Talent Retention of the Air Force Officer Corps A Leader's Role
Abstract
Air Force officials need to change personnel management practices to retain the most talented officers in the service. The term most talented is qualitative in nature and likely would be defined by Air Force leaders differently based on their individual career field dynamics. For the purpose of this paper, the definition is intentionally left open ended to allow commanders to assign value to the components of talent (skill, knowledge, and behavior) as best fits their organizations and career field dynamics.1 To better retain top talent, the Air Force must acknowledge the difference in individual abilities and deliberately focus retention tools on those who possess the mix of talent required by the service. This can be accomplished by enabling individuals increased input to their career, raising both commitment and career satisfaction levels. Additionally, the Air Force should expand the ability of commanders to deliberately develop their most capable officers. Lastly, the service needs to focus promotion on capabilities of the individual rather than governed by length of service in the Air Force.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 16, 2016
- Accession Number
- AD1036898
Entities
People
- Andrew H. Pate
Organizations
- Air War College