U.S. Army photo by Spc. Dustin D. Biven
Major James Bithorn recently wrote an excellent post with the goal of preparing new graduates from the School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) for their next few years following graduation (check it out here). My goal is to complement his well-written article with a description of the expectations that newly minted SAMS planners will encounter, particularly at that first assignment – the post-SAMS utilization as planners at two or three-star headquarters.
As a SAMS graduate and an FA 59 (Strategist), I am essentially a permanent planner, and most new SAMS graduates will likely work for me or someone like me. I’ve seen both sides of the recent SAMS graduate experience – reporting in and reported to – so I am uniquely positioned to describe four expectations that new SAMS graduates are prone to encounter. Some of these expectations are fair, others less so, but they exist and their description will provide context and a useful frame of reference as you begin your journey as a SAMS planner. Some of these expectations may echo lessons from the SAMS faculty, but like much in the operational world, forewarned is forearmed.
The first and perhaps most important expectation to recognize and appreciate is that the reputation of SAMS precedes you. The selection process is challenging, the workload is very demanding, and graduation standards are rigorous and scrupulously enforced. For these reasons, excellence is expected and is the performance standard by which you will be measured. As a recent SAMS graduate, you are now one of the most experienced planners on staff. Although you will likely be one of the more junior officers on the staff, your stock in trade is the craft of planning – developing concepts and ideas into executable plans.
Accordingly, the second expectation is that you can immediately run an operational planning team (OPT) to develop concepts and transform them into plans. Like much of planning, this is part science and part art, laying out a plan to plan, building an effective cohesive team, and driving the OPT to produce useful, thoroughly staffed, and complete deliverables. Your challenge throughout this process is to lead a diverse group with varying levels of experience and competence with respect, courtesy, and professionalism. Some OPT members may be senior to you, but the responsibility to pull it all together to form an effective planning team that delivers results remains yours. You will likely find it necessary to “lead by charm.” This comes naturally to some; others have to cultivate this talent, but it can be a powerful tool in your planning kit bag.
As an OPT lead, the third expectation is that you can embrace the dreaded blank whiteboard. Be comfortable with ambiguity and learn to work with little or no guidance. You will often get tagged with the most challenging planning dilemmas simply because you are a SAMS graduate. Accept the challenge as an opportunity and run with it. Unfortunately, the amount of guidance is generally inversely proportional to the complexity of the problem. I guarantee you that the commander has thoughts on the issue at hand and may already have possible courses of action in mind. Many commanders, however, use the planning process to crystallize their thinking and thus issue little initial guidance to avoid swaying the process of concept development. This technique can facilitate an unvarnished dialog between the commander and the planning team. Understand that planning is often a long conversation with a commander.
Finally, but no less important, you will be expected to know the relevant doctrine, regardless of the topic. All will assume that you are up on the latest doctrine as it applies to the issue at hand as well as tangential issues. Expect this to surface during those long conversations with the commander – “what does the doctrine say about…?” Once again, forewarned is forearmed.
These expectations are exacting, occasionally arduous, but not unreasonable. As a SAMS graduate, you’ve already lived up to these expectations you merely need to continue doing so. As the first expectation states, you are now considered an expert planner – share your knowledge and experience freely. Anticipate that you may have to help reblue many of your fellow staff officers on MDMP and staff processes. Find opportunities to help the team. If you bear these expectations in mind and focus your efforts on making everyone around you better, you will enjoy success and contribute in a meaningful way during your utilization tour. Along the way, you’ll acquire valuable experience and lessons you’ll draw on for the remainder of your career.
Lieutenant Colonel Nick Simontis is an Army Strategist with a BS in Engineering from the University of South Carolina, an MA in Security Studies from Kansas State University, and an MMAS in Theater Operations from the School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS). He has served in a variety of Army, joint, and combined planning positions, and is currently a Student in the Advanced Strategic Leadership Studies Program (ASLSP).
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