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WASHINGTON – Within an ordinary building standing outside the grand walls of the Pentagon, a small office is making a large impact in personnel accessions. Army Secretary Christine Wormuth ordered the standup of the Recruiting and Retention Task Force – known as the ARTF – in August 2022 to assess the challenges preventing the Army from meeting its recruiting goals and to find opportunities to inject innovative solutions and resolve long-standing challenges.
A fairly compact organization of about 25 talented Soldiers from the regular Army, National Guard and Army Reserve, the task force recently marked one year of operation. Given that the Army establishes task forces to address specific issues within a limited time, the small team of Soldiers plucked from across the headquarters staff came together with a sense of urgency to learn and determine where opportunities for big change might make a difference.
At the helm of the ARTF, its director Maj. Gen. Deborah Kotulich says the mission is daunting but knows they cannot fail. Having previously served as the director of supply, production and distribution for COVID vaccine and therapeutics with the DoD team supporting the Department of Health and Human Services pandemic efforts, Kotulich is no stranger to national crises.
“When I came on board, the goal was to look at this challenge differently and think differently,” said Kotulich, originally from Bridgewater, New Jersey. “Soldiers are our number-one resource, and every single one of us understands that. The members of my team are driven by the gravity of the challenge and know that every day counts.”
The task force developed and implemented a two-pronged approach to assess the roots of the recruiting challenge and synchronize the accessions enterprise. First, the task force created a forum to consolidate the activity underway and present all of it to senior Army leaders for direction and prioritization. Second, they led a series of design-thinking workshops, which brought together Army and OSD stakeholders and civilian-sector experts to contemplate possible changes in an unconstrained environment.
“I didn’t know what to expect when being selected as a member of the task force,” said Maj. Thomas Bishop, a strategist assigned to the Army Strategic Operations Directorate who arrived at the task force a year ago. A native of Pine Bluff, Arkansas – recently ranked as the least safe small city in America – Bishop grew up in a tough environment, found opportunity for change in the military, and is now using his experience to make joining the Army obtainable for people who seek better life outcomes.
“My story is the Army story, and I work with passion and dedication because I know that the opportunities afforded to me also exist for so many young people searching for meaning,” said Bishop, who enlisted in the Army at age 17 as a combat engineer and later earned his commission at the University of Arkansas and joined the Army Reserve. “I joined the Army because I believed it was my duty to serve my country for a few years and then go to college. I am still in the Army because it gave me the opportunity to do more than I could have ever imagined.”
Following the nationwide shutdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Army found itself in a recruiting environment complicated by a variety of factors, including a lower interest among youth to serve in the military, a lack of awareness of the Army and the benefits it offers, and a smaller pool of eligible youth due to poor education, low fitness levels, substance abuse and more. This combination of dramatic effects caused the Army to declare recruiting its top 2023 priority.
Sgt. First Class Justin Isoline first came to the ARTF as a U.S. Army Recruiting Command liaison. His experience as a seasoned Army recruiter quickly advanced his responsibilities on the task force. He went from being a representative to coordinating and assisting with multiple taskings that affected the Army, USAREC, marketing, U.S. Army Medical Command and retention. His unique perspective led to a greater understanding of recruiter needs.
“My experience helped me provide insight into different topics that were being addressed and to share information on the work life of a recruiter,” said Isoline, a native of Gautier, Mississippi, with 16 years in the Army who now works as the senior enlisted leader with the Frederick Recruiting Company in Maryland. “I brought a unique background, as there were not that many enlisted personnel present on the task force and none from USAREC. The ARTF truly listened and made changes to help recruiters and applicants in the process.”
“I was excited about the opportunity to focus on recruiting and retention,” said Lt. Col. Crystal Jones, who served as the senior accessions analyst for the ARTF with the responsibility for analyzing and advising on accessions across the Army. “It was an amazing opportunity to hear from the field to better understand their needs while also being a key contributor spearheading the desired change.”
Now a commander with the Kansas Recruiting Battalion, Jones says her biggest takeaways from the task force came from participating in the design-thinking workshops and combining resources on a diverse team to address complex issues from various perspectives.
The design-thinking workshops led to initiatives focused on enhancing the experiences for both applicants and recruiters and on reducing attrition of future Soldiers waiting to ship to Basic Combat Training. Initial innovations included the Prep for Success Digital Engagement Experience, an app designed to help applicants prepare for the Army by using tools to inform and educate, thereby demystifying the Soldier experience. The workshops also identified the value of applying process-improvement evaluation to identify chokepoints and back-ups, and where to add resources to streamline and accelerate applicant flow through medical processing.
“The Army is known for quickly building teams that get results and aligns tasks into completed actions or postured initiatives,” said Jones, who personally managed 50-85 tasks at any given time while assessing new ideas and helping with the design thinking workshops. “I was surprised by how quickly people combined their resources to understand this complex problem set. Our team worked through more than 250 tasks within the first four weeks of being stood up.”
For Bishop, being on the ARTF showed him how interconnected Army recruiting and retention are to organizations across the force. For example, coordinating with FORSCOM units geographically with USAREC, leading continuous process improvement studies, initiating the 4th Quarter Medical Surge, drafting legislative policy initiatives, and similar initiatives helped move the team forward.
“The ARTF was able to turbocharge the efforts the enterprise was working on by elevating them to the Army senior leader level,” said Bishop, who is actively involved in multiple community efforts mentoring youth in addition to being a Soldier. “Our focus should be to find people who have a propensity to serve. Once they join the Army, we know that their time will make them the best and the brightest.”
Kotulich applauds the passion of her TF Soldiers for their ability to execute so efficiently and effectively.
“From the beginning, I have been impressed and humbled by the intensity and passion every leader across the Army has placed on the recruiting challenge,” said Kotulich. “With the team of leaders we have, I have no doubt we’ll succeed.”
“The ARTF is boots on the ground, with every element of recruiting and retention identifying the problems, collecting data, researching matters and recommending viable solutions to the Army’s recruiting and retention crisis,” said Master Sgt. Jennifer Cheeks, a native of Canton, Mississippi, with 22 years of service who serves as the task force accessions subject matter expert for all three Army components. “No two days are the same on the task force. Every day is a new challenge that we strive to conquer. The initiatives we embark upon will have a positive and advancing impact on the future of the Army.”
“After spending a year laser focused on recruiting challenges, Army senior leaders have changed policy, incentives, facilities, training, recruiter selection criteria, advertising and marketing and more, and the good news is that it has moved the needle,” said Kotulich. “We’ve identified signposts pointing us in the right direction and will continue to measure the effectiveness of the myriad changes to sustain the momentum.”
| Date Taken: | 11.07.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 11.07.2023 15:40 |
| Story ID: | 457413 |
| Location: | WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, US |
| Hometown: | BRIDGEWATER, NEW JERSEY, US |
| Hometown: | CANTON, MISSISSIPPI, US |
| Hometown: | CLIFTON PARK, NEW YORK, US |
| Hometown: | GAUTIER, MISSISSIPPI, US |
| Hometown: | KANSAS CITY, KANSAS, US |
| Hometown: | PINE BLUFF, ARKANSAS, US |
| Web Views: | 596 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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