Army National Guard: Enhancing Public and Employer Support

Abstract : Following the terrorist attacks of 9/11, more than 274,000 Army National Guard Soldiers have been deployed around the world. In many cases, Army Guard Soldiers are on their second and third deployment. To date, 469 Guard Soldiers have made the ultimate sacrifice. When the nation calls out the Guard, it calls out America. However, with no end in sight for Army Guard deployments and with dwindling public and employer support for overseas deployments, senior Army National Guard leaders must increasingly engage the American public and employers in a strategic, systematic, professional and productive manner to ensure the Army National Guard remains an effective combat force. This paper highlights the critical importance of this strategic communication for senior Army National Guard leaders and provides a number of recommendations to generate and maintain public support. Furthermore, this paper examines the myriad of problems facing employers as their military employees leave on prolonged and repeated deployments and explores practical options to address these problems to ensure employer support into the next decade.