Cadet staff meetings

[flyguy06]

I was just curious does anyone teach the cadets how to conduct military style staff meetings?

When you have the Commander sit attheheadof the table. His staff sits on one side and subordinate commanders sit onthe other side. and each staff officer stands up and briefs and so forth?

Its actually a great leadership tool and they would enjoy the symbolism

[Larry Mangum]

Interesting idea, I have never seen it done that way even at wing, but it sounds like something worth trying out.

[Ned]

As a retired Army guy, I have certainly done my fair share of briefings.

But I don't think that is the same thing as a "staff meeting."

Think of it this way -- when the staff is actually doing MDMP or just getting their work done, that is the "staff meeting."  When they present their work to the boss, that is the "briefing."  If they have done their job well, not much actual work gets done at the briefing.  They pitch the info to the boss and in return get the boss' guidance and/or decision.

When the cadets get together, they need to be doing the staff work.  Coordinating, making schedules, drafting plans, etc.  Only after they have done this necessary work can they brief the boss on their results.

That's been my experience, anyway.

Ned Lee
Former Cadet, Former Army Guy

[Spike]

Does it really matter where the Staff members sit, as long as the information is presented it makes no difference right?

Trust me, your stateside, armory living National Guard units may be doing it the way you said Flyguy, but when we have a tent with one field table or the hood of a truck to work off, it makes no difference. 

Ned is partly correct.  A "briefing" can also just be a quick get together for the Commander to brief the staff on his decisions, where he is not looking for any input, but making his decisions known. 

[addo1]

Does it really matter where the Staff members sit, as long as the information is presented it makes no difference right?

  I agree with that. We hold our cadet staff meetings standing around the porch at the back of the FBO. It is nothing formal, but it accomplishes the purpose and that is what matters.

[flyguy06]

Does it really matter where the Staff members sit, as long as the information is presented it makes no difference right?

Trust me, your stateside, armory living National Guard units may be doing it the way you said Flyguy, but when we have a tent with one field table or the hood of a truck to work off, it makes no difference. 

Ned is partly correct.  A "briefing" can also just be a quick get together for the Commander to brief the staff on his decisions, where he is not looking for any input, but making his decisions known.

Ok Spike,

Really wasnt trying to get caught up in the whole "where you sit" thing, It really doesnt matter. ThT WASNT THE MAIN POINT OF MY THREAD.

Ned, sir,

Sorry I used the wrong term. meeting, briefing, whateva. The point is I thinki it is a good idea.

And yes, I have done them stateside and Iraqside. You guys get caught up way too deep inthe nuts and bolts. The point wasnt where you sit at or if you call it a meeting or a briefing.

The point of my post was it is a good leadership tool to have cadets brief the cadet commander to paint a picture of whats going on so he/she can make decisions.  Its just a thought. Hope that is ok.


Ned, good to hear from you again. I remember meeting you at the NCC last year.

[jimmydeanno]

flyguy, I do believe that it was you who brought the "nuts and bolts" into the equation.

I was just curious does anyone teach the cadets how to conduct military style staff meetings?

When you have the Commander sit attheheadof the table. His staff sits on one side and subordinate commanders sit onthe other side. and each staff officer stands up and briefs and so forth?

Its actually a great leadership tool and they would enjoy the symbolism

So your real question is "does anyone teach how to hold formalized staff briefings/meetings?  Because without those "nuts and bolts" you list above, how does it differentiate from any other type of meeting held in the outside world?

I think that staff briefings/meetings are important to keep the cadet staff directed and up to speed on the goings on of a squadron.  It provides them the opportunity to ask questions in an uninterrupted environment, do planning, etc.

So yes, we do conduct them, the cadet commander leads the meeting, gets updates from the flight CCs and CDC, they plan, discuss, etc.  They do this for about 30 minutes once per month.

[Always Ready]

"Military style staff meetings" have their place. I think they are a useful tool for practicing giving short briefings to the higher ups to influence help educate the higher ups to make the best decision possible.

WIWAC/CC (When I was a Cadet Commander), my staff meetings could at best be described as organized chaos. It worked well for us. The DCC, myself, all of my staff, and any senior staff that wished to attend would show up. I, as the C/CC, ran it. We had a schedule, we stuck to it, but I had a very opinionated staff who had no problems speaking their mind. We'd sometimes get off track, but we still got work done. This killed two-three hours one Sunday a month. It could have been quicker, but it gave us time to get to know each other and relax. We'd plan any special activities and update our 30 day, 90 day, and yearly schedule for the cadet side. At the end of the meeting, we all knew we accomplished something and that every voice was heard. I would then take the results from that meeting and brief the squadron commander that next Tuesday at a command staff meeting.

