The Goldwater-Nichols Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1986 mandated significant changes in the Department of Defense military personnel policy. These changes were designed to strengthen the position of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Commander-in-chiefs of unified and specified commands, to establish joint professional military education requirements for military officers and to mandate a joint duty requirement into promotion standards for general officers. Of significance is Section 404, Title IV, of the Act: it establishes the requirement of a joint duty assignment for field grade officers as a prerequisite for their promotion to the grade of 07 (flag officer). This study will examine some of the problems that the Army faces in ensuring that sufficient number of high quality officers receive a joint duty assignment to allow adequate selectivity for flag rank. Additional issues of the Joint/Army officers development policies will be examined to provide a deep background for examination of this new requirement's impact on Army personnel policy. The study then offers recommendations for effective implementation of the joint duty requirement and concluding observations about management of this new personnel policy; to wit, the Army leadership at all levels should view joint duty requirement for selection for flag officer with a positive attitude, not as a means for qualifying officers for flag officer but as a means of facilitating the military service's ability to successfully operate jointly in combat.