How to Turn an SDO Shift into an LPD (in a good way)

A Practical Approach to Leader Development at the Battalion Level

Leader development is one of the most critical responsibilities of a battalion commander. The duty to shape and guide the next generation of leaders carries with it both strategic importance and daily, practical challenges. On the surface, developing a leader development program might appear to be a straightforward task: draft a list of topics, assign facilitators, and insert sessions onto the training calendar. However, as most commanders soon discover, implementation is the more complex and demanding part of the process. It requires thoughtful alignment of training priorities, realistic scheduling within the operational tempo, and tailored delivery to the right audience. In my time as a squadron commander, I experimented with several methods to encourage leader development. One simple initiative proved unexpectedly effective and impactful.

The program I implemented centered around the daily duty rotation of the Squadron Staff Duty Officer (SDO). Staff duty requirements include physical security checks, barracks walk through and motor pool checks. Although important and necessary, staff duty is typically mundane. Recognizing an opportunity with a captive audience, I added one simple requirement. Each officer assigned to duty would read one professional military article during their shift, write a brief review, and submit it directly to me. At face value, it was a modest requirement—low-cost, easily executable, and minimally intrusive on daily operations. But the benefits far exceeded the modest effort required to sustain it.

Photo of antiquated Staff Duty courtesy of Reddit.

The first and most obvious benefit was that it ensured our young officers engaged with relevant professional literature. Too often, junior leaders are so absorbed in the daily grind of operations and administrative tasks that they lose touch with broader doctrinal discussions or professional debates. This initiative offered them a chance to pause, reflect, and engage with ideas that stretched beyond the boundaries of our own formation. It encouraged intellectual curiosity, provided exposure to differing perspectives, and, over time, began to sharpen their critical thinking.

The second advantage was more diagnostic in nature. As the commander, I received every review submitted by the duty officer. This gave me a unique and regular opportunity to assess my lieutenants’ writing skills—skills that are often underdeveloped despite their importance in staff work, evaluations, and professional communication. Some reviews were raw and required refinement, but others were insightful, articulate, and demonstrated a level of analytical thinking that might otherwise have gone unnoticed in day-to-day operations.

An unexpected and welcome development was the degree to which this small initiative fostered informal professional discussion across the duty team. On several occasions, I observed or later heard about spirited conversations between the duty officer, the duty NCO, and even the runner regarding the content of the article. While the requirement was only directed at the officer on duty, the articles often became shared material that sparked meaningful dialogue across ranks. Most notably, a few Staff Sergeants voluntarily submitted article reviews, despite not being required to do so. Their initiative reinforced my belief that professional curiosity and intellectual development are not limited by rank, and that when given the opportunity, many NCOs are just as eager to engage in these discussions as officers.

Every morning, I would read the submitted reviews and respond—usually by email—with comments, questions, or follow-up thoughts. In several instances, these exchanges turned into longer threads of discussion that helped both the officer and me clarify our views on key leadership topics. One lieutenant’s review of an article on mission command led to a thoughtful recommendation to revise certain aspects of our SOP to empower subordinate leaders more effectively. We ultimately implemented the suggested changes, and the initiative directly contributed to a measurable improvement in decentralized execution during field exercises.

To support this program, we maintained a binder of professional articles that covered a wide array of topics—leadership, mission command, logistics, training management, and historical case studies. This binder was curated by my Squadron Executive Officer, who had the initiative to assemble content from multiple reputable sources. He printed, organized, and maintained a hard copy binder with well over 100 articles, kept at the staff duty desk. Looking back, I might have streamlined this process by leveraging platforms such as Line of Departure, From the Green Notebook, or the Modern War Institute, which offer extensive archives of professionally relevant content in digital format.

While not a substitute for comprehensive developmental programs that include leader professional development sessions, mentorship, and formal education, this simple article review initiative demonstrated that effective leader development can be accomplished with creativity and minimal resources. It created a culture of intellectual engagement within the formation and reinforced the expectation that leaders—regardless of rank—should invest in their own professional growth.

Leader development does not always require elaborate programming or extensive resourcing. Sometimes, it is the small, consistent efforts that yield the most meaningful results. As commanders, we must be willing to experiment, to model lifelong learning, and to create opportunities that cultivate the minds of our future leaders. This initiative was one such opportunity, and its success reaffirmed my belief that the pursuit of professional excellence begins with intentional curiosity—one article at a time.