Top-performing leaders attend Young Alaka’i Leadership Program

Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Michael Behlin | The Young Alaka’i program is made up of three-phases hosted by the 8th Theater Sustainment Command and is targeted toward top-performing, company-grade officers, warrant officers and non-commissioned officers at the Joint and Multinational Level.  

FORT SHAFTER, HI, UNITED STATES

09.01.2016

Story by Spc. Jaime Ruiz 

8th Theater Sustainment Command

FORT SHAFTER, Hawaii –Thirty-two top performing leaders from all services across the Pacific region will start the third iteration of the Young Alaka’i (YA) Leader Development Program 16-02 September 7 – 17 at various locations across Oahu.

The Young Alaka’i program is made up of three-phases hosted by the 8th Theater Sustainment Command and is targeted toward top-performing, company-grade officers, warrant officers and non-commissioned officers at the Joint and Multinational Level.

Among the 32 students attending the third iteration of the YA program, 16-02 will include its first Department of the Army Civilian.

The program was a featured Warrior Corner topic at the 2015 Association of the United States Army symposium in Washington, D.C. and has caught the attention of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC), and U.S. Pacific Command (PACOM).

“Young Alaka'i is the most innovative, effective leader development program I have seen,” said Gen. Robert B. Brown, commanding general of U.S. Army Pacific. “People are our best resource. It is so important to get this kind of training opportunity to this cohort (company grade leaders) who want it and thrive for it.”

The program's Phase I is a packed nine-day academic phase which emphasizes teamwork throughout its interactive sessions and includes engaging discussions about military leadership, mission command, critical and strategic thinking, service component strategies and objectives with special emphasis on the roles, mission capabilities, limitations and partnerships in the Pacific. In addition, one half of the cohort will attend the Asia Pacific Orientation Course provided by the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the East-West Center.

During Phase II (Regional Expertise) selected leaders within the course will be immersed in regional and national strategy at selected venues in the Pacific and Washington D.C. The more focused curriculum will provide students with an opportunity to deepen their knowledge on contemporary challenges, foundational documents and national strategy for the future of the force as it relates to the Indo-Asia Pacific. The leaders will also have one-on-one senior leader engagements with joint and multinational partners, as well as meeting and learning from industry and think tank representatives. Leaders who are not selected for attendance will conduct an on-island tabletop exercise with industry, and attend the humanitarian assistance response training course, panels on selected topics, and in-brief visits at the joint services headquarters.

Phase III (Regional Broadening) consists of graduates attending a HRC Strategic Broadening Seminar, Training with Industry, or PACOM engagements throughout the Pacific Theater.

“These leaders will build their regional expertise that will help their commands understand and execute U.S. Pacific Command and USARPAC objectives,” said Lt. Col. Christopher Bachl, 8th TSC’s Chief of the Commander’s Initiative Group. “The participants will develop a strategic-level mindset so they can create a shared understanding at the tactical and operational level.”

Bachl went on to say that the program has developed leaders who are confident in their abilities to engage senior leaders with their regional expertise, and can speak to our multinational partners with new found awareness of their culture and regional complexities.

For more information on upcoming iterations of the Young Alaka'I program, contact the Young Alaka’I program manager Capt Monica Rivera [e-mail] for more information. Applicants must have their chain of command's endorsement to attend. Coverage of the program will also be found on the 8TH TSC Website at https://www.army.mil/8thtsc, www.facebook.com/8thTSC and on twitter at https://twitter.com/8thTSC.

• Date Taken: 09.01.2016
• Date Posted: 09.01.2016 19:33
• Story ID: 208748
• Location: FORT SHAFTER, HI, US