Active Duty Officer Force Development: Is the Air Force Doing It Right?

<p>To keep up with changes in an age of an uncertain and unstable international environment and equalize the affects of mounting manpower reductions, the Air Force identified a need to change the way… Lue lisää <p>To keep up with changes in an age of an uncertain and unstable international environment and equalize the affects of mounting manpower reductions, the Air Force identified a need to change the way it develops its active duty officer corps. Force Development is the latest paradigm for how the Air Force will cultivate its officer corps now to adapt to the uncertainties of the future. The major focus is to place the right person at the right place and the right time, with the skills, knowledge and experience needed to effectively lead teams and accomplish the mission. The goal of Force Development is to provide a system that is simple, deliberate, and develops occupational skills and enduring leadership competencies officers need to meet mission requirements. In this respect, it appears promising. However, the Air Force populace may experience unintended consequences. Air Force people, organizations, and mission could be adversely affected by this new construct. Field grade officers may find themselves in situations where they must operate at a disadvantage--they may experience difficulties, even failure. This paper examines whether leadership traits/skills are all that is needed to be effective and whether officers should phase to new career specialties at the Field Grade level, or if immersion into different career fields should take place earlier in an officer's career. </p><p>This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. </p><p>This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. </p><p>As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant. </p>