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The Army has long been hard at work developing capabilities to meet the challenges of the next century through its initiatives in Force XXI, Army 2010 and Army After Next. Consistent with these efforts, significant Officer Personnel Management System (OPMS) studies in 1971 and 1984, and the OPMS XXI study beginning in 1996, have endeavored to review and update the officer personnel system to ensure it remains responsive to evolving needs and future challenges.

The OPMS XXI Task Force was formed in 1996 to assess the viability of the officer personnel system and in 1997 recommended nearly one hundred changes to how officers should be managed, developed and promoted in the future. These changes, many of which are outlined in this pamphlet, are essential to developing an officer corps with the appropriate character and competencies to respond to evolving and future challenges.

Six principles were inherent in these studies and are tenets of officer development and career management. By themselves, these principles serve as a frame of reference for the individual officer, commander and branch and functional area proponents.

(1) First, leader development is doctrinally based with FM 100-1 providing the springboard for our warfighting doctrine. It spells out the constitutional and legal basis for our being, the national security objectives, the spectrum of warfare and our beliefs concerning the profession of arms to include the professional Army ethic and val­ues. FM 100-5 is our keystone warfighting doctrine for subordinate and tactical level doctrine, professional education and individual and unit training. FM 25-100 tells us how we should train, including the senior leader’s role. FM 22-100 outlines the core dimensions of leadership and the basis for leadership excellence. Together, these references provide the immediate link between leadership and leader development; that is, developing competent, confident leaders capa­ble of assuming positions of greater responsibility and creating the conditions for sustained organizational success.

(2) Second, leader development programs should be responsive to the environment, including such factors as law, policy, resources, force structure, world situation, technology and professional development.

(3) Third, an officer’s success should be measured in terms of contribution. An officer’s professional goals are directly related to his or her own definition of success, as a professional in the profes­sion of arms.

(4) Fourth, high-quality soldiers deserve high-quality leaders. This principle is the heart of leader development and breathes life into all aspects of the six Army fundamental imperatives—training, force mix, doctrine, modern equipment, quality people and leader development.

(5) Fifth, we recognize as a philosophy that leaders can be developed. While a principle in itself, it is inextricably linked to the philosophy of shared responsibilities among the individual leaders; the schoolhouses, branches and functional area proponents through-out the Army; and, the commanders in the field.

(6) Sixth, leader development is cooperative and holistic. The individual officer (via self-development and dedication to professional growth), commanders in the operational environment and school houses (institutional pillar) share in the responsibility for developing leaders at every level.

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Above information derived from Army Pamplet 600-3