U.S. Army – A Profession of Arms
Colonel Mathew Moten once said, “Professions are not professions simply because they say they are. Their clients, society as a whole, have to accept their claims and trust the professions with jurisdiction over important areas of human endeavor”.
Have you ever wondered about the meaning behind the words, "Profession of Arms?" Or what it takes to be part of an organization? There are many occupations, but none quite like the Army Profession of Arms. Typically, I would refer to Webster for a concise definition of the Profession of Arms however; a definition does not exist in the dictionary. I believe a definition of the Profession of Arms is not readily available because it is internal and personal to each
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It also seeks to understand the task of the military and what separates the Army from other occupations (Griffiths, 2008). The Army Profession of Arms is composed of experts who are entrusted with application of ethics in the land combat power and then serve under the authority of a civilian and are also trusted with the duty of the constitution, interests and rights of the people of the United States of America. For example, an Army to a profession of arms calls for the responsibility of executing duties and serving the people of the United States of America while upholding the constitution. The aspects of professionalism are developed through extensive training and …show more content…
However, development starts day one with training. Therefore, the Soldiers have to be experts who have assumed the character and identity of the profession; professionalism in Soldiers enables them to perform their duties with lots of motivation and inspiration. For example, 42A - The Human Resources (HR) Sergeant supervises, performs personnel and administrative functions in support of company, battery, and troop; detachments at division, corps, and echelons above corps must master their skill level in an effort to be a subject matter expert in their profession. The functions of Human Resource support four fundamental competencies: Man the Force (ex. Strength reporting), Provide HR Services (ex. Postal operations), Coordinate Personnel Support (ex. Morale, welfare, and Recreation), and Conduct HR Planning and Operations (ex. Planning and operations) in which a HR personnel must accomplish to support the mission. As a result, a professional Soldier should meet very high standards of a profession, for example character, competence, expertise and morality to fulfil their HR role. These standards are attained through rigorous training, development, and educating the Soldiers on how to serve the nation and the constitution as professionals. After nine years of war, which erupted from 9/11 we assess the attributes
The purpose of this paper is to provide a brief analysis of the United States Army’s organizational structure and its culture and how these two elements impact its workers, associates and affiliates. This paper will first examine the Army’s history, development and structure to highlight the origins of the Army’s culture. Secondly, a brief history of the Army’s organizational development will be followed by a close examination of its philosophy and supporting beliefs. Lastly, this paper will discuss the role of the Army’s leadership, their response to critical issues and the organizational structure of the Army. An analysis of the army’s top leaders will help the reader to understand the Army culture more thoroughly in the context of the Army’s organizational structure. More specifically this section of the paper will examine the Army leadership’s response to the current geo-political environment and other related issues. In conclusion, this paper hopes to highlight the Army’s overall functioning from an organizational standpoint and emphasize that idea that the Army is like a functional corporation. This will be accomplished by addressing various key questions throughout this text.
The United States Army is an important subculture within our society. It has many uniquely defining attributes, which separate it from the general culture and from the subcultures of the other branches of the military. The Army’s subculture is critical to the effective operation and discipline of the Army. The Army is critical to the survival of our country, our society, and our way of life. Only certain individuals are willing to accept the demands of this subculture to be soldiers in order to preserve our freedoms for their own, and future, generations.
The United States Army, in its current state, is a profession of arms. In order to be considered a profession, the organization must have an ethical code rooted in values, strong trust with its clients, and be comprised of experts within the trade. These experts are constantly developing the trade for the present and the future and hold the same shared view of their trade culture.
Staff Sergeant (SSGT) Louis Moeller shaped me into the Recon Marine I wanted to be and the Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) that I am now. By embodying the Recon Creed and always setting the example, he made me want to be an NCO that my troops would look up to and want to follow. Even when not in charge he was constantly the one peers and junior Marines alike, turned to for guidance and inspiration. To this day, I still find myself asking “What would Louis do?” when confronted with a leadership dilemma.
In the other definitions, The Army Doctrine reference Publications states the definitions of the profession. The Army defines a profession is a trusted self-policing and relatively ...
