During TBS, you'll have Garrison weeks and Field Weeks. They don't exactly alternate, but during Garrison weeks, you'll have classes, and during Field Weeks, you'll have practical applications of lessons learned in Garrison Week. You'll have both Garrison and Field Billets. If you want to go Infantry or combat arms, I suggest telling your SPC to give you higher-level field billets. At TBS, I felt like my leadership was no bueno, the opposite of OCS. A tenet of officership is to know yourself and seek self-improvement. I asked my SPC to give me a company-level billet so I could do better. These billets are your time to shine!
For more on tactical billets, see The Field page. This section will cover Garrison Billets.
Garrison Billets include:
Company Commander
Company Executive Officer
Company 1st Sergeant
Company Gunnery Sergeant
Platoon Commander
Platoon Sergeant
Squad Leader
(You'll also have Fireteam leader by these are not evaluated by staff. Your squad leader may pick them, or you may pick among your Fireteam. For the most part, these are for accountability).
When you get assigned a billet, you'll be given a billet-turnover binder, which explains the duties of that billet. If you don't get assigned a billet right away, I would observe what your fellow peers in billets are doing. During the first two weeks, billets will most likely be given to students coming to Mike Company. Observe them.
In general, the day starts off with accountability. You're roger up with your FT leader, who will send accountability to the Squad Leader, then to the Student Platoon Sergeant & Platoon Commander. The PS and PC then turn in accountability to the Student Company Staff. This accountability includes weapons counts, along with night vision goggle, compass, and PEQ count.
The Student Platoon Commanders and Platoon Sergeants then give a report to their SPCs, which include all the counts, plus anyone going to medical, light duty, on leave, anything like that. The SPC/SPI then gives these billet holders guidance for the day.
During this time, Student Company staff compiles the counts sheets from the Student Platoon Staff and makes a master sheet for their corresponding actual staff members.
This is part of the "communication upward" part of the billet. It is very important to give your corresponding staff members updates throughout the day with the goings-on of the company and the platoon. When you meet with your staff member, they will give you information to pass down. At the beginning of the week, student company staff will be given a schedule for the week, and the student platoon staff will tailor the schedule for their platoons.
It is better to give your staff member incomplete information (with the disclosure that "counts are in progress" or "give me more time") than to leave them in the dark.
For the most part:
Company Commander gives big picture guidance
Company Executive Officer provides more details and takes the big picture plan and puts it into action.
Company First Sergeant is very personnel involved
Company Gunnery Sergeant is very equipment and field oriented
Platoon Commander is platoon big-picture oriented
Platoon Sergeant carries out the plan
Squad Leader is accountability heavy
I had the Company Executive Officer billet. Our staff Company Executive Officer was an austere infantry officer that always had a stern look on his face, He really intimidated me at first. A big no-no in a billet is giving "fluff" information to your staff member. Don't report complete counts if you're not sure. At my last job, a fire department, an engine company reporting "complete" numbers led to the death of a firefighter. I never trusted when the previous medic crews would say the equipment was "good" on the truck. I always checked it myself and had a self-satisfaction when I saw I actually needed life-saving equipment that the previous medic reported was present. It might seem like no big deal to say you have everyone, but you should really check out the Jason Rotherman incident. He was a Marine from Camp Lejeune who participated in a training exercise at 29 Palms. Long story short, his platoon commander, an Lt, reported complete numbers when returning from the exercise. While the armory, THE ARMORY, discovered his weapon was missing...by the time this happened, LCpl Rotherman was dying in the desert, trying to make his way back to base. All that was ever found of him was a jawbone,
Please be accurate, and always know your personnel and equipment count. Don't rush. Better to get yelled at by your staff member for being slow than to report incomplete counts. As a student company Executive Officer, you will evaluate your student platoon commanders. I was an easy grader, I gave three PCs all Outstandings. I gave one person below standards, and it was because he wishy-washy reported to me incomplete counts as complete, and seemed to not know where people in his platoon were. I asked him several times, before he finally said "I don't know." You may think I'm a jerk, because for sure the unaccounted for Lt was not dying in the desert, but one day, one of your Marines may be counting on you to realize that he is missing.
When giving counts, don't just say, we're up. Always use specific numbers, like, "16/16", or "15/16, Lt Basilone is at medical." Things like that.
I ended up doing well at my billet. The staff XO said that he was impressed with the constant flow of information I gave him, and my accuracy. He said he also was happy that if I did not know the answer to something, that I told him I would find out and get back to him.
And to end on a light-hearted note, this austere infantry officer would blast pop music after hours, and his office was littered with adorable pictures of his kids. He even had this card from his kid that said, "Daddy, I love you to the moon and back." AWWWWWWWWWWW.
People get nervous around instructors or higher ups. It's definitely good to have respect, but at the end of the day, they are people too. So don't let your nervousness make you do things like report incorrect numbers or give wishy-washy answers in efforts to appease them. Be honest.