P-385-63 US Army Noncommissioned Officer Professional Development Guide Download
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6 DA PAM 600–25 • 11 December 2018 adaptive leaders who employ and lead regionally responsive, mission-tailored land power forces to ensure strength for tomorrow. (3) From an enlisted perspective, the Army continues refining the NCO professional military education (PME), from entry level through the United States Army Sergeants Major Academy (USASMA) and beyond. The Army expands and encourages a broad range of assignment opportunities in academia, industry, interagency, and multinational settings to prepare leaders for a complex and uncertain operational environment. The Army develops and manages the right blend of talent by identifying required leader skills and then cultivating leaders through experiential opportunities, academic, and developmental programs. (4) The Army manages talent and provides individual growth opportunities for continued promotion or selection while providing organizations with the right leader, at the right place, and at the right time. The Army matches “headware” to hardware to ensure leaders at all echelons are competent, adaptive, innovative, and grounded in the Army Values to lead technologically advanced formations and organizations to prevent, shape, and win. (5) Successful leaders recognize that continually developing their subordinate leaders is the key to the long-term health of the Army. Subordinates are the ones who will guide units and organizations through the challenges of tomorrow. If today’s leaders do not adequately develop their subordinates, then today’s leaders have not succeeded in accomplishing tomorrow’s mission. Senior leaders must hold subordinate leaders accountable for leader development and talent manage- ment rewarding those who take this to heart. c. Means. Means includes the deliberate effort to employ the resources of will, time, people, and funding. The essential means for successful leader development are will and time. The Army’s Leader Development Program is the Army’s program to administer, manage, and integrate leader development initiatives. Funding for leader development initiatives continues to be supported by program evaluation groups operating within the planning, programming, budgeting, and execution (PPBE) process. (1) Army senior leaders must emphasize leader development at all levels, from junior NCOs to the Sergeant Major of the Army (SMA). Closely connected to the will to develop leaders is providing the time to execute holistic organizational leader development programs. Finally, the strategy produces optimum results if it is adequately prioritized and properly resourced. (2) It informs implementation plans and supports the provision of detailed guidance by commanders, supervisors, and leaders of all components in Army commands (ACOMs), Army service component commands (ASCC), direct reporting units (DRU), Headquarters, Department of the Army (HQDA), and other activities involved in the planning, programming, preparation, and execution of developing Army leaders. 2–6. Army learning concept (overview) The Army learning concept meets the Army’s need to develop adaptive, thinking Soldiers and leaders of character capable of meeting the challenges of operational adaptability in an era of persistent conflict. It describes a learning continuum that blurs the lines between the operational Army and the generating force by meshing together self-development, institutional instruction, and operational experience. It is a learner-centric continuum that begins when an individual joins the Army and does not end until transition. The learning model enhances the rigor and relevance of individual learning, through routine assessment of 21st century Soldier competencies that enable success across the range of military operations. It is a learning model that adapts to fluctuations in learning time and maximizes opportunities to master fundamental competen- cies. It is open to inventiveness, input of learner knowledge, and advances in learning technologies and methods. Lastly, the learning model ensures Soldiers and leaders receive a level of preparation equal to the value of their service to this Nation. a. The Army learning model must be adaptive on several levels if it is to support the qualities of operational adaptability in the force. First, the Army learning model must develop adaptable Soldiers and leaders who have the cognitive, interper- sonal, and cultural skills necessary to make sound judgments in complex environments, from the tactical to strategic levels. Second, the Army must have an adaptive development and delivery system, not bound by brick and mortar, but one that extends knowledge to Soldiers at the operational edge, is capable of updating learning content rapidly, and is responsive to operational Army needs. Finally, the learning model must be capable of sustained adaptation. Routine feedback from the operational Army on Soldier performance will drive adjustments to curriculum content and learning products. Also key is a capacity to routinely explore and integrate advanced technologies and learning methods to remain competitive and engage learners. b. The continuously adaptive learning model provides a comprehensive framework that transforms the current learning model into one that strengthens three areas. First, it supports the development of adaptable Soldiers and leaders. Second, it provides an adaptive development and delivery system that will meet Soldiers’ learning requirements at the point of