Anchors in the Storm of Change

By Sgt. 1st Class Jerae P. Perez

Bessemer Army Recruiting Station

Feb 17, 2026

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Introduction

I don’t know if I belong anymore,” the Staff Sergeant said, tears welling in his eyes as we sat in my office after hearing about the latest organizational change. This wasn’t about policy changes or new metrics — it was about identity. In that moment, I realized that when missions change, the deeper question Soldiers ask isn’t “What do I do?” but “Who am I now?”

Change in the Army is not just coming — it’s already here. From doctrine revisions and structural reorganizations to changes in military occupational specialty (MOS) identities, transformation has become our new operational reality. However, change doesn’t only affect tasks; it challenges identity. When missions shift, Soldiers ask: Who am I in this new Army?

At the center of that storm stand NCOs.

This article is not just about recruiting. It’s about leadership during transformation, how to guide Soldiers through uncertainty, motivate them through change, and lead when the answers are not clear.

While it draws examples from the transition from recruiter (79R) to talent acquisition specialist (42T) in U.S. Army Recruiting Command (USAREC), the leadership principles are universal: trust, presence, clarity, and adaptability.

Change reveals who we are as leaders, not just what we know. NCOs must choose to lead through the fog, not wait for it to clear.

When Identity Meets Change

Picture this: You gather your squad after hearing your unit’s mission is being restructured. Soldiers lean in, but uncertainty hangs heavy, tension is high. One of them finally asks: “So ... what does this mean for us?”

You have the orders, sat in the briefs, you know the talking points. What they are really asking is, “Who are we now?”

You have the answers to all the other questions, but this one makes you hesitate. That moment, between doubt and decision, is the frontline of transformation. It’s also where NCOs make the most impact.

During the USAREC transition, it was not just a change in MOS, it was a shift in identity. Recruiters weren’t resisting improvement; they were unsure who they were to become. Across the Army, roles are evolving, formations are changing, and expectations are being rewritten.

Case Study

He stopped volunteering for tasks and his usually sharp humor dulled. The room felt heavier when he was in it.

One morning, after a meeting, I asked him to stay back.

The door closed.

Silence.

Then he finally said: “It just doesn’t feel like I matter in any of this anymore. I’ve been holding it in, trying to push through, but it’s like I’m invisible now.”

He wasn’t crying because he was weak.

He broke because he stayed strong for too long without support. That moment wasn’t about MOS changes or policy; it was about pressure. The kind of pressure that builds quietly, behind performance,
behind professionalism.

And here’s a truth: Soldiers don’t disengage all at once. They erode in silence. What turned it around wasn’t a speech or an SOP. It was presence. Listening. Reaffirming his place and his value in the mission.

We reconnected who he was with who he was becoming. After that? He showed back up. Stronger. More trusted by the team than ever before.

Insight: When Soldiers lose sight of themselves in the mission, they disengage. When leaders can’t bridge change with identity, trust deteriorates. The mission doesn’t fail because of the change; it fails because we didn’t carry people through it.

Identity is the first casualty when change
is mishandled.

Be the bridge between who your Soldiers were and who they become.

Doctrine Doesn’t Just Inform

“Building cohesive teams through mutual trust is the foundation of mission command.” - ADP 6-0

Army doctrine offers frameworks. However, applying them in real life, especially during cultural or structural shifts, requires urgency, empathy, and emotional intelligence. Below are four leadership theories, paired with Army values, that offer insight for NCOs navigating institutional change:

1. Leader-Member Exchange (LMX)

LMX teaches that leadership lives in relationships, not rank. In Army terms, it’s mentorship in motion, what we do during counseling, coaching, and team building.

I once had a Soldier whose performance shifted drastically after a conversation, not about expectations, but about his story. That conversation did not just improve the results. It built trust that outlasted the mission.

Lesson: When change hits, Soldiers don’t need lectures. They need leaders they trust — present in the uncertainty, not just issuing orders from above.

2. Self-Determination Theory (SDT)

SDT is rooted in autonomy, competence, and relatedness. They align with Army efforts to build esprit de corps, the sense that every Soldier matters and is empowered to act with purpose.

