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Military Career Field Management

Effective military leaders help nations meet their strategic goals, and the retention of these leaders is essential to preserving morale and unit readiness. RAND has conducted extensive research on training and career development programs that are designed to attract and retain personnel with the most promising mix of knowledge, skills, abilities, and experience.

Testimony

Fostering Skills and Creating New Pipelines for Military Service

The latest National Defense Authorization Act provides seven new authorities enabling the services to access, retain, and promote competitive officers. What are some considerations for using them to address compensation, performance data collection, and the civil-military divide?

May 16, 2019
Report

Officer Career Management: Steps Toward Modernization in the 2018 and 2019 National Defense Authorization Acts

In this report, the authors summarize departmental views on the military officer career management policies examined in the two reports required by the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act and provide data to inform potential policy changes.

Mar 25, 2019
Report

Life as an Army Private: Six Soldiers Tell Their Stories

In their own words, six junior soldiers describe why they joined the U.S. Army, their joys and frustrations, and what they hope the future brings. These stories offer lessons for policymakers, Army leaders and recruiters, and anyone considering a career in the Army.

Mar 6, 2019
Report

Report

Organizational Dynamics Between the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, Manpower and Reserve Affairs (SAF/MR) and the Air Force Deputy Chief of Staff for Manpower, Personnel, and Services (AF/A1)

This Perspective offers recommendations on how the relationship between the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, Manpower and Reserve Affairs and the Air Force Deputy Chief of Staff for Manpower, Personnel, and Services might be further refined.

Jan 4, 2019
Essay

An Inside Look at Life in the Army's Junior Ranks

History records the names of generals, not of the privates filling out supply forms, cleaning out trucks, or huffing through another training exercise. But those privates keep the U.S. Army running. RAND research provides their unfiltered take on life in the ranks.

Oct 31, 2018
Report

Report

Career Paths in the Army Civilian Workforce: Identifying Common Patterns Based on Statistical Clustering

This report examines what the career of a "typical" Army civilian looks like. It identifies seven common career patterns among individuals who entered the Army civilian workforce between 1981 and 2000 as General Schedule employees.

Oct 31, 2018
Report

Report

Realigning the Stars: A Methodology for Reviewing Active Component General and Flag Officer Requirements

The authors developed and employed a methodology to review general and flag officer requirements in the U.S. military, used results to identify opportunities to eliminate or downgrade positions, and explored the implications of reductions.

Oct 22, 2018
Report

How Do Senior Enlisted Leaders Influence Junior Soldiers?

The primary mission of U.S. Army noncommissioned officers is to lead and mentor soldiers. But research has placed little emphasis on how to value their experience. Knowing how NCOs influence soldiers can help the Army maintain or improve leadership quality and soldier performance and reduce personnel costs.

Oct 4, 2018
Report

Report

Evaluating the Impact of a Total Force Service Commitment Policy on Air Force Pilot Manning: An Exploratory Application of Inventory Modeling

The authors examine whether a Total Force (rather than component-specific) service commitment with increased service commitment lengths could reduce or eliminate projected pilot shortages in the Air Force.

Sep 18, 2018
Report

Report

National Guard Youth ChalleNGe: Program Progress in 2016–2017

This report presents information on recent participants of the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe, a quasi-military program for young people lacking a high school diploma. It also documents program progress in academics, fitness, and other areas.

Aug 20, 2018
Report

Report

Supplemental Career Paths for Air Force Pilots: A Warrant Officer Component or an Aviation Technical Track?

This report documents analyses of two ways to supplement the traditional Air Force pilot career path to enhance force sustainment: a warrant officer component to fill pilot requirements or an aviation technical track for commissioned officers.

Aug 14, 2018
Report

Evaluation of the Strength Aptitude Test and Other Fitness Tests to Qualify Air Force Recruits for Physically Demanding Specialties

This report evaluates the Strength Aptitude Test and related fitness tests to identify strategies for ensuring airmen can meet job-related physical requirements.

Aug 10, 2018
Commentary

To Produce Strategists, Focus on Staffing Senior Leaders

To reinvigorate graduate-level professional military education, the military could carve out a unique educational niche by focusing on intense, quality staff officer education that is more relevant to understanding the demands placed on top defense leaders.

Jul 20, 2018
Report

Report

Training Success for U.S. Air Force Special Operations and Combat Support Specialties: An Analysis of Recruiting, Screening, and Development Processes

This report addresses challenges for implementing new approaches to Air Force high-demand, high-attrition specialty recruiting, screening, and development processes, and takes a holistic approach to identifying methods to fill gaps in processes.

May 15, 2018
Report

Who Joins the Army, and Why?

The U.S. Army wants to improve its understanding of soldiers' motivations to enlist, and how the reality of Army life matches up with expectations. Interviews with soldiers ranked E-1 to E-4 offer a rich portrayal of life as a private.

May 14, 2018
Report

Gap Analysis and Alternatives Analysis of the Coast Guard Cost Estimating Workforce

This report briefly summarizes a gap analysis and alternatives analysis of the Coast Guard cost-estimating workforce.

Apr 11, 2018
Report

Career Development for the Department of Defense Security Cooperation Workforce

This study informs the development of career models for the Department of Defense security cooperation workforce. It assesses potential requirements for competencies and experience and identifies potential job families within the workforce.

Feb 8, 2018
Report

A Career Field Planning Tool to Build a Healthy MQ-1/9 RPA Pilot Community

The personnel who operate remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) are crucial in the Air Force, but many in the RPA career field are dissatisfied, and it is difficult to train and retain enough pilots to meet the demand. To assist in building a healthy, sustainable RPA career field, RAND has developed a long-term RPA career field planning model.

Jan 23, 2018
Dissertation

Dissertation

I Hear What You Are Saying: Analysis of USAF Rated Officer Comments from the 2015 Military Career Decisions Survey

Using data from the USAF 2015 Active Duty Career Decisions Survey, this dissertation employs a range of qualitative data analysis techniques to examine the open-ended response questions related to a pilot's decision to remain or depart the service.

Nov 20, 2017
Report

Report

National Guard Youth ChalleNGe: Program Progress in 2015–2016

National Guard Youth ChalleNGe is a residential, quasi-military program for young people at risk of dropping out of high school. This report provides information on recent ChalleNGe participants and develops metrics of program success.

Nov 1, 2017

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