On a 120-day assignment - from March to June 2005 - as the J1 personnel officer for the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Arabian Peninsula, which encompassed most of the 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Major Rod Boles was based at Logistics Support Area Anaconda in Balad, Iraq, and at the time was the only primary staff member who was not a 10th SFG soldier. In this interview, he describes the tasking for his position, his deployment through the CONUS Replacement Center, his linkup in Kuwait and Iraq, as well as his principal duties while in theater, which included processing awards (some 1,500 in all), officer evaluation reports, personnel accountability and casualty issues. An Adjutant General officer by branch, Boles felt like this experience working as the CJSOTF-AP J1 was "very career enhancing." In fact, he added, "I don't personally know of any other AG officer who has done anything like this. Especially being here at the Command and General Staff College, I haven’t talked to any other peers who have done anything with special operations forces whatsoever.” Among other topics, Boles relates a number of new ways of working awards and evaluations, discusses a digital sending procedure and quality assurance plans he implemented, and also touches on the battle rhythm he established within his section.

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