We reiterated our expectations for behavior and the treatment of recruits and each other in a battalion policy on hazing: “By treating every recruit and teammate with dignity and respect, we will ensure that the proud legacy of Fourth Battalion lives on,” I wrote. “Sergeant Major and I admire you for what you do to make Marines. Stay confident, accountable and proud!”
During those first few months together, my sergeant major and I also heard rumblings about women feeling that both the reward and the punishment systems at Fourth Battalion were implemented inconsistently and unfairly. We conducted a command-climate survey and talked with the Marines about the results during our first-quarter education briefing. We found that they did not trust the command or each other. We determined that if we were fully transparent—if we talked about everything openly within the battalion—things would get better. We also wanted the Marines to know that we were listening to their concerns and were going to try to improve their lives.
We asked our officers at the company level to take responsibility for their Marines and to try to handle issues at the local level before they became problems at the battalion level. We asked them to stand up for their DIs and recruits, and to ensure that they were safe, were getting enough sleep, and were properly trained at all levels—exactly what would have been expected of Marines everywhere else in the Marine Corps.
When I got to Fourth Battalion, I found that none of the company commanders toured the squad bays—where the recruits sleep—at night; consequently, the DIs didn't have to worry about being caught doing bad things to the recruits or to each other. I have no doubt that that this type of neglect by company staff contributed to the cultural problems in the command, particularly in November Company.
The concept of officers and staff noncommissioned officers having a regular presence at the barracks was not new. This was exactly how they were supposed to behave in every other unit in the Marine Corps.
Once again, Fourth Battalion was different.
The good Marines enjoyed having sergeant major and me come by to see how they were doing. It was one-on-one time to joke and laugh and get to know each other. I learned some amazing things about my Marines that way. I wasn't there to judge them. I wasn't there because I was worried that they were doing something wrong. I was there because supervision is, as Marines always say, the most important troop-leading step. That was my job as a battalion commander, and it is exactly what I was trying to teach my company commanders.
I figured I was setting the standard and modeling the behavior I expected, and I began holding my company commanders accountable for ensuring that they and their series commanders and staff noncommissioned officers routinely checked their barracks, unannounced, at night.
Unfortunately, this might have made people feel like they were not trusted. It might also have made the officers and senior staff noncommissioned officers angry, because they now had to make time to tour the squad bays during what they perceived as their “personal time.”
But, in my view, and knowing what I knew about the reputation of the battalion, trust wouldn't come for free. If there had been no abuse taking place in the battalion, and if the company and series commanders had already been doing what had been laid out pretty clearly in their job descriptions, there would not have been trust issues in the first place.
I was trying to do the right thing, but it was a change. Some of the Marines blossomed when given greater responsibility and guidance. But some of these folks didn't see the recruits as people who needed good treatment.
With them, you could have cut the resentment with a tactical spork.
LtCol Germano,
Not sure if you remember me or not, we went to Command and Staff together. I just wanted to reach out to you to let you know how much I think of you. If you ever need anything, please do not hesitate to contact me. The Marine Corps has made a terrible mistake and I weep for the future of our Corps, especially all the young ladies who would have benefitted from your leadership. Now they will never really know what it means to be a Marine, but rather only what it means to be sub-standard. Truly a shame.
r/
Jules
Julie A. Mattocks
Deputy Chief of Staff
Marine Corps Systems Command
The Marines at Fourth Battalion had plenty of reasons to be disgruntled, and I quickly went after some of the issues I saw as contributing factors.
First, we had to make some improvements in staffing so that my staff could function properly.
Second, we needed to talk to the recruiters about making sure recruits were properly screened and prepared for boot camp.
And, third, I had to stop briefing congressional VIPs with a PowerPoint presentation that I was sure would be the death of me: It argued that women trained better if we kept them separate from the men. The reasoning? A non-scientifically validated theory that the only way we could create confidence in female recruits was through segregated boot camp. Personally, I prefer to provide executive presentations that aren't pure BS.
So I figured I'd follow the road map I used on my two tours on recruiting duty: First rule of change management: Get buy-in. More specifically: Get buy-in from the boss.
Easy, right? The Marine Corps wants well-staffed, high-performing units; the Marine Corps already requires recruiters to send qualified recruits to boot camp; and
