RTO-TR-034 AC/323(HFM-023)TP/26 NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION RTO-TR-034 RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY ORGANIZATION BP 25, 7 RUE ANCELLE, F-92201 NEUILLY-SUR-SEINE CEDEX, FRANCE RTO TECHNICAL REPORT 34 Officer Selection (la S´election des officiers) Final Report of the RTO Human Factors and Medicine Panel (HFM) Research and Study Group 31 on Officer Selection. Published May 2001 Distribution and Availability on Back Cover 7KLVSDJHKDVEHHQGHOLEHUDWHO\OHIWEODQN 3DJHLQWHQWLRQQHOOHPHQWEODQFKH RTO-TR-034 AC/323(HFM-023)TP/26 NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY ORGANIZATION BP 25, 7 RUE ANCELLE, F-92201 NEUILLY-SUR-SEINE CEDEX, FRANCE RTO TECHNICAL REPORT 34 Officer Selection (la S´election des officiers) Final Report of the RTO Human Factors and Medicine Panel (HFM) Research and Study Group 31 on Officer Selection. Authors/Co-authors: F. J. LESCREVE (BE) (RSG Chairman) J. ARABIAN (US), M. BAILEY (UK), W. BIRKE (GE), S. LAGACHE (FR), L. MCFARLANE (UK), S. MEINCKE (DE), B. SCHREURS (BE), B. THOMPSON (UK), H. M. VISSER (NE), D. WOYCHESHIN (CA) The Research and Technology Organization (RTO) of NATO RTO is the single focus in NATO for Defence Research and Technology activities. Its mission is to conduct and promote cooperative research and information exchange. The objective is to support the development and effective use of national defence research and technology and to meet the military needs of the Alliance, to maintain a technological lead, and to provide advice to NATO and national decision makers. The RTO performs its mission with the support of an extensive network of national experts. It also ensures effective coordination with other NATO bodies involved in R&T activities. RTO reports both to the Military Committee of NATO and to the Conference of National Armament Directors. It comprises a Research and Technology Board (RTB) as the highest level of national representation and the Research and Technology Agency (RTA), a dedicated staff with its headquarters in Neuilly, near Paris, France. In order to facilitate contacts with the military users and other NATO activities, a small part of the RTA staff is located in NATO Headquarters in Brussels. The Brussels staff also coordinates RTO’s cooperation with nations in Middle and Eastern Europe, to which RTO attaches particular importance especially as working together in the field of research is one of the more promising areas of initial cooperation. The total spectrum of R&T activities is covered by the following 7 bodies: • AVT Applied Vehicle Technology Panel • HFM Human Factors and Medicine Panel • IST Information Systems Technology Panel • NMSG NATO Modelling and Simulation Group • SAS Studies, Analysis and Simulation Panel • SCI Systems Concepts and Integration Panel • SET Sensors and Electronics Technology Panel These bodies are made up of national representatives as well as generally recognised ‘world class’ scientists. They also provide a communication link to military users and other NATO bodies. RTO’s scientific and technological work is carried out by Technical Teams, created for specific activities and with a specific duration. Such Technical Teams can organise workshops, symposia, field trials, lecture series and training courses. An important function of these Technical Teams is to ensure the continuity of the expert networks. RTO builds upon earlier cooperation in defence research and technology as set-up under the Advisory Group for Aerospace Research and Development (AGARD) and the Defence Research Group (DRG). AGARD and the DRG share common roots in that they were both established at the initiative of Dr Theodore von K´arm´an, a leading aerospace scientist, who early on recognised the importance of scientific support for the Allied Armed Forces. RTO is capitalising on these common roots in order to provide the Alliance and the NATO nations with a strong scientific and technological basis that will guarantee a solid base for the future. The content of this publication has been reproduced directly from material supplied by RTO or the authors. Published May 2001 Copyright RTO/NATO 2001 All Rights Reserved ISBN 92-837-1067-3 Printed by St. Joseph Ottawa/Hull (A St. Joseph Corporation Company) 45 Sacr´e-Cœur Blvd., Hull (Qu´ebec), Canada J8X 1C6 ii Officer Selection (RTO TR-034 / HFM-023) Executive Summary In the course of history, different criteria have been used to determine who would command and lead troops: physical power, military skills, nobility and wealth, political power, academic knowledge, personality traits, etc. In modern militaries, commanders are officers; therefore, the primary selection of officer applicants determines who will be available to serve command functions in the future. Therefore, it is important to examine how officer-candidates are selected. This was the central theme of this NATO research and study group (RSG). Considering that the challenge of officer selection has persisted for many decades and recognizing