Guides - Welcome to the Corps Compass Program

Dear Leaders,

We are delighted to extend an invitation on behalf of the Commandant of The Noncommissioned Officer Leadership Center of Excellence (NCOLCoE) to participate in the Corps Compass Program. This program is designed to enhance the development of Sergeants Major Academy (SGM-A) students by assigning "Guides" to assist them in navigating their progression from Master Sergeant (MSG) to Command Sergeant Major (CSM) and Sergeant Major (SGM), culminating in the establishment of senior leader relationships. The current target audience for the Corps Compass Program is all U.S. Army Soldiers attending the SGM-A resident and distance learning course.

The Corps Compass Program aims to provide future CSM/SGMs with a resource to guide them through their evolution, thereby improving leader development and culture at the senior Noncommissioned Officer (NCO) level. By participating in this program, guides will mentor leaders by integrating future CSM/SGMs into their new roles and responsibilities, resulting in more competent, confident, and resilient CSM/SGMs for the force.

If you are interested in participating in the Corps Compass Program, please click “Apply to be a Guide” link at the top of this page or scan the QR code with your mobile device, complete the application link, and submit the application. This link will allow NCOLCoE to match a guide with a student based on a set of matching criteria, which are represented in the link. The application information allows NCOLCoE to match a guide with a student based on a set of specific matching criteria, which are represented in the application link. We kindly request that all student forms be completed and returned by September 1st, 2024, and guide forms be completed and returned by August 16th, 2024. We are excitedly looking forward to your participation and contribution to the development of the Army's future CSM/SGMs.

Dear Leaders,

Thank you for participating in the SGM-A Class 75 Corps Compass Program. We appreciate your enrollment and are confident that this program will provide the students with valuable relationships and learning experiences that will benefit them as future CSM/SGMs.

A quick update: The application submission process closes for the students on September 1st, 2024, and for the guides on August 16th, 2024. We will pair a guide with a student once the opportunity closes for all potential applicants. The ratio for the pairing is one guide to two students, and this ratio is also dependent on the number of participants.

Looking ahead and upon being paired as a guide, we implore you to respond to the student you are paired with by answering their email or phone call to set up the opportunity for the student to have one-on-one time with you, wherein you could share information and obtain the student's personal interest and professional aspirations that could serve as a basis for one-on-one interactions. The student should initiate the first recommended touchpoint and occur on or before September 27th, 2024. Initiating contact is a great way to encourage further engagement and successful participation in the program. Please take advantage of the program and the benefits it can bring to you as a mentor. The guide aims to help students further develop their goals, enhance their career prospects, and create meaningful outcomes.

We sincerely hope that the Corps Compass Program proves to be a valuable experience that facilitates professional development and aids in the student's transition from MSG to CSM/SGMs.

Thank you again for your dedication and service.

Dear Leaders,

1st Term, Career Long Assessment Athena focus area is Self Awareness Individual Differences Inventory (SAID-I) or blocks A, B, E, & F (See IDP Job Aid), please defer to the Career Long Assessment Athena button on the homepage for an explanation of this assessment, and the fact sheet below that will support you in the mentoring process with your student. The recommended timeline for the students to share their IDP with their guide is September 2024 to obtain feedback from their guide landing around the SMC 1st Term closure in October 2024. Your assistance and backing are crucial to the success of this initiative, and we are grateful for your ongoing engagement during 1st Term Career Long Assessment Athena: SAID-I and the Individual Development Plan (IDP) feedback with your student.

• Fact Sheet

Dear Leaders,

We would like to express our gratitude for your commitment and continued support by spending time with your assigned SMC students in the SGM-A Class 75, Corps Compass Program. We hope you had the pleasure of sharing introductions.

As a friendly reminder, the first touchpoint or initial contact in the Corps Compass Program should have occurred in September 2024.

On another note, The Corps Compass Program encourages the use of the IDP. Suppose you have advised and mentored your student to make entries on their IDP according to the IDP Job Aid, Instructions, and NCO Sample, during their 1st Term, which is the Self-Assessment Individual Differences Inventory (SAID-I) Assessment. In that case, you are on track with encouraging the students to cover a range of topics with you. This process also includes the guide interpreting and providing feedback to the student, as well as the student reflecting on their IDP results, identifying gaps between their expectations and the assessment results, and recognizing their strengths and developmental areas for improvement. The SAID-I further assists in identifying the student's personal characteristics and how they can leverage them to lead others.

