Publications
CALL Insider Newsletter 3rd QTR, FY21
No, you’re not seeing things and no, the CALL director is not a civilian position now. As the
CALL deputy, I am wearing a couple hats this summer while we wait for the new director
to arrive. As you can imagine, we are very engaged during this transition period, with
collections ongoing and our work on publications focused on providing you with relevant and
timely information from the field.
21-635 - "Nunca Camino Solo" Security Force Assistance (SFA) Operations in the Competition Phase
This article describes the successes of a Security Force Assistance Brigade's deployment to Colombia to advise and assist in counternarcotics efforts.
21-19 - Mastering the Fundamentals
Regardless of echelon, the Army needs units to be masters in a handful of fundamental tasks. By focusing an organization’s energy on a few, simple, achievable tasks, leaders create a purpose that directly contributes to the Army’s mission. Every effort in the organization begins and ends with that purpose in mind, from care for Soldiers to training, maintenance, and leader-development programs. Operations Group, National Training Center, has compiled an armored brigade combat team (ABCT) mission essential task (MET) crosswalk to generate discussion among leaders and better focus efforts within current resource limitations. This crosswalk distills Headquarters, Department of the Army-directed METs for an ABCT into high-payoff battle tasks and notes the common challenges units experience when training these tasks.
CALL Insider Newsletter 2nd QTR, FY21
Catch up on what you may have missed and please share widely within your organizations.
- Building Cohesive Teams
- Hard Lessons
- Offensive and Defensive Operations Against a Near-Peer Threat
- Leader Development in Contact
- Latest Warfighter Training Support Packages and Training Circulars
- News from the Combat Training Centers And More!
FY21.1 MCTP Key Observations Bulletin
The information in this handbook is a snapshot of MCTP’s recent observations of Army training in a large-scale combat operations environment. These observations were written by a collaborative group of experienced officers, noncommissioned officers, and chief warrant officers working in conjunction with highly qualified expert-senior mentors. In an effort to increase the frequency of sharing observations, best practices, and trends, MCTP will continue publishing this handbook on a semi-annual basis and print cargo pocket-sized books for easier reference.
News From the Front - How the Army Does Smart
This article explains the municipal initiative or trend known as Smart Cities, which includes using "Internet of Things" networks, data collection by cutting edge technologies and sensors, and data-driven decision making. It also covers several years’ worth of Army experiments, proof of concepts, and modernization initiatives related to Smart Cities and Smart Technologies from an Army installation perspective. Finally, it coincides with the recently released Army Installations Strategy and identifies organizations leading installation of the future efforts.
Building Cohesive Teams
Cohesiveness is critical to high performing teams. Each member must understand their role in the team, know their responsibilities, and know that their teammates are also performing their duties. This handbook describes methods to build cohesive teams and provides indicators to measure performance. It incorporates the Army's "This is My Squad" initiative and is a good resource for leaders at all echelons.
News From the Front: Command Relationships in Defense Support of Civil Authorities
Defense Support of Civil Authorities (DSCA) is support provided by U.S. federal military forces, Department of Defense (DoD) civilians, DoD contract personnel, DoD component assets, and, in coordination with the governors, federally funded National Guard (NG) forces in response to requests for assistance from civil authorities for domestic emergencies, law enforcement support, and other domestic activities, or from qualifying entities for special events. Major disasters are any man-made or natural catastrophe requiring DSCA (e.g., hurricane, tornado, earthquake, or snowstorm) or, regardless of cause, any fire, flood, or explosion of sufficient severity. Under the Stafford Act, the governor requesting disaster assistance from the federal government must demonstrate the state’s lack of capacity or resources to mount an effective response. The NG is the first line of military response to most state or local incidents within a state or territory. This News from the Front article is an example of a DSCA process and response to natural disasters by the 49th Military Police Brigade, California Army National Guard.
21-07 - Hard Lessons
Written by the sergeants major (SGMs) of Operations Group, National Training Center (NTC), this handbook was inspired by the book, “66 Stories of Battle Command,” where commanders shared their experiences during NTC rotations and provided “a way” to other commanders before they have to make a decision for a specific situation. The NTC SGMs have the same intentions with the publication of this handbook. The stories include experiences as an operations SGM and command sergeants major (CSM) at the battalion and brigade levels. Some of the stories provided will create differing opinions, but are only intended to share the authors’ experiences with those that may face the same or similar situations. In each rotation, NTC leaders observe SGMs who, once exposed to a situation, produce extraordinary results. These stories are not meant to expose any unit; they are meant to unearth possible solutions.
21-04 - Leader Development in Contact
In this handbook, leaders from the National Training Center (NTC) Operations Group examine the art of leadership, its application on the replicated NTC battlefield, and what some of the more successful rotational unit leaders do to build winning teams. Each chapter, written by a senior observer controller/trainer, covers the tactics, techniques, and procedures that have been demonstrated to be successful in a specific warfighting function. Leader Development in Contact will be a valuable addition to every leader's 'professional development toolkit.
21-09 - Leadership Guide to Externally Evaluated Full Scale Exercises
This handbook provides Senior Leaders and Garrison Commanders a guide to the Installation Management Command's (IMCOM) Full Scale Exercise (FSE) Program. It details the role of leaders in training, the design process, the external evaluation process, and Corrective Action Plan (CAP)/Improvement Plan (IP) process. The purpose of this handbook is to provide Installation leadership a timeline for engagement in the FSE process and strategies for planning, execution success, and improvement.
19-18: Commander and Staff Guide to Rehearsals A No-Fail Approach Handbook
This handbook provides a cohesive instructional manual on rehearsals; it incorporates doctrine and best practices to mitigate unit challenges in executing rehearsals at all levels, while also acknowledging that the basic tenets of rehearsals have not changed. U.S. forces operate in a complex operating environment of cyber, multinational, and multi-domain players. This environment increases operational complexity, thus necessitating timely and effective rehearsals to optimize these capabilities and increase the likelihood of success.