Notes

The United States Army's Recruitment Strategy and Success
The Department of Defense (DoD) is currently the largest employer in the United States with over 2.1 million members belonging to the military's active duty, national guard and reserve forces (U.S. Department of Defense, 2016).  At the end of the draft in 1973, the supply and demand for recruits has fluctuated based on mission requirements, budgetary constraints, and economic conditions. In recent times, recruiting has been made more difficult by a healthy economy, the growing number of youth who aspire to a college education, and a steadily downward trend in interest in military service (Sackett & Mavor, 2003). In the late 1990s, the Services struggled to meet their recruiting goals and in some cases fell short. This led to the question of how the recruiting process and the recruiters' job could be better supported in order to ensure that force strength, force quality, and the required skill mix of personnel will be available to meet the ever-changing security and defense challenges (Sackett & Mavor, 2003). Military officials recognized that a fundamental understanding of the youth population and of the effectiveness of various advertising and recruiting strategies used to attract them would be extremely valuable in addressing these questions (Sackett & Mavor, 2003). Each year, the US Army has a budget for staffing a fixed number of positions. As with most organizations, the extent of the Army's recruiting efforts is affected by the retention rate for its current soldiers (Breaugh, 2013). In 2005, the US Army missed its recruitment objectives to recruit new enlistees or retain current soldiers within its ranks due to the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan resulting in shortfalls in staffing numerous positions (Breaugh, 2013). In response to this, the Army implemented several strategic changes towards its recruiting tactics such as having less stringent requirements for recruits, offering greater inducements for enlisting, targeting individuals from non-traditional groups (Breaugh, 2013). By 2013, the strategic landscape confronting the United States has changed fundamentally as the United States faces a multiplicity of strategic challenges in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Because of this, part of the upcoming changes in Army end-strength directed by the Fiscal Year 2017 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is a renewed effort to grow the Army by increasing its end-strength to 1.018 million soldiers, marking a net gain of 28,000 soldiers (McCain & Reed 2016). Despite enthusiasm for another force increase after 2016, Army recruiters are again expected to face momentous challenges because of lower entry pools and a more competitive recruiting environment. Rising economic conditions, reduced incentives and constricted policy restrictions are proving to be weighty challenges to meeting recruiting goals, (Tice, 2016). Considering these, this paper will examine whether the current strategies that the United States Army uses to fills its ranks is still effective or if it requires adjustments.
Current Situation and Strategy
The strategic landscape confronting the United States has changed fundamentally since the passage of the Goldwater-Nichols Act thirty years ago. Instead of one great power rival, the United States faces a multiplicity of strategic challenges: near-peer competitors such s China and Russia, regional powers such as Iran and North Korea that increasingly have the capabilities to pose threats that transcend their regions, and non-state violent extremist movements, including groups like the Islamic State and Al-Qaeda and their affiliates, that are metastasizing across Africa, the Middle East, and parts of Asia. As the Secretary of Defense and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs have testified to the committee this year, all of these threats cut across different regional geographies and span different military functions and domains, and all are long-term in their character. We now face a series of multi-regional, cross-functional, multi-domain, and enduring strategic competitions that pose a significant challenge to the organization of DOD and the military (McCain & Reed 2016).
While the Army achieved its active component accessions mission of 59,000 soldiers for fiscal 2015, it began the annual recruiting campaign with only 16,500 young people under contract, the smallest delayed entry pool in seven years. The entry pool for fiscal 2016 was even smaller, with only 15,207 people committed to future enlistment on Oct. 1 (Tice, 2016).
In order to be eligible for entry, the Army has standards for personal attributes such as having a high school degree, no criminal record, and good physical health, although exceptions can be made. The group once targeted for recruitment have been young male adults and heavy emphasis was also placed in recruiting in high schools where most students do not go to college (Breaugh, 2013).  However, policy changes since 1975 and recent regulations lifting the ban on women serving in combat positions have provided increased opportunities for women to serve in active duty military positions previously closed to them (Braun, Kennedy, Sadler, & Dixon 2015).
The Army also relies heavily on media advertisements and recruitment at events that draw individuals that it seeks to target such as rodeos and NASCAR races. Lastly, the Army focuses its recruiting efforts in the midwestern and southern regions of the United States because of its past historic success in these geographic locations (Breaugh, 2013).
