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SMA, Enough with the Uniform Changes



FORT LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (Army News Service, Nov. 20, 2015) -- Dozens of

noncommissioned officers, or NCOs, applauded when one of their own asked Sgt. Maj.

of the Army Daniel A. Dailey to try and "hold off making any more uniform changes for a

while."



Dailey replied to the NCOs - half of whom were wearing Operational Camouflage

Patterns, or OCPs, the other Army Combat Uniforms, or ACUs - "I don't want to make

any more changes."



He then qualified the remark: "I'm working hard to minimize changes, but I'd be lying if I

promised you there'd be no more changes." He joked that he's becoming known as the

"black socks and tattoo" sergeant major.



Dailey fielded questions at the end of the chief of staff of the Army-sponsored

Noncommissioned Officer Solarium II, held at the U.S. Army Command and General

Staff College here, Nov. 20.



When changes are made, the Dailey said it's normally by consensus. As a rule of

thumb, a consensus is roughly 60 percent. He said he gets that percentage by

surveying Soldiers, a process of informing leadership from the bottom up.



As for examples of consensus in action, Dailey referred to a uniform survey conducted

in August.



Soldiers were surveyed about making the blue service cap be the required headgear

with the Army Service Uniform for senior NCOs, officers and warrant officers, instead

of the beret. Just over half of the respondents favored the change, but the 60 percent

threshold wasn't met.



A female NCO seated nearby then told Dailey that she was passionate about the need

for one cap for all.



Dailey said he'd heard from others who agreed with her and some who just as

passionately didn't. For example, one female Soldier he spoke to said she appreciates

the two version because she likes the genders to be differentiated in their apparel.



There could be times in the future when changes will be made without survey or

convention, irrespective of opinion, he said. A good example would be a change to the

uniform that results in providing the Soldier a greater level of protection.



Dailey then provided insights into what he and the Army chief of staff's personal

favorites are. He said they both have nostalgia for period uniforms, like those worn

during World War II. They both were happy to see the return of the Ike jacket, for

instance. However, he said their own biases would not have much of a bearing on any

future changes.



Regarding the change from ACUs to OCPs, Dailey said that in a way, enlisted Soldiers

are fortunate to have a clothing allowance that will completely pay for the new uniforms

over the phase-in period. Officers bear that expense from their own pay.



Lastly, Dailey advised having an open mind to changes of any type to avoid stagnating.

