Four-Star Gen. Daly Calls for Recruitment Support: ‘We Need the Best and The Brightest to Join Our Ranks’

WASHINGTON – The Army’s senior sustainer kept the focus on people during remarks to the First and European Regions breakfast during the 2022 AUSA Annual Meeting, Oct. 12.

About 150 members from chapters across the Northeastern U.S., Canada, Europe, Africa and the Middle East gathered for the first full-scale event since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The power of people being together to understand the message, focus on the future and set time aside to think about the Army of 2030 is fantastic,” said Gen. Ed Daly, Army Materiel Command commanding general and the keynote speaker at the event.

Noting the chapters in the room support installations from Fort Drum, New York, to Fort Dix, New Jersey, and Brussels, Belgium, to Stuttgart, Germany, Daly said the regions and Army posts within them are critically important to the Army.

“They project combat power and demonstrate strategic readiness and ability for our Army to fight and win,” he said.

While the Army undergoes its largest transformation in more than 40 years and builds for the Army of 2030, the service must balance taking care of people, while remaining ready and modernizing for the future, Daly noted. Perhaps the greatest challenge, however, is recruiting and retaining the all-volunteer force.

“We’re in a fight for talent in the U.S. Army, and we need the best and brightest to join our ranks,” said Daly.

He challenged the group to get involved in recruiting through three main efforts: encourage and inspire the next generation to serve; tell the Army story and open doors for recruiters in high schools and colleges; and promote the hiring of Veterans and keep Soldiers for life in mind for employment opportunities.

“Service will change the trajectory of young people’s lives,” Daly said.

Amidst many challenges, Daly said he is extremely optimistic about the future.

“Our Army is ready – ready to fight and win our nation’s wars,” he said. “This is our purpose; this is our mission.”