That was our monthly cadet staff meeting. We also had a 5-10 minute long cadet staff meeting before and after each meeting. We'd normally go over what we were doing that night, any changes that were made at the last second by the senior staff, and we'd go over weather conditions and how it will effect the meeting (Nebraska weather was rough). At the end of the squadron meeting, we would meet up again and basically do an after action report. We'd address everyone's concerns and then, most of us would head to Applebee's for supper.

It worked well for us. Here, the cadet staff doesn't even meet...ever. The DCC handles most of the decisions. I don't like it...but that's just me 

[flyguy06]

Sometimes its like that depending upon your squadron. In my squadron,I have to make most of the decisions because my highest ranking cadet is an Airman. I have bo cadet commander. I am constantly trying to get them tpo participate in theings, but its like pulling teeth at times.

Hopefully things will change soon.

[Spike]

I have bo cadet commander. I am constantly trying to get them tpo participate in theings, but its like pulling teeth at times.

Hopefully things will change soon.

What "things" are you trying to get them to participate in.  If you have no Cadet Commander, then you have no Cadet Staff, then why are you worried about having your Cadets hold a "staff meeting"??

Are you acting as the Cadet Commander, with your Cadets sitting around a table with you and having them "brief" you on what is going on in the Squadron?

I am also confused on the "symbolism" you are trying to get across.  What symbolism?  The symbolism of "the cadet commander is the commander"?  I just don't get it.  Please explain this symbolism.  I fear you are trying to hard to bring your Army National Guard mentality into your Cadet Program.  There is nothing wrong with having military traditions and customs, but lets make sure we don't go overboard.     

[flyguy06]

First of all, my original post has nothong to with my squadron. My squadron is a very unique squadron with its own set of issues that we are working out amongst ourselves.

The post was just a general comment I thought would be helpful Take it or ignore it. It doesnt matter to me. It was a suggestion. I thought about it while at my Wing encampment last year.

I view the cadet program as JROTC program. it is very similar. We are not at all invovled in ES so our focus is on leadership and yes I am not afraid to say military leadership. The military is a great vehicle to teach leadership to cadets or anyone for that matter. SO yes, I have no quams about expressing that.

No, I am not trying to make junior soldiers out of cadfets. But people seem to think there is a difference between Army military and AF milityary amd CAP and really there isnt. miliytary leadership is military leadership. The specifics may be different but as a whole they are the same.

As far as the whole briefing thing goes, no we do nothave briefings at my squadron. if youmust know I spend the majority of my meetings trying toget the cadets to settle down and behave. (Again, my unit is unique and probably differnt than most) They are not at the maturity level yet to hold any type of meetings. But I do care about the cadet program as a whole on the NAtional level so my comments were as a sugestion to everyone else.

Take it or dump it. Either way is fine with me.I was just trying to help. Thank you.

[Ned]

Ned, sir,

Sorry I used the wrong term. meeting, briefing, whateva. The point is I thinki it is a good idea.

I don't disagree.  My point was that what we normally think of as "work" doesn't get done at the briefing.  You still need the staff meeting(s) to get ready for the brief.

I've had the pleasure of fielding questions from four-stars at briefings.  It helps develop self-confidence and an appreciation for a good anti-perspirent. 



IOW, you can have staff meetings without a briefing, but you can't have a briefing without staff meetings.

And if I had to choose between the two, I need staff meetings more than I need briefings for the cadet staff.

But I certainly agree that learning how to brief and going through the process of a stand up are important skills that can last a lifetime for the troops.

[flyguy06]

Thanks Judge 

[BlackKnight]

I was just curious does anyone teach the cadets how to conduct military style staff meetings?

When you have the Commander sit attheheadof the table. His staff sits on one side and subordinate commanders sit onthe other side. and each staff officer stands up and briefs and so forth?

Its actually a great leadership tool and they would enjoy the symbolism

Flyguy,

See Leadership for the 21st Century, Vol 2, pp 8-9.  Participating in or conducting an efficient staff meeting is a basic skill every new CAP cadet officer is supposed to master as part of the Flight Commander achievement.

[DC]

I was just curious does anyone teach the cadets how to conduct military style staff meetings?

When you have the Commander sit attheheadof the table. His staff sits on one side and subordinate commanders sit onthe other side. and each staff officer stands up and briefs and so forth?

Its actually a great leadership tool and they would enjoy the symbolism

Flyguy,

See Leadership for the 21st Century, Vol 2, pp 8-9.  Participating in or conducting an efficient staff meeting is a basic skill every new CAP cadet officer is supposed to master as part of the Flight Commander achievement.

Yes, but there are many ways to hold an effective staff meeting, one doesn't have to follow a specific format as he suggested.