In favor of the IDP, students should have already shared their IDP with their guide at this point and are encouraged to have shared their IDP with their guides by September 2024, to obtain feedback from the guide before October 2024. Please refer to the IDP Job Aid for blocks A, B, E & F for further explanation on the IDP questions students may unveiled answers to and awaited feedback from the guide.

Moving forward, 2nd Term, Career Long Assessment Athena: Individual Adaptability and Leaders 360, IDP Job Aid maintains the same general consideration question as SAID-I, however Individual Adaptability and Leaders 360, IDP Job Aid questions has specific focal questions that students may unveil answers to and await feedback from the guide.

Assessment Information: 

General Considerations

1. Interpret and reflect on your results. How did they align with your self-understanding? 
2. Is there a gap between your expectations and the assessment results?
3. What caught your attention in the feedback reports?
4. What surprised you most about your results?
5. What are your strengths?
6. What are some developmental areas you need/want to work on?
7. What do you need to stop doing?
8. What do you need to start doing?

Individual Adaptability Information:

Think about these Questions

1. Do you have what it takes to embrace change?
2. Did you identify any area of adaptability you would like to work on?
3. Are you able to learn new tasks, technologies, and procedures effectively?
4. How good are you at coming up with unique or innovative solutions or finding new ways to use existing resources to do a task?
5. Do you handle stress as well as you would like?
6. How well do you adjust to rapidly changing situations?
7. Are you able to maintain calm and handle emergencies?
8. How well do you deal with difficult people or negative feedback?
9. Are you able to adjust your behavior or appearance to integrate into different cultures?
10. How well do you cope with extreme environments?

Leader 360 Information:

Think about these Questions

1. What leadership competencies do you need to strengthen the most?
2. What leader behaviors do you want to become more effective at displaying?
3. What behaviors are counter-productive to your future success? i.e., What should you stop doing?

Dear Leaders,

2nd Term, Career Long Assessment Athena focus area is Individual Adaptability Measure (I-ADAPT) or blocks A, B, E, & F (See IDP Job Aid), as well as initiating LDR 360 assessments for completion in April 2025. The recommended timeline for the students to share their IDP with their guide is October 2024 to obtain feedback from their guide landing around the SMC 2nd Term closure in November 2024. Please defer to the Career Long Assessment Athena button on the homepage for an explanation of this assessment, and the fact sheet below that will support you in the mentoring process with your student. Your assistance and backing are crucial to the success of this initiative, and we are grateful for your ongoing engagement during 2nd Term Career Long Assessment Athena: I-ADAPT and the Individual Development Plan (IDP) feedback with your student.

Fact Sheet

Fact Sheet

Dear Leaders,

We hope this message finds you well. We are writing to remind you about The Corps Compass Program and the upcoming IDP milestone for the SMC Students who are starting their 3rd Term.

In the months of December 2024 through the beginning of February 2025, students will be focusing on Sensemaking (Sense) or blocks A, B, C, & E (See IDP Job Aid) as part of their IDP milestone. It is recommended that students share their IDP with their guide in December 2024 and January 2025 to obtain feedback before the SMC 3rd Term closure in February 2025.

Also, below are the assessment questions and information that students may unveil answers to and await feedback from the guide for 3rd Term.

Assessment Information: 

General Considerations

1. Interpret and reflect on your results. How did they align with your self-understanding? 
2. Is there a gap between your expectations and the assessment results?
3. What caught your attention in the feedback reports?
4. What surprised you most about your results?
5. What are your strengths?
6. What are some developmental areas you need/want to work on?
7. What do you need to stop doing?
8. What do you need to start doing?

Sensemaking:

1. How well are you able to use available information to understand the situation around you and identify gaps in your knowledge?
2. How broadly and deeply do you consider information when trying to reach understanding?
3. Are you able to figure out what right looks like in an ambiguous situation?
4. Are you able to create accurate understanding of complex situations?
5. Are you confident that you can create situational understanding in stressful situations?
6. What cognitive skills can you develop to increase your sensemaking ability?

Dear Leaders,

3rd Term, Career Long Assessment Athena focus area is Sensemaking (SENSE) or blocks A, B, C, & E (See IDP Job Aid). The recommended timeline for the students to share their IDP with their guide is December 2024 and January 2025 to obtain feedback from their guide landing around the SMC 3rd Term closure in February 2025. Please defer to the Career Long Assessment Athena button on the homepage for an explanation of this assessment, and the fact sheet below that will support you in the mentoring process with your student. Your assistance and backing are crucial to the success of this initiative, and we are grateful for your ongoing engagement during 3rd Term Career Long Assessment Athena: SENSE and the Individual Development Plan (IDP) feedback with your student.