The history of the United States Army Sapper dates back to the early 16th century. They were first used by the French to dig positions and trenches to ward off enemy forces and provide reprieve during long wars. The name Sapper came from the French word “sapeur” which meant trench or spadework. They were on the front lines of nearly all the American wars from The American Revolution to the present Global War on Terrorism. To become a Sapper in the United States (US) Army is no simple task various skills are needed along with schooling and vigorous test. Throughout history the US Army Sappers proved to be an essential part in the victory of all the wars
We can identify three major cultural dimensions that help us to understand what leaders must focus on as they guide the transition of the Army. First, professional Identity, which is guided by Soldiers at all levels who are striving for excellence in their functional specialty, i.e., HR Sergeants. Soldiers who have goals and ideals of the Army to ethically put service and duty first. HR Sergeants are trained and well educated in their field. They are taught to put Soldiers first and have great customer support skills. Second, community, the sense in which Soldiers stop thinking about “I” and start thinking “we”. The bond among units who not only believe in cohesion with Soldiers, but their families too. The HR Sergeants are there to take care of Soldiers when financial issues arise with them or their families and don’t back down until the situation is solved. Last, hierarchy, which leads to order and control and provides Soldiers with moral reference and a sense of direction. The HR Sergeant has the mentality of mission first, knowing who to contact at the next level for assistance helps get the mission
Professionals in the United States Marine Corps stand apart from others engaged in particular careers in the civilian world.While many vocations contain some of the characteristics of professional, a lot of careers do not include all of the elements necessary to distinguish themselves as being as close to a professional as a marine. Professionalism grows depending on the time and service they have in the Marine Corps. A professional has specialized knowledge and skill which can only be acquired through prolonged education and experience. Such skill and experience form the basis of objective standards of professional competence that separate the practicing professional from their peers and measure the competence of such professional. This professional knowledge must also be intellectual in nature.
Webster’s dictionary defines the word profession as a type of job that requires special education, training, or skill. Many Soldiers would not consider the Army as a profession but a way of life. Some think the word profession belongs to everyday jobs like a plumber, mechanic, or doctor. Dr. Don M. Snider stated “the Army is a profession because of the expert work it produces, because the people in the Army develop themselves to be professionals, and because the Army certifies them as such” (Snider, D. M. 2008). In October 2010, the Secretary of the Army directed the Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) to lead an Army wide assessment of the state of the Army Profession. We have been at war as a Country for over a decade and the Army wanted to know how to shape the future of the Army as a profession and the effects the past decade had on our profession.
As service members we have a huge opportunity with the different MOS skills we learn throughout our years in the Military. Service members often transition out of the military and find it hard to find jobs in the civilian sector especially a combat MOS with little credentials or license to transition over. The military is working hard to change that and give active duty service members and veterans the opportunity to gain credentials and different licenses to a broad range of enlisted jobs. Out of about 200,000 soldiers transitioning out of the military each year, about 38 percent of them will need some type of credential or license in order to find a good job in the civilian sector.
First it is important to identify what a profession is. A profession is a paid occupation which has involved extensive or prolonged training to equip individuals within the area with skills, knowledge and competencies which provide them with the expertise they need to support their organisations.
Every profession, so determined by the uniqueness of the work completed, requires stewards to guard that profession. The Profession of Arms is especially distinct because it rests on the American people’s trust to use government sanctioned force, up to and including lethal force, to protect the physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being of the American nation. And thus, the stewards of such an important profession must hold themselves to rigorous high standards in order to complete the mission and maintain the trust of the American people. The Human Resources Sergeant (HR NCO) is that steward.
For my career opportunity project, I have chosen to take a look at the profession
Before I describe to you some of the “routine” and specific situations, investigations, and actual cases and dispositions I encountered I feel I should outline some of the training that that I received starting with the Military Police and Basic Training. Looking back I see the importance of the initial Army training that centered on physical conditioning and the discipline necessary to obey and follow orders to become part of a team. We learned that what was good for one was good for all and of course the reverse. Each morning we stood inspection outside of the barracks with our field packs on. Part of our required equipment during the inspections was a razor. We found out why one morning at the beginning of our training cycle when one of