Page 11 - Rifles 2017 Issue No 3

not allow recklessness or negligence. Self-re- liance needs to be nurtured and hence we have a responsibility to provide ri emen with personal development to maximize their potential. The Army’s CLM system might be described as ‘education’, but the reality is very different. So where we identify clear talent and intellect, we should nd ways of investing in it, and ways of realizing potential through the breadth of oppor- tunity that a large Regiment offers. Our talent management should be second to none. And we have the means to help with education and development at the Regimental level where there is a clear need and an obvious opportunity.
6. We are remarkably well placed in terms of opportunity having secured the breadth of roles and the geographic footprint we have. But we must take a whole of Regiment perspective if we are to realise the bene t. Our size and resilience offers the chance to secure opportunities and appointments that other Regiments cannot ll. And we must make a virtue of posting of cers and non-commissioned of cers between battalions to broaden, stimulate and develop them. To that end I expect every Major and WO2 to have served in at least two battalions.
7. A glance in the front of either The Chronicle or The Bugle will reveal the huge breadth of overseas alliances and af liations we have as a Regiment. I expect the battalions to use these relationships to provide opportunities for our young of cers, non commissioned of cers and ri emen to broaden themselves, and in so doing underscore the advantages of being a large Regiment. In return I expect The Chronicle and The Bugle to be full of articles by those who have bene ted from these opportunities.
8. Our size also offers opportunity to achieve excel- lence, with our military profession and with sport. We are beginning to see the bene ts of investing in competition shooting through co-locating our shooting team with 4 RIFLES in Aldershot, with its proximity and access to Bisley. I recognise that it is tough for Commanding Of cers to give up their talent, and that it can be challenging for talent to move. But the bene ts of realising excellence at Regimental level will inspire others, it will breed further success, and it will maintain momentum behind our brand. The whole Regiment should take pride in placing marks- manship at the forefront of our military profes- sionalism.
9. We must also continue to invest in our standard of bugling. This will only improve if we maximise the opportunity for buglers to spend time with our bands, both Regular and Reserve, to enhance their musical ability. Commanding Of cers are expected to privilege bugling within battalions, encourage pride in it as a profession, and show their buglers off as an obvious embodiment of
our ethos and historical legacy.
Exploit the range of modern roles to enhance the Regiment’s reputation for tactical innovation and forward thinking
10. SDSR 15 and Army 2020 Re ne have opened up new roles within the Army including the STRIKE capability, based principally on AJAX and a new mechanised infantry vehicle, and Specialised Infantry Battalions that are designed for overseas engagement. 3 RIFLES will become a mechanised battalion in one of the STRIKE brigades in due course and 4 RIFLES is now re-roling to Specialised Infantry with a view to an operational deployment shortly. This means the Regiment will have battalions serving in all the possible roles available to the Infantry, less Air Assault.
11. The Regiment is known for tactical innovation and forward thinking, and this almost unparal- leled range of roles offers a unique opportunity to enhance our reputation further. Proper thought needs to be given to how we man 4 RIFLES with the right talent for a role that requires innovative thought, cultural understanding, an ear for language, and importantly the self-reliance needed to conduct operations ‘beside, with and through’ indigenous forces. Making a success of this will be a whole of Regiment endeavour.
12. The Field Army will emphasise the need to restore the basic battlecraft skills of conventional war ghting during the next couple of years following the campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan. Fighting involves drill and manoeuvre. The former should be the responsibility of our Warrant Of cers, with the Serjeants’ and Corporals’ Messes, and this approach chimes with our historic attitude to empowerment. The true depth of skills in a battalion will not be vested in the Of cers’ Mess, because of cers come and go. We should therefore be seeking to build experience in our non commissioned of cer corps, utilising oppor- tunity at Sandhurst, Brecon and Catterick to become experts in our profession.
13. This will establish the platform whence battalions can exploit the range of roles to innovate, share best practice and set a standard for others to emulate. This accords with the Field Army’s emphasis on battlecraft, recognising the need for training to build combat ethos and ghting spirit. Training needs to be relevant as well as replicating as closely as possible the environment of combat so that it creates the con dence and tactical innovation necessary to prevail in war. It needs to be adaptive, because even if the nature of war does not change, the character of a particular con ict will be impos- sible to predict. So training has to strike the right balance between ‘the’ war and ‘a’ war - as Wavell put it in 1937: ‘the primary purpose of training is to simulate the conditions of real war’.
EXPLOIT THE RANGE OF MODERN ROLES TO ENHANCE THE REGIMENT’S REPUTATION FOR TACTICAL INNOVATION AND FORWARD THINKING
THE RIFLES
RIFLES REGIMENTAL DIRECTIVE 2017 9