Dear Leaders,

We hope this message finds you well. We are writing to remind you about The Corps Compass Program and the upcoming IDP milestone for the SMC Students who are starting their 4th Term.

In the months of February 2025 through the beginning of April 2025, students will be focusing on Systems Thinking Scale (STS) or blocks A, B, C, & E (See IDP Job Aid) as part of their IDP milestone. It is recommended that students share their IDP with their guide in February 2025 and March 2025 to obtain feedback before the SMC 4th Term closure in April 2025.

Also, below are the assessment questions and information that students may unveil answers to and await feedback from the guide for 4th Term.

Assessment Information: 

General Considerations

1. Interpret and reflect on your results. How did they align with your self-understanding? 
2. Is there a gap between your expectations and the assessment results?
3. What caught your attention in the feedback reports?
4. What surprised you most about your results?
5. What are your strengths?
6. What are some developmental areas you need/want to work on?
7. What do you need to stop doing?
8. What do you need to start doing?

Systems Thinking Scale:

1. Are you able to see the big picture when assessing a situation?
2. How skilled are you at determining root causes of a situation or problem?
3. How often are you successful in predicting second and third order effects of decisions? 
4. Do you have an adequate range of skills and knowledge available to you for facing unfamiliar and complex problems? 
5. Are you confident that your modifications to existing systems will have the intended effects?
6. Are you willing to pursue accurate understanding of complex interconnections?

Dear Leaders,

4th Term, Career Long Assessment Athena focus area is Systems Thinking Scale (STS) or blocks A, B, C, & E (See IDP Job Aid). The recommended timeline for the students to share their IDP with their guide is February 2025 and March 2025 to obtain feedback from their guide landing around the SMC 4th Term closure in April 2025. Please defer to the Career Long Assessment Athena button on the homepage for an explanation of this assessment, and the fact sheet below that will support you in the mentoring process with your student. Your assistance and backing are crucial to the success of this initiative, and we are grateful for your ongoing engagement during 4th Term Career Long Assessment Athena: STS and the Individual Development Plan (IDP) feedback with your student.

Fact Sheet

Dear Leaders,

We hope this message finds you well. We are writing to remind you about The Corps Compass Program and the upcoming IDP milestone for the SMC Students who are starting their 5th Term.

In the months of April 2025 through the beginning of June 2025, students will be focusing on Army Critical Thinking Test (ACTT) or blocks A, B, & C (See IDP Job Aid) as part of their IDP milestone. It is recommended that students share their IDP with their guide in April 2025 and May 2025 to obtain feedback before the SMC 5th Term closure in June 2025.

Also, below are the assessment questions and information that students may unveil answers to and await feedback from the guide for 5th Term.

Assessment Information: 

General Considerations

1. Interpret and reflect on your results. How did they align with your self-understanding? 
2. Is there a gap between your expectations and the assessment results?
3. What caught your attention in the feedback reports?
4. What surprised you most about your results?
5. What are your strengths?
6. What are some developmental areas you need/want to work on?
7. What do you need to stop doing?
8. What do you need to start doing?

Army Critical Thinking Test:

1. Have you identified some aspects of critical thinking that could use strengthening?
   For instance:
   • Identifying issues, discrepancies, conflicts, inconsistencies
   • Assessing the relevance and credibility of information
   • Recognizing and questioning assumptions
   • Considering counterarguments or alternative ideas
   • Confirming or disproving evidence
   • Deciding whether further thought, action, or consideration is necessary
   • Understanding how different pieces of information relate to one another and what those relationships imply
   • Synthesizing information into an understandable, cohesive whole
   • Drawing and defending conclusions
   • Generating a variety of courses of action
2. Do you feel your focus, cognitive flexibility, and emotional regulation thinking strategies are adequate?

Dear Leaders,

5th Term, Career Long Assessment Athena focus area is Army Critical Thinking Test (ACTT) or blocks A, B, & C (See IDP Job Aid), as well as review LDR 360 assessments for completion in May 2025. The recommended timeline for the students to share their IDP with their guide is May 2025 to obtain feedback from their guide landing around the SMC 5th Term closure and Graduation in June 2025. Please defer to the Career Long Assessment Athena button on the homepage for an explanation of this assessment, and the fact sheet below that will support you in the mentoring process with your student. Your assistance and backing are crucial to the success of this initiative, and we are grateful for your ongoing engagement during 5th Term Career Long Assessment Athena: ACTT and the Individual Development Plan (IDP) feedback with your student.

Fact Sheet