Technical Cadres Pass Transition Assessment to Take Up Staff Officer Positions, Exploring and Innovating Multiple Sets of Combat and Training Methods
A certain PLA Navy unit keeps a close eye on battlefield requirements to cultivate composite combat-capable personnel who understand technology and are proficient in tactics — Technical Cadres Step into Staff Officer Positions
■ Ren Zijun, PLA Daily Reporter Bi Xiaotian
In early summer, an intense emergency repair and mobilization drill unfolded at the dock training ground of a certain PLA Navy unit. During the drill, an unmanned aerial vehicle operator was "wounded" by "enemy" artillery fire, blocking the repair mission. Ma Yun, the on-site commander and staff officer, remained calm and composed, rapidly reassigning reserve key personnel to fill the gap, issuing precise mission orders, and coordinating each work team to tackle the challenge together, ultimately completing the equipment repair within the allotted time.
What was surprising is that Ma Yun was originally a professional technical cadre in the unit, having long worked in the field of military facility design and construction, participating in more than 20 important military facility design and construction projects, with solid professional capabilities and outstanding work performance. Previously, she had voluntarily signed up for the unit's talent transition and cultivation program (人才转型培养工程), successfully passed the assessment, and "transformed" from a technical backbone into an operational staff officer, stepping up to the front line of operational command.
"The core of the transition is 'changing one's mindset' (换脑), not simply 'changing one's post' (换岗). Only by perfectly integrating technical capability with command skills can one adapt to the future battlefield and win future wars." Walking off the training ground, Ma Yun said with conviction.
The unit's leadership told reporters that their vigorous push to transition technical cadres stems from the urgent need to win on the battlefield.
During one equipment repair drill, a technical cadre drew up a repair plan strictly according to professional standards, but actual operations exposed problems such as improper personnel allocation and poor emergency coordination, causing repair progress to fall short of expectations and affecting mission completion. The unit's Party committee leadership analyzed the situation and concluded that some technical cadres have a thorough understanding of equipment performance but lack tactical thinking, making it difficult to convert their professional advantages into actual combat effectiveness.
"Driving the transition of technical cadres into operational staff officers is both a practical choice for unleashing talent potential and promoting the conversion of advantages, and an urgent requirement for implementing the strategy of strengthening the military through talent (人才强军战略) and enhancing joint operational capabilities," the unit's leadership said.
To enable technical backbones familiar with equipment parameters and support procedures to transition and "upgrade" into composite command-capable personnel who understand equipment and are proficient in tactics, the unit launched a talent transition and cultivation program, introducing a series of practical measures in line with the realities of combat training and war preparedness: establishing a front-line joint training mechanism, organizing technical cadres to go deep into squads and platoons to learn and train alongside them, and familiarizing themselves with combat and training methods and special-situation handling procedures; establishing transition and growth records for each individual, implementing dynamic "one person, one file" management, precisely targeting weaknesses and clarifying growth objectives so that transition and growth are purposeful; innovating the talent pipeline reserve and cultivation model, stratifying cultivation and conducting dynamic assessments according to "mature-type" (成熟型), "growth-type" (成长型), and "reserve-type" (储备型) categories, forming an orderly cultivation and tiered succession talent structure.
To improve the quality and effectiveness of cultivation, the unit also explored and implemented a "1+1+N" cultivation model, encouraging operational staff officers to pair with technical cadres for mentored instruction, and strictly implementing a combat training mechanism of "daily war-gaming, weekly assessment, and monthly organized training"; regularly carrying out activities such as a "weekly war study day" (每周研战日), organizing technical cadres from different specialties to gather together to study and plan for war, compelling everyone to shift from "drilling in their specialty" (钻业务) to "studying how to fight" (研打仗). They also incorporated command literacy (指挥素养) and tactical proficiency into the assessment system, linking them to commendations and promotions, fully motivating technical cadres to pursue the transition.
Wang Bo, a technical cadre who had worked in military facility construction for many years, encountered an embarrassing situation the first time he stepped into a staff officer position: while executing a mission, he habitually focused on technical parameters and neglected the battlefield situation, causing a disconnect in sub-unit coordination and delaying mission progress.
This setback made Wang Bo clearly recognize his own shortcomings. Afterward, he proactively sought instruction from his mentoring staff officer on command techniques, actively participated in tactical war-gaming and simulated special-situation handling, attended weekly training after-action reviews and corrective measure formulation, and participated in monthly live training to verify cultivation results. During the transition cultivation period, he ate, lived, and trained together with officers and soldiers, learning and training alongside them during the day and reviewing and summarizing at night, gradually filling the gaps in his command literacy.
Today, Wang Bo has passed the transition assessment, is capable of independently commanding multi-specialty coordinated operations, and has researched multiple new sets of combat methods in response to actual combat requirements, bringing up a cohort of backbones who are strong in both "technology and command." He candidly stated that the transition broke through the limitations of technical thinking, achieved "integration of technology and tactics" (技战融合), and that his strength and confidence in winning battles are now greater.
Not long ago, the unit organized an emergency repair drill for military facilities. At a critical moment, an important facility was damaged by "enemy" firepower, and the exercise control group required it to be restored to use within 15 minutes. Wang Bo issued precise orders, dispatching an unmanned aerial vehicle to survey the damage, and directing the repair team to rapidly move forward; another transitioned staff officer coordinated human and equipment resources, optimized the work process, and commanded key personnel from each specialty to fight in coordination, successfully completing the repair mission.
To date, 13 technical cadres in the unit have passed the transition assessment, taken up staff officer positions, and have successively explored and innovated multiple sets of combat and training methods. In the next phase, they will continue to refine the cultivation pipeline and improve institutional mechanisms, cultivating more composite combat-capable personnel who are proficient in technology and understand tactics for battlefield victory.