade, 1st Infantry Division in Wuerzburg, Germany.
Besides owning the highest retention percentages, V Corps also boasts
the highest deployment rate of the four Army corps, although retention officials say there
is also a strong emphasis from top to bottom in retaining quality soldiers.
“This has become pretty much a trend over here,” said
Master Sgt. Lyle Hogue, senior retention operations non-commissioned officer for V Corps.
Top Army officials have targeted three main groups for retention
officials to chart: initial term, mid-career and fiscal year special mission soldiers.
Initial term soldiers are those within their first enlistment and are
usually considered to be the most difficult to keep.
Retention percentages during for the first three quarters of fiscal
2001 give V Corps a commanding lead over the others.
Mid-career soldiers are those who have reenlisted at least once and
have served up to 10 years.
The special mission category is a new Army push designed to target
soldiers in the previous two categories scheduled to end their time in service within the
fiscal year.
After the first 10 years, soldiers sign an indefinite contract that
will last until retirement.
Army Spc. Octavio Nuņez served his first tour at Fort Carson, Colo.,
in a unit under III Corps, and said Germany is the place to be. He has served 18 months in
Germany and reenlisted Aug. 3 to stay longer.
“I get more training than in Carson, and we’re real
close,” Nuņez said about his unit. “Being away from our families, we’re
more prone to stick together and form a family. And the leadership I have is real good. I
can trust them with my life and they can trust me with theirs.”
The mechanized infantryman currently works as a driver for the top
non-commissioned officer in 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry. Although he has not actually
deployed since arriving to Germany, Nuņez said that will soon change. He goes back to his
original job and then on to the Balkans with his unit early next year.
A stronger emphasis in senior NCO involvement at every level of
retention has helped keep quality soldiers in, especially sergeants and staff sergeants,
according to Hogue.
Hogue said the command could start training with the Air Force to
develop fresh ideas. Even the V Corps commander, Lt. Gen. William S. Wallace, is on board,
according to Hogue.
Today’s senior NCOs are the total package, Hogue said. They are
tops in their personal and professional lives and are at the highest education levels in
the Army’s history.
“These senior NCOs are highly competitive; they could be out in
the business world, competing for and taking top jobs, but they’re not,” Hogue
said. “They are very committed to the Army. Soldiers see that.”
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