In this interview, MAJ Sean Carmody, US Army, Chemical Corps, discusses his deployment to Iraq as a commander and director of Chemical Reconnaissance Detachment (CRD) and the Exploitation Analysis Center (EAC) with 7th Special Forces Group, Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Afghanistan (CJSOTF-A) in 2009 through 2010 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). MAJ Carmody talks about his missions of overseeing the ground force enablers to SOF and operating the EAC, which is a deployable forensics facility. He describes how each unit worked and talks about working with other agencies and Coalition partners in the EAC. He discusses some challenges he faced and shares his success of institutionalizing the way the EAC did business and growing capacity. He shares a specific memory of supporting the Australian Special Operations and discusses the handoff to the incoming brigade. MAJ Carmody closes his interview by stating, "I guess the single greatest thing I've learned on all three deployments . . . but it's that mission command works. . . If you really let Soldiers -- if you give the berth to be successful, nine times out of ten, they will be. You really just have to shape the environment for them and get out of the way and let them surprise you. All too often, leaders don't do that because they fear that one out of ten times. I wouldn't be here where I am today, if it weren't for the successes that my subordinates had. I like to think it was largely because I let them be successful. Not that I personally made them do anything amazing."

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