Why don't HHCs have executive officers?

Army units' personnel structures are determined by things called Modified Tables of Organization and Equipment (MTOE). They're the centrally managed "blueprints" of what positions, vehicles, and other miscellaneous stuff a company should have.

And while line companies are allotted lieutenants to be executive officers, as an HHC commander I don't get one of those. I'm simply not MTOE'd one.

This surprises a lot of people, typically those who have come from divisional units where even HHCs are given lieutenants to fill that role. Yet as a logistics battalion in Korea's southernmost area, we apparently don't merit one. It's a sore spot that bothers me every time it comes up -- what is it about my job that's so easy I don't need one? It's the same with the First Sergeant position -- what is it about that position that needs only a Sergeant First Class (E-7) to fill that role?

Yet from a higher level, it makes a bit of sense. In fact, the vast majority of companies don't even have "executive officers." They have operations officers. Conceptually, the operations officer handles missions and operations, while the first sergeant handles Soldier training and readiness.

By this logic, HHCs don't need operations officers because they're not supposed to be handling missions. They only need first sergeants to monitor soldiers' annual training and medical requirements.

Unfortunately, this doctrine doesn't match my unit's situation very well. My battalion has five companies, of which only two are located in the Daegu area. We're responsible for providing people for staff duty, charge of quarters, random anti-terrorism measures, and "area beautification" details -- jobs that the outlying companies don't have to deal with. Plus, as a battalion headquarters, we also run the battalion's driver training program and provide the full-time SHARP representative.

I'd like to think that I'll get bonus points in my next evaluation because of the handicaps I've been working under, but sadly that's not likely to be the case. From what I've seen, the Army tends to pick its winners beforehand, and sideline those who don't shine as brightly, despite more difficult circumstances.

It may be unfair, but the Army's only promise about company command is that you get branch qualified after a year of it, nothing more.