Army Sgt. Scotty Reif is dismissed from a promotion board at Hohenfels Training Area, Germany, in 2021. Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael Weimer said this week that he wants to overhaul how soldiers are tested for promotion. (Brandon Best/U.S. Army)

The Army’s top enlisted leader said this week that he wants to overhaul how soldiers are promoted by making military skill set tests the driving factor in who advances in rank.

Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael Weimer said Wednesday that there is consensus on his senior enlisted council that tests must be developed to measure soldiers’ effectiveness in their respective military specialties.

“The No. 1 thing we should be basing (promotions on) is how good you are at your current job,” Weimer said during an Association of the U.S. Army conference in Huntsville, Ala. “Call me crazy, but that’s not where we’re at right now.”

Currently, too many other factors are given disproportionate weight in the process, he said.

“What’s more important, 60 credit hours of online self-study from your online university or the data point of how good you are at your current job?” Weimer asked the conference audience. “I think we know the answer to that.”

Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael Weimer speaks during a discussion at the Association of the U.S. Army conference in Huntsville, Ala., March 26, 2025. Weimer, the Army’s top enlisted leader, said this week that he wants to overhaul how soldiers are tested for promotion. (Screenshot/Defense Visual Information Distribution Service)

If put into effect, the changes would be a major adjustment in how Army enlisted troops rise through the ranks.

Weimer said the goal is to present the promotion concept to Army leaders in early 2026. He didn’t say how fast the program could be put into action if approved.

Under current practice, soldier advancements up to the rank of specialist are mostly based on time in service. 

For soldiers to take the next step up into the noncommissioned officer ranks, there is a point-based system that considers various factors, such as military and civilian education, awards and fitness.

There is currently no standardized evaluation for military specialty performance.

The Army has been piloting tests over the past year at different locations, such as Fort Sill, Okla., Weimer said.

And so far, the results haven’t been great, Weimer said. But on repeated tests, soldiers improved, he said.

“I believe it in my heart of hearts (that) if we remove the ambiguity and we let soldiers know what the standard is to be designated as ... soldiers will rise to the occasion,” Weimer said.

Reporter Bradley Latham contributed to this story.