MCRP 6 11D Sustaining the Transformation – Term Paper

The book “Sustaining the Transformation” is a US Navy publication which gives a detailed information on how Marines are created in the process referred to a transformation. The author focuses on how new volunteers in the US Marines unit are ushered into the service, and how they become fully integrated into the norm of the Marines. The five section in the book gives a chronological process of how transformation occurs and efforts adopted to ensure such process is sustainable. This paper aims at providing a general summary of this book based on the major themes presented by the authors.

The first chapter is a narration of two brothers who joined the Marines and how their transformation process occurred. Both Private James and Private Tommy joined the Marines recruitment process on the same day and thus they were in these same recruitment camp. They both succeed in the hiring process, as they successfully graduated with their parents celebrating their success. However, after four months of training at different training centers, Private Tommy was more successful and even got promoted (Corps, 14). On the other hand, Private James never got any promotion. This first section set a stage to show readers how the transformation process is different even to brothers.

Chapter two of the book focuses on the process used to bring the transformation. Five primary phases of change are established as the main pillars that allow ordinary volunteers to turns into Marines. The first step involves the recruiters who are educated and trained in the most efficient way of selecting perfects candidates (Corps, 20). The second phase focuses on the training process of the recruits, where best training and cooperation is created. The third phase which occurs after the training focuses on making marines more cohesive to each other. Lastly, having sustainment is the service and better citizenship, are the fourth and fifth transformation found in the Marines.

The book also addresses the cohesiveness that Marines creates in the transformation process which gives them their ethos. That cohesiveness has been explained to have five pillars, which includes, marine morale in their duties, having confidence both to leadership as well as unit power, and also having both horizontal and vertical relationship (Corps, 31). When these pillars are implemented, they lead to a Marine that sets and example in the society.

The book also focuses on the obstacles faced by Marines during the transformation process and possible solution to this challenges. These barriers have been categorized as either real or perceived and based on unit or system (Corps, 45). Despite their level of threat, the book has outlined that new solutions are always created to counter such any disappointments in the transformation process.

Lastly, the book has focused on the universal technique that can bring stability in the conversion process and endstate sections. On global method transformation, it has been established that monthly recognitions, anniversary, family day, graduations, and unit events are some of the universal sustainable transformation process (Corps, 62). On the endstate section, the book has concluded that pillars of education, standards establishment, ownership and acceptance, and NCO developments, are the ones which will give rise to the sustainable transformation process.

In conclusion, the above paper has provided a general summary of the book “Sustaining the Transformation” based on the major themes presented by the authors. Five main sections have been developed which explains how the Marines are created through a transformation process. The paper has also revealed various challenges that the marine departments encounter in the conversion process, and how they are prevented. Finally, the book has established that with the right focus, a sustainable transformation has been attained by Marines. 

Work Cited

Corps, US Marine. “Sustaining the Transformation.” (1999).