So what is leadership? The answer to this question can be partly found in a number of different definitions; the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines leadership as a position as a leader of a group, organization, and the time when a person holds the position of leader, and the power or ability to lead other people, while the Army defines leadership as the process of influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation while operating to accomplish the mission and improving the organization.
Regardless of what definition you choose to agree with, one truth remains the same, your subordinates do not work for you, instead you work for them. You should believe that and find what drives them. In return they will be loyal to you and nothing is more precious than the loyalty of those placed in your charge.
In order to understand leadership you must know what makes or constitutes a good leader and there are many qualities that separate individuals when considering this.
Here are just a few of those qualities as listed in Army Doctrine Publication Army Leadership [Now Army Leadership and the Profession ]: an ideal leader should possess strong intellect, professional competence, high moral character, and serves as a role model.
The same manual goes on to state that these leaders must be willing to make sacrifices, willing to act decisively, and carry out the intent of their superiors so as to better their organization. In an article titled What is Leadership? Whatever the situation, leadership qualities do not develop overnight and in order to be an effective leader you must start by learning how to follow. How do you achieve being an effective leader? You must be able to adapt your style of leadership; what may motivate one subordinate may not necessarily motivate another.
Getting to know the people that work for you is important; this will allow you to gauge your approach with them and simultaneously build on your shared trust and loyalty. Be careful not mix or mistake management with leadership as this is a common theme in some organizations. Leadership and management often become intertwined when being discussed and evaluated and although you may think they are one and the same, nothing is further from the truth.
Leaders need to lead people and managers need to manage systems and processes. An example when thinking of how to relate the difference in the military would be that of how executive officers and operation sergeants are largely managers, while company commanders and first sergeants are leaders. Earlier in this chapter I discussed being able to adapt your leadership style in order to get the best out of your subordinates.
Unfortunately this sounds easier than it actually is because leadership styles vary. A way to look at the varying types is by dividing them into four categories. Once a leader feels comfortable in their style it is often difficult to change without making a constant conscious effort to do so.
The below figure, from Dr. Howard's work titled Leadership: Four Styles , helps describe four general categories or types of leadership and where each one of us might fit. Provides an open and creative work environment, which provides opportunity for suggestions and clarification. Did it seem out of place in competitive, results-oriented businesses?
Did it powerfully influence people, or did it merely suggest weakness? And have you had role models in business who you see as effective because of their servant leader orientation? You have 1 free article s left this month.
You are reading your last free article for this month. Subscribe for unlimited access. Create an account to read 2 more. Leadership development. Why the Military Produces Great Leaders. One assumption at the core of this blog is that military service—particularly service in the crucible of combat—is exceptionally effective at developing leaders.
Read more on Leadership development or related topic Recessions. Partner Center. Making the mission command philosophy and warfighting function a reality will require a network that connects our Soldiers, platforms, and formations from the home station to the tactical edge of the battlefield.
Accordingly, to better support our expeditionary approach and mission command philosophy, the Army is establishing home station mission command centers HSMCCs at key commands and installations. These HSMCCs have a suite of standardized capabilities that take advantage of advances in network capability, telepresence, and remote collaboration. HSMCCs eliminate many of the limitations imposed by distance and make the physical proximity of command posts to one another less important.
HSMCCs provide Army leaders the flexibility to deploy command posts in a scalable, tailorable manner according to operational requirements. As we build capabilities like HSMCCs and modernize the Army network, our objective is to employ information technology in ways that provide Army leaders situational understanding, access to Army and joint enterprise resources, and the right information at the right time in any environment and across all types of operations.
Our emerging cadre of NCOs and officers are well-suited to maximize the advantages that uninterrupted mission command and expanding network capabilities will bring to our force.
That said, tomorrow's leaders must also be skilled at managing the substantial flow of information that advancing technology makes possible. In today's Army, information can flow from a deployed squad to the Pentagon in seconds. This creates both opportunities and challenges. It places more information than ever in the hands of our Soldiers, enabling them to bring all of the Army's resources to bear on their mission. It also creates the challenge of providing too much information or not the right information and overloading a leader's ability to understand, direct, and command the unit.
As a result, managing information effectively and identifying critical information requirements from a large volume of data will be increasingly important skills for good Army leaders. Answering the question, "What makes a good leader? It is likely a question that will never be fully answered. For leaders in our Army, what is more important than finding the right answer is the daily commitment to doing the right things, developing the right foundational leadership traits, and understanding the complex, expeditionary environment in which we operate.
Given all that this generation of NCOs and officers has accomplished in the last 15 years of conflict, I am confident that we are building a cadre of exceptional leaders to take our force to and beyond. Robert S. He enlisted in the Army and attained the rank of sergeant before being commissioned as a Signal Corps officer. He has a bachelor's degree from Hampton University, a master's degree in administration from Central Michigan University, and a master's degree in strategy from the Army War College.
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