Facing the Future

The topic of the thesis is profession of arms and the role of the officer corps in it. In particular, the thesis looks at the Slovenian Armed Forces Officer Corps. The topic was chosen because the answer to the question whether a military is able to face the challenges of the future lies in the level of professionalism of the officer corps. The primary research question is "What is the state of Slovenian Armed Forces Officer Corps professionalism and are changes necessary for the future?" Thesis looks at the modern operational environment and what is expected of a profession of arms and professional officer in it. The thesis offers a definition of the profession of arms and professional military officer that are required to operate in a current and future operational environment. It also describes the main attributes of the military profession and professional. It then looks at the Slovenian Armed Forces Officer Corps, the environment they are to perform in and their tasks. It looks at how it measures against the attributes of a modern profession of arms. Through that, it offers the answer to the primary research question. The conclusions are clear. Although improvements have been made in the level of professionalism of the Slovenian Armed Forces Officer Corps, it remains unprofessional and unable to perform all the tasks entrusted to it. The main recommendations to address the problem are to adapt the existing legislature, to allow professionalism to develop, and to improve the officer educational system.