Army Consideration of Others Training

Army Consideration of Others training was developed to create more productive workplace relations.

Unit cohesion is an important concept in the U.S. Army. A team that doesn't mesh well will have a more difficult time completing mission objectives. Army Consideration of Others (CO2) training was developed to provide a way for soldiers to become more aware of how their actions affect others and to be considerate of their fellow soldiers. Unit leadership administers the training in small group sessions.

Ethical Development

The Army relies on ethical principals, both on the individual and organizational levels, embodied in the Army Core Values. On the individual level, CO2 training is designed to get soldiers to reflect on these principles and apply them to their own duties, thus internalizing the values. On the organizational level, commanders are encouraged to discard policies that might pressure soldiers into unethical positions. An example would be unit policies that require soldiers to attend religious services that cater to one religious group at the exclusion of others. Such policies run counter to the Army's practice of religious accommodation. Enforcing such a policy would fall to noncommissioned and junior officers, thus pressuring them into an unethical position.

Military Heritage

CO2 training also puts a heavy emphasis on teaching American military heritage. It is important that soldiers understand the meaning behind symbols like the Army flag and customs like saluting. Such knowledge gives soldiers a common knowledge base for relating to the Army and each other. CO2 also suggests teaching soldiers the history about their specific unit. This has a strong team-building effect that inspires soldiers to try to surpass the accomplishments of their predecessors.

Individual Leadership

Leadership is extremely important in military culture. Commissioned and noncommissioned officers must not only have technical expertise in war, but must also be able to inspire their subordinates to go into harm's way and do whatever it takes to complete the mission. The CO2 manual suggests that leaders engage soldiers in small group discussions about effective leaders of the past. When soldiers examine past techniques, they employ those tactics in their day-to-day experiences.

Team Building

Team building is really the hub of these other key areas. By developing ethical soldiers who lead by example and understand their military heritage, the Army builds stronger bonds among the team. The CO2 training manual suggests small group discussions about historical military events that were successful due to teamwork.

Equal Opportunity

The mission of the Army's Equal Opportunity system is to make sure that racial, ethnic, gender and religious discrimination does not harm a soldier's career. CO2 training seeks to make soldiers aware of the reasons why discrimination of this kind is not productive and not tolerated. Some discussion topics include race relations and gender issues in the Army.

References

• OCS.Army.mil: Consideration of Others Handbook