that current practices are embedded in national culture and tradition, one may question the value of a research group on officer selection. The value of this research, at this time, is that many things have indeed changed: • New missions have emerged since the end of the Cold War: humanitarian, peace keeping, and peace making missions. The focus has moved from massive, high intensity conflicts to smaller actions in which new tasks are required and new behavior is expected from officers (e.g., to foster cohesion in a multicultural, multilingual, ad hoc force). • In a number of NATO countries, conscription recently has been or is in the process of being abolished. Commanding professional soldiers will be different from commanding conscripts. • Due to downsizing, a higher proportion of officer jobs is becoming critical and, as a consequence, there is less tolerance for poor officer performance. • A number of societal concerns, such as equal opportunities for both genders and race/ethnic minority groups, influence the definition of what selection outcomes are considered acceptable. • Changes in training goals have an impact on selection. Although weapon systems have reached new heights of sophistication, their operation is easier and no longer requires an extensive knowledge of the theoretical underpinnings. On the other hand, these high tech operations are faster, more integrated and more complex; they require fast thinking, outstanding information processing, and superior communication skills. • Because of shrinking defense budgets, cost-benefit issues must be examined more closely. Activities of the RSG From its start in December 1997 till its last meeting in June 2000, the RSG’s attention was focused on the achievement of two goals: the organization of a workshop on officer selection and the redaction of a report on the subject. Both activities were meant to share information and to foster a professional and scientific approach to officer selection. The workshop was held in Monterey, California (US) 9th – 11th, 1999. The Research and Technology Organization of NATO published the proceedings in August 2000 (Report RTO-MP-55 AC/323(HFM) TP/27). The present report is the final report of the RSG. Structure of the report The final report is structured as follows. After the introduction, an overview is given of the current officer selection practice. A detailed review of the systems used in the countries participating to the research and study group1 is given and a summary is provided. Then the main results of a survey on officer selection are presented. This survey covers the current practice in nineteen NATO and non-NATO countries. The actual questionnaire is also included. Following the description of the current practice, the search for an ideal system is commented, a conceptual approach is developed, the qualities of an officer are discussed, a personnel selection primer is given and guidelines for test-use are highlighted. Conclusions The RSG recognizes the fact that officer selection systems are embedded in their national contexts. It seems not to be feasible nor desirable to develop and implement a unique system for the different NATO-countries. 1 The countries participating in the RSG 31 were Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, The Netherlands, The United Kingdom and The United States. iii Apparently different approaches can generate satisfactory outcomes. The RSG is convinced however that a re- examination of any national system in the light of the practice in other countries together with the scientific and professional guidelines developed in this report and reported at the RSG workshop, can significantly improve the outcome of the current officer selection practice. Considering the influence of the quality of the officer corps upon the armed forces, improving officer quality by striving for smarter selection systems is something that needs to be pursued. iv la S´election des officiers (RTO TR-034 / HFM-023) Synth`ese Au cours de l’histoire, diff´erents crit`eres ont et´´ e utilis´es pour d´eterminer qui commanderait et qui m`enerait les troupes au combat : la puissance physique, les connaissances militaires, la noblesse et la richesse, le pouvoir politique, les connaissances th´eoriques, les traits de caract`ere etc. Dans les arm´ees modernes ce sont les officiers qui commandent; par cons´equent, les futurs candidats aux postes de commandement sont d´etermin´es par la s´election initiale des candidats au grade d’officier. Il est donc important d’examiner la proc´edure de s´election de ces candidats. Tel a et´´ e le th`eme central de ce groupe OTAN d’´etude et de recherche (RSG). Etant donn´e que le d´efi pr´esent´e par la s´election des officiers existe depuis des d´ecennies, et sachant que les pratiques courantes dans ce domaine sont irr´em´ediablement ancr´ees dans les diff´erentes cultures et traditions nationales, la question aurait pu etreˆ pos´ee de savoir quel etait´ l’int´erˆet d’un groupe de recherche sur la s´election des officiers.