Promotion Board Tips from our State Command Sergeant Major
Story by Laura Berry, Massachusetts National Guard Public Affairs
Video by Dave Wilkinson, Massachusetts National Guard Public Affairs
When Massachusetts National Guard State Command Sergeant Maj. James Campbell talks to Soldiers, he often gets these questions:
“SCSM, how do I get promoted? How do I progress in my military career?”
“Promotions are not a reward for past performance,” said Campbell. “Yes, your past performance does set you up for success when you go before a promotion board. But that’s not what they’re for. A promotion is really a recognition by the Army that you’re ready to take on the responsibility of that higher grade.”
Campbell added that it’s important to remember that to get promoted, there must be a vacancy.
“Whether it’s at the Sergeant (SGT/E-5), Staff Sergeant (SSG/E-6) or Sergeant First Class (SFC/E-7), (etc.) there has to be a vacancy within your primary MOS for you to get promoted.”
Campbell went on to explain that as we go through the board process, the board is not there to determine whether you should or should not be promoted.
“Your unit leadership has already made that decision,” said Campbell. “They’ve already said that yes, you have the ability to take on those responsibilities. So, all the board does is set the Order of Merit List or the OML. In that, the board determines the sequence that you’re going to get promoted in.”
“The boards are conducted annually. If you didn’t get promoted last year, you may have been number one or number two last year but after the boards reconvene this year, you may have dropped to number three or four. Conversely, you may have been third or fourth on the OML last year, and this year you may jump to number one. So, it really depends on what happens each year.”
Campbell says that as you’re preparing for the board, the board doesn’t look at different things every year.
“What really changes year to year which could affect your ranking on the OML is the charge to the board, which is something that the Adjutant General and I provide the board members with what our needs are in the Massachusetts National Guard – what our needs are for the next 12 to 18 months in our NCO corps.”
Here are some questions that State Command Sgt. Maj. Campbell wants Soldiers to ask themselves when getting ready for the promotion board:
Have I reviewed my NCOERS?
The board is going to look at your last three to five years’ worth of NCOERS. Are your rater and your senior rater comments quantifiable or are they very generic?
Does it really show what you’ve done and your abilities to take on responsibilities of the next rank?
All your senior rater comments should not focus on what you did last year. Did your senior rater comment on your future potential?
What does my Military Education look like?
Do you have all your military education for your current grade? That includes your Structured Self Development (SSD)!
How long has it been since you went to a Professional Military Education (PME) course?
How did you perform in your last couple of courses in the last three to five years?
Were you the honor graduate? Were you on the Commandants List?
Did you fail at any point in the last couple of years or did you have to withdraw from a PME?
Have I received any kind of Commendations over the last couple of years?
What level of state or federal awards did you receive?
Was it a state commendation medal?
What was the reason for the award? How long ago did you get it?
Have I been maintaining my individual readiness?
What is your history of performance on your fitness test?
Are you in the regulatory guidelines?
For AGR Soldiers, have you taken the ACFT once every six months?
For an M-Day soldier, have you been taking it annually?
Have you consistently passed? Or do you have a history of failures?
The board is going to look at your last three to five years of your body composition. Are you consistently within standards or do we see a fluctuation of up and down?
How did you do on your Individual Weapons Qualification (IWQ)?
Are you current on your PHA? Are you current on Dental?
Is your security clearance up to date and valid?
Has your Enlisted Records Brief (ERB) been validated in the last 12 months?
What was the date of your last DA photo?
**Important SCSM Tip: “Yes, the Army no longer looks at DA Photos on promotion boards. However, the date of your last photo is still listed on your ERB. The board looks at that, and if you were promoted to SSG two years ago and your last DA photo was six years ago, the board knows that your last DA photo is probably wearing E5 stripes. So, make sure those photos are up to date and current.”
Do I have any civilian education beyond high school?
Have you submitted your transcripts to your unit?
How long has it been since you have been in school?
**Important SCSM tip: “One of the things I see Soldiers often make mistakes on is the Soldier may be enrolled in college but they’re waiting until they get their degree and finish before submitting their transcripts. I highly encourage Soldiers that every semester when you get your transcripts, from your college your university --- submit those transcripts! The board sees that.”
What is my MOS Experience:
How many years do you have in your Primary MOS?
Have you volunteered for any broadening assignments?
**Important SCSM tip: “There are a lot of Soldiers that don’t want to take those broadening assignments or the 00F positions, the MOS immaterial jobs. That is huge when it comes to the board. Because it shows that you as a Soldier are trying to grow and trying to get better as an individual. So, I encourage you to take some of those broadening assignments. Don’t spend more than three or four years at a broadening assignment, but definitely reach out and try to get some of these different opportunities outside of your primary MOS.”
Is my Promotion Packet complete?
Is it put together according to the MOI (Memorandum of Instruction)?
Have you reviewed your records to make sure everything you have submitted is in there?
Did you take the opportunity to write a letter to the board to address a discrepancy, if needed?
**Important SCSM Tip: “As a Soldier, you’re responsible for your own records. So you should be looking at your records every year and validating that ERB within the last twelve months so that we know as board members that it is completely accurate.
Maybe you had a bad stretch, and you failed an ACFT, or you failed body composition. That’s ok. It’s not a career ender. Every board that we do, whether it’s a promotion board or a qualitative retention board, or an Active Service Management board, allows the Soldier to write a letter to the board to address some of those issues.
If you’ve got an NCOER or if you’ve failed an ACFT at one point, this is your opportunity to tell the board what happened and what you’re doing to correct it.
Too often Soldiers get ranked low on the OML because there was some discrepancy on their records, and they didn’t take that opportunity to address that with the board.”
Do I know how a Promotion Board works?
Have you ever volunteered to work on a promotion board?
*Important SCSM Tip: “Take the opportunity to volunteer and serve on one of these boards, whether it’s as a voting board member or as a recorder. Because I’ll tell you, even though recorders don’t necessarily have a seat at the table, they do have a seat in the room, and they can see how the board functions. They can see how the board operates and they hear what the board members have to say.”
Campbell said this list is not meant to be all inclusive, but these are the big-ticket items.
“You are your best career manager,” said Campbell. “Wherever you’re at in your military career, whether you’re on your first term enlistment or you’re like me you’ve been doing this for a couple years. We’re all going to have a last day in uniform, every one of us.”
“The question I have for you is: What do you want to be doing the day you take the uniform off for the last time? Not the day after ---the day you come into work and put the uniform on for the last time. What position do you want to be in? I wish you all the best of luck this year on the process. If you have any questions, please reach out to your NCO support channel."
| Date Taken: | 02.27.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 02.27.2024 13:47 |
| Story ID: | 464806 |
| Location: | HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, MA, US |
| Web Views: | 83 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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