As of mid-February, the year-to-date enlistment total for the Regular Army stood at
21,004 soldiers, which is one-third of the annual requirement, according to statistics provided by Recruiting Command. The Army expects to make its recruiting goal of 62,000 soldiers annually in 2016 and 2017, but recruiters will face "significant challenges (Tice, 2016). Despite of this, challenges, the quality of the incoming cohorts has been high, with 98 percent of the recruits having earned a traditional high school diploma. In a further measure of quality, more than 60 percent of non-prior-service young people who enlisted in 2015 scored in the 50th percentile or higher of the Armed Forces Qualification Test, which is a measure of recruit aptitude (Tice, 2016). Nationally, the decline in high graduation rates and increasing obesity levels (among young people) have challenged the Army to strategically deal with the changing societal norms,"
(Tice, 2016).
While the Army achieved its active component accessions mission of 59,000 soldiers for fiscal 2015, it began the annual recruiting campaign with only 16,500 young people under contract, the smallest delayed entry pool in seven years. The entry pool for fiscal 2016 was even smaller, with only 15,207 people committed to future enlistment on Oct. 1. As of mid-February, the year-to-date enlistment total for the Regular Army stood at 21,004 soldiers, which is one-third of the annual requirement, according to statistics provided by Recruiting Command (Tice, 2016). Despite those low statistics, the quality of the incoming cohorts has been high, with 98 percent of the recruits having earned a traditional high school diploma. In a further measure of quality, more than 60 percent of non-prior-service young people who enlisted in 2015 scored in the 50th percentile or higher of the Armed Forces Qualification Test, which is a measure of recruit aptitude (Tice, 2016). Nationally, the decline in high graduation rates and increasing obesity levels (among young people) have challenged the Army to strategically deal with the changing societal norms. Service officials also told lawmakers that the implementation of upgraded test score norms "may impact quality achievement in the future as enlistment standards will increase (Tice, 2016).
The Army uses enlistment bonuses of up to $40,000 to attract applicants for specialties that are difficult to fill with qualified recruits, such as intelligence, health services, communications and electronics, administration, air defense and field artillery. About 44,000 recruits are expected to receive bonuses this year, and another 45,000 in 2017, according to the budget materials (Tice, 2016). These totals are considerably higher than the 32,000 new bonus contracts issued in 2015 when 15,000 young people enlisted for the Regular Army.
Federal law allows the Army to pay up to $40,000 for enlistments, with payments spread over the life of the enlistment (Tice, 2016). Army policy authorizes up to $10,000 to be paid initially in a lump sum after a soldier has completed basic training and initial skill training. Soldiers who are eligible for a bonus of more than $10,000 receive anniversary payments in equal installments over the remaining years of the enlistment (Tice, 2016).
The recently signed FY17 NDAA increases the Army end-strength to 1.018 million soldiers, a net gain of 28k soldiers in this fiscal year.  Across the force, the Active Component end-strength authorization increased to 476K, Army National Guard end-strength increased to 343K, and the Army Reserve end-strength increased to 199K (McCain & Reed, 2016). To meet this new requirement, we will consider all options available to recruit, access, develop, employ, and retain quality Soldiers to ensure troop levels consistent with the NDAA while maintaining the highest state of readiness.  In order to achieve this end-strength within the Active Component we will increase our active component accessions mission by 6K, our retention mission by 9K, adjust ROTC officer commissioning timelines to commission RA LTs in FY17 (who are now scheduled to commission in FY18), offer RA commissions to ROTC cadets commissioning in FY17 who were previously appointed in the Selected Reserve (SELRES), and expand the AC Call to Active Duty program to offer additional serving SELRES officers RA appointments with concurrent calls to active duty  (McCain & Reed, 2016)
These adjustments in our total component end-strength will cause some turbulence in the operational and institutional forces, particularly as we build the recruiting and training base to support this growth.  In order to grow the force rapidly we are requesting additional authorities and funding to retain our talent and quality within the force.  We will continue to communicate with you as move forward through implementation.
Providing attractive options available to youth following high school graduation and identifying potential recruiting and advertising strategies and incentive programs based on sound scientific data with the goal of increasing propensity and facilitating enlistment (Sackett & Mavor, 2003).