Change is easiest to endure when Soldiers feel ownership, not obligation. When I handed off a difficult new task to a junior NCO and asked, “How would you approach this?” the buy-in was instant and the innovation began.

Lesson: Change isn’t just explaining the “what.” It’s preserving the “why,” and making sure Soldiers still feel powerful in the “how.”

3. Lewin’s Change Model

Unfreeze. Change. Refreeze. Too often, we skip the unfreeze phase. We fail to acknowledge that Soldiers leave behind identities that matter.

Before my team could embrace becoming talent acquisition specialists, I had to recognize what they felt they were losing as recruiters. That conversation changed everything.

Lesson: Before building the new, honor the old. Transformation succeeds when Soldiers feel seen in what they’re letting go.

4. Sensemaking and “Sensegiving”

NCOs aren’t just implementers of policy; they’re translators of purpose. Change doesn’t become real until it connects to meaning.

Lesson: Change must pass through your voice before it reaches your Soldiers’ hearts. That’s how trust is built, through “sensegiving.”

“Leadership is influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation to accomplish the mission and improve the organization.” - FM 6-22

Doctrine gives the map; empathy gives the compass. Translate theory into trust. Let your leadership make doctrine real.

The Human Side of Change

Gen. Randy George emphasized four key priorities — Warfighting, Continuous Transformation, Strengthening the Army Profession and Delivering Combat-Ready Formations.

He also made it clear that transformation is not just strategic, it’s personal. His emphasis on strengthening the Army profession reinforces what NCOs already know, that they’re the bridge between change and trust.

Data That Demands Leadership

I conducted a survey to gauge if 43 of my peers wanted to embrace the talent acquisition specialist transformation.

The three Soldiers who submitted packets reported having leaders who provided mentorship and made them feel included in the process. The 40 who didn’t submit packets cited feeling isolated and confused about how the transition would affect their careers.

This wasn’t about resistance to change, but the disconnect from the purpose behind it.

It wasn’t a recruiting failure. It was a leadership opportunity.

Rebuilding Through Ownership

A sergeant stopped participating in team activities.

She skipped an organizational day and distanced herself during daily operations and huddles.

It wasn’t apathy, it was a quiet signal.

When I invited her to lead a short morale event, she admitted: “I don’t feel like I’m part of it anymore. Like everyone moved on, and I didn’t.”

Rather than assigning her a role, I gave her ownership. She coordinated a simple team-building activity that reenergized the squad.

Afterward, she said, “That felt like us again.” This wasn’t about fixing performance. It was about rebuilding connections and reminding a teammate that she matters.

As outlined in Army Doctrine Publication (ADP) 6-22, Army Leadership and the Profession, “leaders influence not just actions but beliefs and in times of transition, that influence becomes a stabilizing force.”

Resistance isn’t disobedience; it’s a signal that trust is missing. Move beyond explanation. Create the connection that matters most.

Soft Leadership?

Some may argue that focusing on identity and emotion during change is an unnecessary luxury, that orders should simply be followed. However, this view misunderstands both human psychology and combat effectiveness.

Soldiers who don’t understand their place in
the mission are less effective, less innovative, and
less resilient.

In combat, it costs lives.

In transformation, it costs momentum.

Managing the human dimension of change is not soft leadership, but practical leadership that preserves combat power during transition.

Failure Is a Reset Point

Sometimes we try to lead through change and still get it wrong. It’s a reality of being a leader. We misread the room, push too hard, assume buy-in that doesn’t exist.

Failure looks like losing trust, momentum, and clarity.

Failing forward looks like owning the outcome, reconnecting with the team, and realigning with the mission.

I once held onto a failed plan too long, thinking it showed resolve. It didn’t. It showed detachment. After reflecting and letting go of my ego, I finally admitted we needed to reset, and I saw morale return. Not because I had the answers, but because I was willing to lead through the ambiguity.

Failure isn’t a stop sign. It’s a signpost.

Reset, reconnect, and recommit. That’s how we move forward.

