Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman
| Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (SEAC) |
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| Formation | 2005 |
| First holder | CSM William "Joe" Gainey |
| Website | Official Website |
Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman is a military position within the United States Department of Defense and is the most senior noncommissioned or petty officer overall in the United States Armed Forces. The SEAC is appointed by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to serve as a spokesperson to address the issues of enlisted personnel to the highest positions in the Department of Defense. As such the SEAC is the senior enlisted advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and serves at the pleasure of the Secretary of Defense. The SEAC's exact duties vary, depending on the Chairman, though he generally devotes much time traveling throughout the Department of Defense observing training and communicating to service members and their families. The normal tour of assignment is four years, which runs concurrently with the Chairman. The first member to hold this post was William Gainey. On 11 December 2015, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Joseph Dunford, administered the Oath of Office to CSM John W. Troxell, USA. Troxell becomes only the third member and second soldier to hold the office.
Although Army and Marine headquarters from battalions and regiments, up to divisions, to corps, army headquarters and higher, have traditionally each had a sergeant major; and Navy and Coast Guard vessels have traditionally each had a Command Master Chief or chief of the boat; the services' national headquarters generally had no counterpart position. The Marine Corps was the exception, having a Sergeant Major from 1801 until 1946, and a Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps from 23 May 1957 onwards, as the senior enlisted advisor to the Commandant of the Marine Corps.
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