Photo By William Costello | Sgt. Maj. Mark A. Clark, Jr., the U.S. Army Deputy Chief of Staff (Personnel) sergeant...... read more read more
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Fort Knox, Ky – U.S. Army Human Resources Command hosted more than fifty Adjutant General Corps sergeants major gathered at the Lt. Gen. Timothy J. Maude complex here, Apr. 19-21 for a professional development and leader engagement symposium.
The symposium’s theme, “Building Relevance for Lasting Impacts” attracted representatives from the active component, Army Reserve and National Guard.
Event planners worked to ensure the right people were able to either physically attend the workshop or participate in a virtual capacity.
The conference brought together the senior-most personnel-focused noncommissioned officers from the Army’s Major Commands, Army Service Component Commands, Direct Reporting Units, various installations as well as the U.S. Army Soldier Support Institute at Ft Jackson, SC home of the Adjutant General School.
“This is your workshop, you’ll get out of it what you put into it,” said Sgt. Maj. Mark A. Clark, Jr., the U.S. Army Deputy Chief of Staff (Personnel) sergeant major during welcoming remarks. “This is an opportunity for you to break away from your organization for a few days for some leader development,” he added.
Clark went on to encourage his fellow senior enlisted leaders to embrace change in the Army culture and assist Army senior leaders’ efforts to effect change by challenging many of the long-standing processes and procedures entrenched in the personnel business.
“Some people just don’t like change and take actions to prevent it. I need all of you to challenge assumptions, challenge previous approaches to the way we conduct our business. If it no longer makes sense to you, let’s talk about it and see what we can do to make change happen,” Clark advised.
The three-day event included an agenda of relevant discussion topics, team-building activities and social events culminating in an AG Corps dinner. The group touched on topics as diverse as the pending implementation of the Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT); capabilities of the Integrated Personnel and Pay System – Army (IPPS-A) to the active component; as well as Sexual Harassment/Assault Response Program (SHARP) initiatives.
Lt. Gen. Gary M. Brito, Deputy Chief of Staff, G-1, addressing the group via teleconference, continued the drumbeat of having senior NCOs lead change within the Army and their organizations.
“I learned long ago, as a young lieutenant, the value of having a seasoned senior noncommissioned officer by my side for mentoring and leader development,” he offered. “The Army needs great leaders to drive change and sergeants major help commanders manage risk and see blind sides,” he continued.
Brito encouraged conference participants to engage in one-on-one discussions, exchange contact information and pursue dialogue with each other to share best practices.
“This kind of forum is important due to the fact that we don’t get to share lessons learned from each other. Being from the 101st, my lens is completely different from someone from Ft. Eustis for example,” said Sgt. Maj. Tameka H. Garrett, G-1 Sergeant Major, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault).
“At the 101st, [our] culture is the operational Army, rapid deploying and field training exercises, I can come here and get some [tactics, techniques and procedures] to take back to my organization to adjust culture and change,” she explained.
Clark, the Army G-1 sergeant major, urged his colleagues to be aggressive, persistent and resilient when working with leaders to change Army culture.
“You have a big role with commanders and Soldiers. Right now, we are the tip of the spear in making it happen,” he said.
| Date Taken: | 04.22.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 04.22.2022 09:11 |
| Story ID: | 419039 |
| Location: | FORT KNOX, KENTUCKY, US |
| Web Views: | 879 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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