Tools, Not Rules

Change doesn’t always need permission. Sometimes all it takes is a spark.

NCOs must be catalysts — not just reacting to change but provoking it when necessary. That doesn’t mean being in absolute control and micro-managing. The best catalysts provide tools, not rules. They empower others to rise and challenge themselves in innovative ways.

I once mentored a Soldier who completely turned around once he knew his strengths and I empowered him with the freedom to lead with them. The results far exceeded my expectations. That wasn’t about micro-managing, it was about unlocking
his potential.

Being a catalyst means asking hard questions
before someone else must, modeling adaptability
before it’s mandated, and creating systems that outlive your presence.

Ownership

After a grueling week of training, a corporal pulled me aside — not to vent, but to ask, “Why do we keep giving feedback if nothing ever changes?”

I didn’t hand him a solution.

I asked, “What would change look like if you led it?”

The next day, he returned with an idea for an after action notebook — a simple tool where Soldiers jot down what works, what doesn’t, and what they’d improve. It wasn’t official. But it was theirs.

Weeks later, team leaders started huddles with insights from Soldiers’ notebooks. Patterns emerged. Small adjustments were made. Morale shifted — not because problems disappeared, but because the team saw their feedback shape the mission.

The corporal didn’t need rank to lead change. He just needed the space to ignite it.

Catalysts don’t wait to be told; they lead others to discovery. Equip. Empower. Elevate. That’s how transformation sticks.

Conclusion

Whether you’re in a motor pool, field exercise, or recruiting station, your job isn’t just to execute. Your job is to be the anchor.

When the mission changes and Soldiers doubt, leaders must decide. Not perfectly. But deliberately, with trust, and with the best interests of their Soldiers in mind.

Transformation is not about getting everything right the first time. It’s about getting the people right. If you get it wrong, fail forward, because systems change, but Soldiers endure.

The most important take-away from this article?. Soldiers don’t follow orders. They follow you. When identity falters, lead with presence, not perfection.

In the Army’s next chapter, we’re not just rewriting doctrine, we’re reshaping trust.

That’s why NCOs matter — they spearhead transformation through past, present, and future actions.

Do you want to be remembered as a leader your Soldiers want to emulate?

What legacy do you want to leave for future generations?

The choice is yours and it starts now.

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References

Army Doctrine Publication (ADP) 6-0. (2019). Mission command: Command and control of Army forces. Headquarters, Department of the Army. https://armypubs.army.mil/epubs/DR_pubs/DR_a/ARN34403-ADP_6-0-000-WEB-3.pdf

Army Doctrine Publication (ADP) 6-22. (2019). Army leadership and the profession. Headquarters, Department of the Army. https://www.usarcent.army.mil/Portals/1/Documents/regs/ADP_6-22_Army%20Leadership%20And%20The%20Profession%20July2019.pdf

Field Manual (FM) 6-22. (2022). Developing leaders. Headquarters, Department of the Army. https://rdl.train.army.mil/catalog-ws/view/100.ATSC/3110F413-E915-47C1-85AA-DD4065C654C3-1274570636396/FM6_22wc2.pdf

Field Manual (FM) 3-0. (2025). Operations. Headquarters, Department of the Army. https://armypubs.army.mil/epubs/DR_pubs/DR_a/ARN43326-FM_3-0-000-WEB-1.pdf

Graen, G. B., & Uhl-Bien, M. (1995). Relationship-based approach to leadership: Development of leader-member exchange (LMX) theory of leadership over 25 years. Leadership Quarterly, 6(2), 219–247. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/1048984395900365?via%3Dihub

Lewin, K. (1947). Frontiers in group dynamics: Concept, method and reality in social science. Human Relations. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/001872674700100103

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68–78. https://selfdeterminationtheory.org/SDT/documents/2000_RyanDeci_SDT.pdf

Weick, K. E. (1995). Sensemaking in organizations. Sage Publications. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257397559_Sensemaking_in_organizations_by_Karl_E_Weick_Thousand_Oaks_CA_Sage_Publications_1995_231_pp

 

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