by Mike Lima
It’s not just officers who need to know how to write—it’s warrant officers too.
Warrant officers now have many roles, including staff officer positions and numerous duties as action officers. As a staff officer, the primary role is to support the commander in decision-making and implementation. We provide analysis, make estimates, and make technical recommendations. As action officers, warrant officers create projects and lead action on packages for senior decision-makers. Each staff member has specific duties and responsibilities within the staff structure, regardless of their military occupation.
Writing is arguably the most important part of the various roles of warrant officers. As for myself, I have had to write munitions-related appendices for Annex F (Sustainment). And not being in a staff position does not mean evasion from the requirement to write. I offer this stark warning to new warrant officers as someone who has learned from experience.
As a newly arrived Warrant Officer 1 (WO1) in my first unit, my Company Commander put me on a battalion detail as an Army Regulation (AR) 15-6 investigating officer. I was required to assemble a final packet with analyzed facts and recommendations to present to my appointing authority. The appointing authority also was my senior rater, whom I had never met and would only see after he read my report. While I had experience writing, I needed assistance in this additional duty, not traditionally given to new warrant officers. You never know when your written communication will be your first impression to your chain of command.
As a new warrant officer, you will need to improve your writing starting with initial writing tasks. You should seek those written assignments as early in your career as possible. Many warrant officers have college experience and have written a paper for a grade. Written communication in the workplace is different, but those classroom experiences provide a foundation to start your writing journey with superiors and throughout your service. Tackling your first writing assignment as a Warrant Officer outside candidate school will always be challenging, and you should start small.
The first paper any warrant officer should be familiar with is an information paper. It is intended to present facts, not to request approval or decision. Each paper should be a one-page informative summary, which is great for technical communication favored by warrant officers. As warrant officers, technical communication is the most required type of written medium, but not necessarily the only one. Other written forms include executive summaries and point papers,–all of which have their correct place and time to use. While warrant officers may find comfort in the technical aspect of their written work. To support decision-making, there must be a balance between technical and layman’s understanding. Starting with understanding the nature of your audience, which determines how much technical detail you will include in writing. The final product should reflect your role as a highly specialized expert and advisor.
As you increase in seniority, you want to expand your writing outside of your organization to positively affect your branch. The primary means would be your branch magazines, officially known as Professional Bulletins. For example, I have written about the most impactful topics in my assignments to the Army Sustainment Professional Bulletin (PB 700). As a company-grade warrant officer in Korea, I discussed ammunition combat loads in the Korean theater of operations. As a field grade warrant officer in Japan, I discussed Ammunition Distribution during Defender Pacific and Pacific Pathways exercises throughout the Indo-Pacific. Each provided insight into its respective area of operations. All professional bulletins have submission guidelines and themes; crafting a compelling story increases your chances of publication. The experience provides learning and improvement and allows for writing in advanced publications.
When you are seasoned in your career path, you can give back by writing to affect change in the Army or Joint Forces. The primary means would be the service journals within presses such as Army University Press, but each service has its version. An example is my publication for Military Review, where I discussed how to prepare theater ammunition supply points for large-scale combat operations. Another is the publication in the Journal of Indo-Pacific Affairs, in which I discussed strategic competition between India and Pakistan in Munitions Industrial Bases. The manuscripts add to the strategic national and theater levels to inform senior leaders. The publications are more intensive than typical articles in magazines.
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As described, military writing is much like a tiered system, and writing at the highest level will be the most demanding. In the beginning, writing will be challenging, as will receiving feedback from immediate supervisors. The criticism is private and provides for progressive learning. With my writing, I have received harsh feedback from both editors and through double-blind reviews. The unforgiving pain of feedback is only temporary, but the final product is everlasting in the internet archive of the digital age.
Writing is a fundamental duty of Warrant Officers. Warrant officers must clearly articulate their points and provide evidence-based recommendations in writing. Excelling in staff officer duties and responsibilities is the minimum requirement regardless of warrant officer grades. All must master the artistry of the written word.
One final thought: as warrant officers, we all will not have the opportunity to become the Senior Warrant Officer Advisor to the Chief of Staff of the Army or go into the history books. Such as Chief Warrant Officer 4 Thomas John Hennen, who became the first warrant officer in space, flying aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-44). However, as warrant officers, we can provide those warrant officers who come behind us with the experiences, lessons, and answers we went through during our time in military service through our writing and subsequent publication.
Michael Lima, DBA, is an Ammunition Warrant Officer and has served 25 years in the United States military and over nine years as an adjunct instructor. He can be found on Twitter or LinkedIn and discusses munitions sustainment on Substack. His email is
