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David Oeschger is no stranger to selfless service, but the 27-year Army veteran’s passion for and excellence in his role as the 7th Army Training Command’s deputy chief of operations hasn’t gone unnoticed. The Department of the Army Civilian and retired Army colonel was recently selected as one of three Civilian leaders to participate in U.S. Army Europe and Africa’s Enterprise Leader Development Program.
Oeschger competed against civilian leaders across the U.S. Department of Defense and has been selected to attend the Senior Executive Fellows program at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in April 2022. The immersive four-week executive leadership skills program, offered through the U.S. Army War College, is designed to foster and promote awareness and open communications concerning issues relevant to the Army within institutions key to defense and security policy formulation.
“It’s an excellent opportunity to be a part of a greater enterprise with quality fellow students and the best of instructors,” said Oeschger. “I’m definitely honored to be selected among the thousands of applicants and appreciative of the support from 7th ATC leadership who will allow me to attend.”
During his time at Harvard, Oeschger will collaborate with leaders from other services and federal agencies, civil and business leaders, as well as academia. The fellows pursue individual learning plans designed to encourage critical thinking in addressing national issues at the strategic level as well as evaluate theories of war, national security policy, strategic leadership, global security and regional issues.
“His selection to attend this program at Harvard will allow him dialogue with others outside of the U.S. Army and will allow him to broaden his understanding of those we serve,” said Dr. Michael Schaefer, 7th ATC Deputy Chief of Staff and Senior Civilian Executive Assistant. “It will also allow him to serve as an ambassador for the Army in order to enlighten those with little, to no, military experience to understand what the army does to protect their individual freedoms around the world on a daily basis.”
Oeschger has been in his current position for the past 18 months, but his prior experience at other positions from tactical to strategic organizations has prepared him to be able to better care for the people and Soldiers as a servant leader.
“I have been extremely fortunate to serve as a new and relatively senior Department of the Army Civilian over the last 18 months in a high operational tempo and purpose-filled and driven environment at 7th ATC in U.S. Army Europe and Africa,” said Oeschger. “I have decided, and all indicators point to the fact, that I am a quality fit for this environment which means that I would like this initial DAC position to evolve into a productive and service-driven career.”
The Harvard Kennedy School program is led by Harvard faculty and expert practitioners, who provide students with a framework for problem-solving, conditioning them to ask the right questions and find the most strategic approach to a challenge. According to the fellowship description provided by the school, the program puts fellows in a leadership role in the classroom to gain the tools necessary to look at issues from a new perspective.
“I strive to be a lifelong learner, said Oeschger. “I am confident that this training will show me through the curriculum, or the examples relayed by my high-performing peers, how to set the right executive-level tone in my current and future organizations that compassionately cares for our most valuable resource – our diverse workforce.”
Oeschger believes the leadership skills program will help him better operate and continue serving Department of Defense organizations in a higher capacity as an Army Civilian.
“These programs need to be utilized, something I took into account when I filled out the packet is ‘I’ll never know if I’ll be selected until I try,’” said Oeschger. “But the selection isn’t really about me, it’s about the experiences and the people that I’ve been with through my time in the military. They’re the ones who’ve shaped me and helped to make this a reality.”
Oeschger sustained severe wounds in combat and was medically evacuated in July of 2011 while serving as an armor battalion commander deployed to Afghanistan. Oeschger spent seven months recovering from several surgeries as a member of the Landstuhl Warrior Transition Unit.
“It gave me phenomenal perspective on life and what I should be doing with my life,” Oeschger said.
Despite the difficult recovery from his wounds Oeschger continued to serve in the Army as the G3 at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California, from 2012-2014, and as the Director of the Army’s Wounded Warrior Program in Washington, D.C. from 2014-2018. The Wounded Warrior Program executed non-clinical care for 27,000 seriously wounded, ill, or injured Soldiers and Veterans. After leaving military service, Oeschger spent time as a senior operations leader at Amazon. However, he felt that experience in the corporate world reinforced that his calling was still the Army and its people, in and out of uniform.
“7ATC is a phenomenal organization with such a depth and breadth of missions,” said Oeschger. “This is a joy for me to be a part of, and I love G3 Operations because it’s never the same thing on a daily basis. Operations are always changing and it’s always focused on ensuring Soldiers are ready for their mission.”
The 7th Army Training Command is the U.S. Army's largest overseas training command, setting the training environment and resourcing live, virtual and constructive training for all U.S. Army forces stationed and deployed in Europe and Africa, as well as select U.S. European Command, allied and partner units. The command oversees training and readiness for three of U.S. Army Europe & Africa’s assigned combat brigades, and provides senior responsible officer authority for the 47,000 Soldiers, Civilians and Families in the U.S. Army community in the German state of Bavaria.
Oeschger’s impact on the organization has been felt immediately.
“Mr. Oeschger is a combat veteran who fought and bled for his Soldiers from the front,” said Sgt. Maj. Jovanny Jones, noncommissioned officer in charge of operations for 7th ATC.
His background and passion has translated well to his current position, Jones observed. “He places the mission first and [takes] care of the team. He never skips a beat and takes no shortcuts, he is reliable and value added to everyone.”
| Date Taken: | 12.21.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 12.22.2021 02:49 |
| Story ID: | 411643 |
| Location: | GRAFENWOEHR, BAYERN, DE |
| Web Views: | 610 |
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This work, 7ATC leader, veteran headed to Harvard, by SPC Nathaniel Gayle, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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