What is an Army Battalion Staff Officer?
An Army Staff Officer is someone who serves on the personal staff or command staff for a Commander.
In essence, a Staff Officer is a subject matter expert or advisor to the commander.
Typically, Battalion Commanders (and higher) have their own staff.
In a normal Battalion, there is a S1 (Personnel), S2 (Intelligence), S3 (Operations), S4 (Logistics) and S6 (Communications) Officer.
These staff members are subject matter experts who advise the Commander on issues in their area of expertise.
In units larger than a battalion (Brigade, Division, Corps, etc.) there are additional staff members such as Civil Affairs, Legal, and Information Operations.
Typically, the higher the level of command, the more staff positions there are.
For example, a 4-Star General will have hundreds of staff members, whereas a Battalion Commander has 10-40 total staff personnel.
Staff officers, in their role of supporting the commander, must know the doctrine governing both their respective warfighting functions and that of the operations process. The acute challenge for company-grade officers and NCOs is that their professional military education thus far tends to gloss over relevant doctrine for staff operations in order to dedicate more time on doctrinal education for leadership duties. ~ Modern War Institute
Prior to taking Company Command, you should spend one to two years serving as a Battalion Staff Officer (BSO).
As a Battalion Staff Officer, you will learn how a battalion functions.
More importantly, you will learn how “companies” operate within the battalion.
Let’s just call it seeing the “big picture.”
You could serve as a S1 (Adjutant), S2 (Intel), S4 (Logistics), S6 (Signal) or Assistant S3.
Typically, S3 positions are reserved for Majors or Captains who have already commanded.
However, there are sometimes exceptions to this rule.
As a Battalion Staff Officer, you will coordinate, plan and resource with the Brigade, Battalion and companies.
You will ensure companies are in compliance with Battalion objectives and ensure the Battalion is in compliance with Brigade objectives.
In addition, you will ensure the companies are staffed and resourced to complete their missions.
Ultimately, you should spend somewhere between 12-24 months as a Battalion Staff Officer.
This will give you sufficient exposure at the battalion level.
At a minimum, you will develop a better understanding of how your company helps the battalion achieve its objectives.
A Staff Officer’s role is broad and varied – correspondence, preparing presentations and briefs, calendar management, travel bookings, administrative tasks and chasing returns. The ADC and/or EA is invaluable for travel and day-to-day coordination which allows the MA to focus on correspondence, briefs, staff coordination and planning. ~ The Forge
When your Battalion Staff Officer time is finished, if possible you should try to get a command position within the same battalion.
The reason you will want to do this is you will have a complex understanding of how your battalion operates.
You will also have a decent working relationship with your peers and fellow Company Commanders.
Battalion Staff Officers generally don’t get very much credit.
Overall, Battalion Staff Officers are a dime-a-dozen, but a great one is a rare breed.
As an Army Officer, you will spend most of your career on staff.
If you have a successful 20-year career, you will spend about 4-6 years in command and the other 14-16 on staff.
In conclusion, Army Staff Officers have an important job.
They are subject matter experts in their area of expertise.
More importantly, they keep the commander informed and up-to-date with what’s going on.
Although serving as a Staff Officer doesn’t sound glamorous, it’s a very important job.
If you have served as a battalion staff officer, please share with us any tips or issues you had to deal with in that position.
If you have any questions or comments, please post them below.
Thank you.
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- Top 10 Famous Infantry Battalions
- The 64th Forward Support Battalion (FSB) at Fort Carson: My Experience
- The Battalion S6 Officer Duties, Responsibilities and Job Description
- My Experience in an Army Aviation Battalion
- Top 5 Tips for New Army Company, Battalion and Brigade XOs
Chuck Holmes
Former Army Major (resigned)
Publisher, Part-Time-Commander.com
Email: mrchuckholmes@gmail.com
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It's a tough gig being on a command staff at any level. How do you thread the needle between being just another face in the crowd and distinguishing yourself as a stand out troop, but not a butt kisser.
Just be the best staff officer you can without putting your fellow officers down or using your staff position to vault into a command position. Do the work and more importantly soak in the experience and learn how to command large numbers of troops.
I’ve spent some time as a Battalion Staff Officer (S4, Asst S3) and I can tell you that it really helped make me a better Company Commander. I learned a lot about battalions, companies and brigades. Plus, I build some important relationships that helped me get the command I wanted.
Good for you, Laurie.
I appreciate your break down career success in the military and identify next steps for people to advance. For example, after finishing your time as a Battalion Staff Officer it might be a good choice to get a command position with the same battalion. That is a great way to leverage experience and really be of service. While Battalion Staff Officers may not get the glory, the reality is that as an Army Officer, much the career will be spent as a staffer.