The task force will be jointly chaired by Sean Parnell, assistant to the secretary of defense for public affairs, and the under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness. Jules Hurst is performing the duties of the under secretary.
The task force will operate under a relatively speedy timeline, with an initial report and an assessment of the current recruiting environment due within 30 days, according to the release.
It will then have 60 days to develop a list of policy recommendations and legislative proposals.
Hegseth ordered the completion of a comprehensive communication and engagement plan within 90 days.
The task force’s establishment comes as overall recruitment across the services improved during the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, after the Army, Navy and Air Force missed their recruiting goals in the two previous fiscal years.
The Army announced this month that it had already met its active-duty recruiting goal for 2025, the earliest the target has been reached in more than a decade.
The service also reached its target for new enlistment last year.
Army Secretary Dan Driscoll credited the service’s roughly 10,000 recruiters for achieving the goal.
In the June 13 memo ordering the formation of the task force, however, Hegseth credited the uptick in recruitment to President Donald Trump.
“Given the recent positive momentum, the Department seeks to capitalize on the gains made in recruiting since the election of President Trump in November 2024,” the memo said.
“By analyzing the current recruiting efforts and trends, the [task force] will ensure that the Department stands ready to consistently attract, prospect, and retain talent to meet current and future force requirements,” it said. “Changing environmental factors demand a targeted and strategic approach to strengthen recruiting efforts across the Department.”
Members of the task force will include subject matter experts from across the Defense Department The secretaries of each military branch will select members for the task force, which will include experts in recruitment policy and marketing and in public affairs.
Members of the task force must be active-duty service members or federal employees and will spend 10 to 15 hours per week on task force duties.
The task force is slated to stand up for a year.
Hegseth has instituted several task forces in the past five months.
Days after being confirmed by the Senate on Jan. 24, he announced the creation of the “Restoring America’s Fighting Force” task force, which was charged with eliminating offices and policies that “perpetrate non-merit factors such as sex, race or ethnicity,” according to a Jan. 29 news release.
In May, he ordered the formation of a task force to improve the workflow behind permanent change of station moves under the troubled Global Household Goods Contract being phased in this year.
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