Conduct an After Action Review

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Conduct an After Action Review
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Action

• Conduct an after action review

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Conditions

• Given a Requirement to Conduct a AAR and
• access to
• - FM 22-100
• - TC 25-20
• - UM 3-0
• - UM 3-02
• - UR 601-107

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Standards

• Conduct an AAR that that evaluates
• performance and determines
• What was supposed to happen
• What happened
• Why it happened
• How to sustain strengths and improve weaknesses

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Definition of AAR

• An AAR is a professional discussion of
• an event that focuses on performance
• standards. It enables soldiers to
• discover for themselves what
• happened, why it happened, and how
• to sustain strengths and improve on
• weaknesses.

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Purpose of an AAR

• The purpose of an After Action Review (AAR) is to
  improve Soldier, leader, and unit performance.
• The AAR is a live learning process that solves
  problems and assists with Soldier development.

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Key Points in an AAR

• Conduct during or immediately after each event.
• Ask open-ended questions.
• Relate performance to accomplishment of
  objectives.
• Dont dwell on issues unrelated to mission
  accomplishment.

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Key Points in an AAR

• Prepare
• Conduct
• Follow-Up

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Prepare

• Preparation allows you the opportunity to
• analyze the data produced by ongoing
• operations.

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Conduct

• The intent of the AAR is to manage decisive,
  shaping, and sustaining operations.
• The AAR serves as a virtual checkpoint on the way
  to mission accomplishment.

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Follow- Up

• The AAR process results in adjusted plans and new
  courses of action.
• Establish timelines for follow-up to make sure
  the subordinate has carried out the plan.

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The Six Ps

• Present Mission Posture
• Projections
• Processing
• Prospecting
• Plan
• Personnel

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Present Mission Posture

• Leaders should relate their questions to the
  Soldier or units current mission posture.
• Discussing mission posture first establishes the
  mission as the leaders priority.

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Projections

• View a complete list of individuals projected for
  enlistment and commissioning via Leader Zone. 
• Projections can give a clear picture as to the
  validity of mission accomplishment.

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Processing

• A review of the applicant processing list will
  flag issues that impede processing.
• The Leader should examine TNE, PNE, QNE, etc.
• Leaders can intervene and avoid delays.

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Prospecting

• Analysis of the MAP and LSA is the starting
  point. These tools are used to develop the
  prospecting plan.
• The leader should consider unit accomplishment
  and the day of the week and the week of the
  recruiting contract month (RCM).

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Plan

• Review and discussion of the subordinates
• plan should lead to an agreement on what
• was supposed to happen, what did or did
• not happen, and why.

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Personnel

• Personnel issues have the potential to influence
  mission achievement.
• Recruiters are our ultimate system.
• The leader should review strength issues to gauge
  their impact on mission accomplishment.
• Develop COA to address manning issues.

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Types of AARs

• Formal
• Informal
• Note AARs may be conducted Face-to-face or
  telephonic. However, the preferred method is
  Face-to-face.

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Formal AAR

• Formal AARs require more planning and preparation
  than informal AARs.
• Formal AARs take more time, are scheduled
  beforehand, and are conducted where best
  supported.

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Informal AARs

• Informal AARs are used as on-the-spot coaching
  tools while reviewing Soldier and unit
  performance.
• Are used to provide immediate feedback to
  Soldiers, leaders, and units.
• Require fewer resources and are commonly
  conducted when the leader feels the Soldier,
  leader, or unit would benefit.

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AAR Structure

• To focus and structure the AAR, leaders should
  employ the six Ps to elements of the
  Recruiting Operating Systems (ROS) namely
• Intelligence
• Prospecting
• Processing
• Future Soldiers
• Training
• RSS
• C4

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AAR Structure

• This technique is especially useful in training
  Soldiers, leaders, and units how events directly
  relate to one or more ROS.
• By discussing actions in the order they take
  place, Soldiers and leaders are better able to
  recall what happened.

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AAR Structure

• One of the strengths of the AAR is its
• flexibility. If a certain ROS appears to have
• a systemic issue, the leader can follow that
• ROS throughout the process. Once that
• topic is exhausted, the AAR can proceed
• through all or specific operating systems.

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Following Up

• Identify tasks requiring retraining
• Fix the problem, retrain and integrate lessons
  learned in future planning
• Share lessons learned with unit members

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AAR Format

• Employ the Six Ps to elements of the Recruiting
  Operating Systems and ask the following
• - What was supposed to happen
• - What happened
• - Why did it happen
• - How to sustain strengths and improve
• weaknesses

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What Was Supposed to Happen

• What was planned, goals and objectives?
• Company
• Station
• Recruiter
• What barriers were expected?
• What was known.
• What did experience tell us.

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What Happened

• Recount the events
• Ask clarifying questions that encourage and
  require individuals to fill in the blanks
• Compare the performance against established
  standards
• What were the unanticipated barriers?
• Station (communication, perception, attitudes)
• Individual (stress, fatigue, attitude,)

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Why Did It Happen

• Find the root causes behind identified
  performance successes and failures.
• In many cases, Soldiers, leaders, and unit
  performance will contain both good and poor
  performance.
• As a leader you should attempt to keep these
  balanced and in perspective.

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Successes

• The natural tendency is to concentrate on what
  was wrong.
• It is much easier to determine the cause for
  failure than for success.
• The need to determine the reason for success or
  effectiveness is just as important as discussing
  failures.

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Successes

• Determining the reason for success
• Present opportunities to reinforce behaviors that
  promote mission accomplishment
• Dont overlook these opportunities.

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Failures

• When a failure is identified, determine what
  should have happened and what didnt happen (or
  happened incorrectly).
• Reprimands should be left out of the AAR. Such
  actions are disciplinary, not investigative in
  nature.
• This does not prevent disciplinary action as a
  result of information from an AAR.

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How to Sustain Strengths and Improve Weaknesses

• Once root causes have been identified, focus
  actions on improvement strategies.
• In most cases outputs from this step come in the
  form of enhanced recognition cues, and should be
  included into the planning phase of the next
  action.

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Check on Learning

• What is the purpose of an AAR?
• - To improve Soldier, Leader, and Unit
• performance
• How should a leader structure the AAR?
• - Employing the six Ps to the elements
  of the
• ROS
• Which point of the AAR allow you to make sure the
  subordinate carried out the plan?
• - Follow-up
• Should disciplinary action take place during an
  AAR?
• - No, but this does not prevent
  disciplinary
• actions

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Action

• Conduct an after action review

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Conditions

• Given a Requirement to Conduct a AAR and
• access to
• - FM 22-100
• - TC 25-20
• - UM 3-0
• - UM 3-02
• - UR 601-107

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Standards

• Conduct an AAR that that evaluates
• performance and determines
• What was supposed to happen
• What happened
• Why it happened
• How to sustain strengths and improve weaknesses

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Summary

• The After Action Review is a proven method that
  can assist with Soldier, leader, and unit
  development. It is a process that educates,
  motivates, and communicates the pros and cons of
  our organization.

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Questions?