CHOD Lt Gen Zmeko amidst SVK CSMs in Zvolen
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- Date: 06.03.2019
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A Command Senior Enlisted Leader (CSEL) of the SVK Armed Forces Convention was held on the HQ AIRCOM Zvolen premises on 5-6 March 2019. According to CSEL Sgt Maj Vladimír Beluš, as well as evaluating the activities and structure of SVK Command Sergeant Majors (CSMs) and presenting the Training Year (TY) 2018 Results Report, the main goal of the convention was to outline the tasks in order to further the SVK CHOD’s priorities, as detailed at the SVK Commanders’ Convention on 5-6 February 2019.
In attendance at Day 2 of the Convention was SVK CHOD Lt Gen Daniel Zmeko, as was Commander of the SVK Air Force Maj Gen Ľubomír Svoboda. In his remarks, Lt Gen Zmeko praised the work thus far of CSMs in delivering on the key TY 2019 tasks and defined four fundamental pillars of the SVK Armed Forces, he said: “One of them is Service personnel, the will and morale of Service personnel included. There is a task for you, Command Sergeant Majors, right there. You are the immediate bearers of individual tasks to be executed on training and deployments at the lowest tactical level. How well you are able to lead Service personnel, who have been entrusted to you, will determine what the SVK Armed Forces will look like.”
He went on to express general satisfaction with how CSMs live up to this role. “Yet there is room for us to improve in all areas, including the work of CSMs. We must be more demanding on ourselves and on our subordinates. But we should not exact more of them than we ourselves are able to bear.”
General Zmeko noted with satisfaction that he has recently received fine words of praise from the Canadian Commander of the NATO eFP BG for the SVK Contingent personnel on the eFP role in Latvia, as he communicated his assessment of their skills and readiness to the SVK CHOD. “I think this is an example of what our approach to executing tasks should be,” he emphasised.
CSEL Sgt Maj Beluš reminded that over the past year the NCO Academy has delivered courses on the new career and specialist courses list. “While working in collaboration with commanders of all services and branches, we have focused on promoting efficiency and justifying the reasons why NCOs and Other Ranks personnel should earn their places on the courses. As a result, the Training and Mobilization Manning Base Martin has managed to decrease the length of the courses by 1,198 days. The length of the career courses has been down by 44% on average, the number of training weeks at the NCO Academy has gone down by 26 and the number of training days by 119. Throughout 2018 mobile training teams assisted with training at Martin, as did instructors drawn from across units of the SVK Armed Forces.”
Sgt Maj Beluš underscored that this year, too, they will continue to work towards greater efficiency of courses and justify course placements. Based on detailed analyses, 50 courses will be axed over the first four months of 2019. This will save 242 training days, 433 Service personnel away on duty, and travel expenses worth some 555,000 euros.
Admittedly, in 2018 more people were recruited into the Army than those leaving the Service and transferring to the reserve. Although the rise in the number of Service leavers was contained, there are still shortfalls of soldiers with secondary school leaving qualifications in pinch point trades. This is true of trades such as engineers, EOD specialists, and flight engineers. We are short of 649 and 714 soldiers, ranked 2nd Degree Private and Private First Class. These are mostly driver placements. In the NCO Corps, we also have shortfalls of section/squad leaders in the rank of Staff Sergeant. There, the Full-Time Trade Trained Strength is only at 54.4%.
Sgt Maj Beluš concluded: “Training Year (TY) 2019 will be far from easy. It will bring a lot of challenges we want to handle successfully.” At the end of the convention, Sgt Maj Beluš joined Lt Gen Zmeko in presenting the CIMIC and PSYOPS Badge to the 2018 SVK Armed Forces Best NCO, Sgt 1st Class Martin Chovanec, of the CIMIC and PSYOPS Centre Martin. They also awarded selected NCOs and Other Ranks from across the SVK Armed Forces units and facilities.
In attendance at Day 2 of the Convention was SVK CHOD Lt Gen Daniel Zmeko, as was Commander of the SVK Air Force Maj Gen Ľubomír Svoboda. In his remarks, Lt Gen Zmeko praised the work thus far of CSMs in delivering on the key TY 2019 tasks and defined four fundamental pillars of the SVK Armed Forces, he said: “One of them is Service personnel, the will and morale of Service personnel included. There is a task for you, Command Sergeant Majors, right there. You are the immediate bearers of individual tasks to be executed on training and deployments at the lowest tactical level. How well you are able to lead Service personnel, who have been entrusted to you, will determine what the SVK Armed Forces will look like.”
He went on to express general satisfaction with how CSMs live up to this role. “Yet there is room for us to improve in all areas, including the work of CSMs. We must be more demanding on ourselves and on our subordinates. But we should not exact more of them than we ourselves are able to bear.”
General Zmeko noted with satisfaction that he has recently received fine words of praise from the Canadian Commander of the NATO eFP BG for the SVK Contingent personnel on the eFP role in Latvia, as he communicated his assessment of their skills and readiness to the SVK CHOD. “I think this is an example of what our approach to executing tasks should be,” he emphasised.
CSEL Sgt Maj Beluš reminded that over the past year the NCO Academy has delivered courses on the new career and specialist courses list. “While working in collaboration with commanders of all services and branches, we have focused on promoting efficiency and justifying the reasons why NCOs and Other Ranks personnel should earn their places on the courses. As a result, the Training and Mobilization Manning Base Martin has managed to decrease the length of the courses by 1,198 days. The length of the career courses has been down by 44% on average, the number of training weeks at the NCO Academy has gone down by 26 and the number of training days by 119. Throughout 2018 mobile training teams assisted with training at Martin, as did instructors drawn from across units of the SVK Armed Forces.”
Sgt Maj Beluš underscored that this year, too, they will continue to work towards greater efficiency of courses and justify course placements. Based on detailed analyses, 50 courses will be axed over the first four months of 2019. This will save 242 training days, 433 Service personnel away on duty, and travel expenses worth some 555,000 euros.
Admittedly, in 2018 more people were recruited into the Army than those leaving the Service and transferring to the reserve. Although the rise in the number of Service leavers was contained, there are still shortfalls of soldiers with secondary school leaving qualifications in pinch point trades. This is true of trades such as engineers, EOD specialists, and flight engineers. We are short of 649 and 714 soldiers, ranked 2nd Degree Private and Private First Class. These are mostly driver placements. In the NCO Corps, we also have shortfalls of section/squad leaders in the rank of Staff Sergeant. There, the Full-Time Trade Trained Strength is only at 54.4%.
Sgt Maj Beluš concluded: “Training Year (TY) 2019 will be far from easy. It will bring a lot of challenges we want to handle successfully.” At the end of the convention, Sgt Maj Beluš joined Lt Gen Zmeko in presenting the CIMIC and PSYOPS Badge to the 2018 SVK Armed Forces Best NCO, Sgt 1st Class Martin Chovanec, of the CIMIC and PSYOPS Centre Martin. They also awarded selected NCOs and Other Ranks from across the SVK Armed Forces units and facilities.
