The Joint Readiness Training Center is pleased to present the eighty-eighth episode to air on ‘The Crucible - The JRTC Experience.’ Hosted by the MAJ(P) Westly “West” LaFitte, the Brigade Executive Officer Observer-Coach-Trainer for Brigade Command & Control on behalf of the Commander of Ops Group (COG). Today’s guests are two Infantry Officers at the Maneuver Captain's Career Course, CPT Joe Wilson and 1LT Jack Hoover.

The Maneuver Captains’ Career Course (MCCC or MC3), hosted by the Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Moore, Georgia, is a 22-week program designed primarily for U.S. Army infantry and armor officers, with participants also including U.S. Marine Corps captains and officers from allied nations. The course’s mission is to equip these officers with the skills necessary for effective company command and to fulfill tactical planning duties as battalion S-3 operations staff officers. MCCC has its roots in the former Infantry and Armor Officer Advanced Courses, which prepared captains for command and staff roles within their respective branches. Since 2008, MCCC has merged these curricula into a unified “maneuver” focus, reflecting the integrated requirements of modern warfare. The course is organized into three teams, each led by a senior major and divided into 12 seminars of about 15 officers, guided by a senior captain or major. Offered six times annually, MCCC runs three classes concurrently, supporting a student body of approximately 400 to 600 officers at any given time.

In this episode, we discuss the role of infantry formations during large-scale combat operations. The discussion highlights the importance of preparing for LSCO by refining individual and unit-level competencies, particularly through rigorous training cycles leading up to CTC rotations. We emphasize the value of properly developing standard operating procedures (SOPs) at the platoon and company levels, ensuring that units arrive at training events with well-rehearsed systems rather than creating them on the fly. We also stress the necessity of fostering a mindset that embraces the challenges of JRTC or NTC as culminating events designed to validate training rather than as administrative burdens. Additionally, the conversation touches on the role of junior leaders in setting the tone for their formations, ensuring that battle drills, reporting procedures, and sustainment operations are ingrained long before units step onto a high-intensity training environment.

A significant portion of the discussion is dedicated to the staff experience and the importance of mastering the military decision-making process (MDMP) at the battalion and brigade levels. Our guests recount their initial challenges in grasping MDMP’s complexity, particularly from the perspective of sustainment and logistical planning. We highlight how exposure to staff processes at earlier stages in their careers, including serving as S4s or executive officers, provided them with invaluable insights into how different warfighting functions interact to support maneuver. The importance of pace planning, redundancy in communications, and maintaining a clear logistics picture were recurring themes, with examples of how failures in these areas created friction during their CTC rotations. We also discuss the need for self-development beyond formal education, encouraging peers to actively seek mentorship, read doctrine, and engage in professional discussions outside of duty hours to build a more holistic understanding of the battlefield.

Part of S01 “The Leader’s Laboratory” series.

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“The Crucible – The JRTC Experience” is a product of the Joint Readiness Training Center.