ALC Conduct Unit Postal Operations Practical Exercise

HUMAN RESOURCES

ADVANCED LEADERS COURSE

42A

Conduct Unit Postal Operations

PRACTICAL EXERCISE #1

Version 6.3

March 2016

Group Scenario #1

STUDENT INSTRUCTIONS

OBJECTIVE: This practical exercise is designed to measure your ability to provide postal

operations support at the Battalion and Brigade level and incorporate critical thinking and

coordination with other staff organizations.

MATERIALS REQUIRED:

1. FM 1-0.

2. Pencil & Scratch Paper.

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. This practical exercise will be conducted in groups of 4-6 Soldiers with one Soldier as the lead

spokesperson. Take the scenario and brainstorm to come up with different courses of actions to

recommend to the commander. Make sure to capture the different staff organizations you may

coordinate with for assistance. Write your recommendations down and be prepared to brief your

suggested plan and receive guidance from the commander.

2. Your group will have 20 minutes to complete this practical exercise.

SITUATION: You are the BN S1 of your unit and responsible for developing and coordinating a

postal operations plan for assigned and attached units within your Battalion AO by performing

several critical tasks to include: Coordinate with all subordinate units/individuals for establishment of mail pick up at the designated unit mail rooms (UMR), collect and route daily retro-grade mail received by unit mail clerks to the supporting postal platoon, and reconcile any problems within the Battalion hindering the delivery of mail. The situation arose when one of your unit mail clerk’s informed you that they have three priority bags and ½ of a letter tray of mail stored for one of your subordinate unit’s, Bravo Company. This company has one squad positioned in a remote location away from the Company and Battalion headquarters, which are co-located at the same FOB. The squad’s mission requires them to remain at this remote location for weeks at a time. The squad returns to the main FOB every 2-3 weeks for a few days on a rotational basis. Unfortunately, this is the only opportunity for the Soldiers in this squad to

have to pick-up incoming mail and to go the Army Post Office (APO) to send outgoing mail. Develop a suggested plan to back brief the Battalion commander that will enable the Soldiers in this squad to receive/send their mail on a more regular basis.

Group Scenario #2

STUDENT INSTRUCTIONS

OBJECTIVE: This practical exercise is designed to measure your ability to provide postal

operations support at the Battalion and Brigade level and incorporate critical thinking and

coordination with other staff organizations.

MATERIALS REQUIRED:

1. FM 1-0.

2. Pencil & Scratch Paper.

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. This practical exercise will be conducted in groups of 4-6 Soldiers with one Soldier as the lead

spokesperson. Take the scenario and brainstorm to come up with different course of actions to

recommend to the commander. Make sure to capture the different staff organizations you may

coordinate with for assistance. Write your recommendations down and be prepared to brief your

suggested plan and receive guidance from the commander.

2. Your group will have 20 minutes to complete this practical exercise.

SITUATION: You are a Battalion S1 for the 95th MP BDE. You’re tasked to go to FOB Spiecher and conduct a courtesy inspection of the mailroom for the 554th MP Company. Before you begin the inspection, you notice several bags of mail sitting in the corner. The HR Sergeant informs you that the MP platoons work different shifts and collect mail at different times throughout the day. Talk through the steps you would take to set-up an efficient mailroom to accommodate shift workers within the company to include storage and pickup of regular and accountable mail.

Group Scenario #3

STUDENT INSTRUCTIONS

OBJECTIVE: This practical exercise is designed to measure your ability to provide postal operations support at the Battalion and Brigade level and incorporate critical thinking and coordination with other staff organizations.

MATERIALS REQUIRED:

1. FM 1-0.

2. Pencil & Scratch Paper.

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. This practical exercise will be conducted in groups of 4-6 Soldiers with one Soldier as the lead spokesperson. Take the scenario and brainstorm to come up with different course of actions to recommend to the commander. Make sure to capture the different staff organizations you may coordinate with for assistance. Write your recommendations down and be prepared to brief your suggested plan and receive guidance from the commander.

2. Your group will have 20 minutes to complete this practical exercise.

SITUATION: The 2nd Battalion, 20th Field Artillery, Fort Hood, Texas, is 45 days out from their redeployment. Soldiers have superseded the aircraft limit of two duffle bags and one carry-on. Unit leadership dedicated the redeploying unit Milvans for MTOE equipment with limited room for excess personal baggage. The majority of the unit’s Soldiers have footlockers and boxes with excess personal items they want to mail home. Some of the Battalion’s Soldiers visited the APO and complained that the lines were extremely long and they did not have sufficient time to mail their packages. After talking with the APO you were told that the long wait was because of the influx of redeploying Soldiers. What actions will you recommend to solve this issue and ensure that Soldiers get to mail out their packages without hindering the unit mission or the redeployment timeline?

Group Scenario #4

STUDENT INSTRUCTIONS

MATERIALS REQUIRED:

1. FM 1-0.

2. DoD Postal Manual 4525-6M

3. Pencil & Scratch Paper.

INSTRUCTIONS:

2. Your group will have 20 minutes to complete this practical exercise.

SITUATION: You are the BN S1 and Postal Officer for your unit located at FOB Rustamiyah. During an enemy mortar attack, the unit mail room was struck by a direct hit. What are the responsibilities of the unit to account for the lost / destroyed mail?