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military leadership

Identifying Bias in Your Workplace? Read Kim Scott’s Just Work

by Aidan Looney

As a West Point Cadet, I often hear that the academy is a leadership laboratory. Cadets are given the space and opportunities to experiment in leadership and learn how they want to lead before going out to the operational Army. 

In this leadership laboratory, I had several formative experiences both as a trainee and a trainer in West Point’s version of basic training. Afterwards, a mentor recommended I read Kim Scott’s Just Work: Get Shit Done Fast and Fair. Reading this book helped me organize my thoughts on building a cohesive and effective team. From it I learned a great deal about creating more equitable work environments by working to eliminate bias, prejudice, and bullying in the units I lead at West Point. 

In Just Work, Scott provides a practical guide on how to create a more just working environment through identifying workplace harm, taking personal responsibility to address it, and understanding what happens to the workplace culture when harm is left unaddressed. While her book is directed toward the corporate setting, it is still very applicable in all leadership settings, especially in the military. 

7 Years’ Time: A Sexual Assault Survivor’s Story

(David McNew/Getty)

Editor’s Note: Today is Denim Day, an annual campaign observed worldwide to highlight misconceptions surrounding sexual violence. It began twenty-plus years ago, after the Italian Supreme Court justices ruled that a rape victim’s tight jeans were evidence of her consenting to the sex. The following day, women in the Italian Parliament came to work wearing jeans in solidarity with the victim.

The story below was submitted anonymously. Unlike standard military briefings on sexual assault capturing statistics and legalities, this story captures the victim’s perspective. We publish this piece on Denim Day in honor of those suffering silently. It may contain content unsuitable for some readers. 

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It takes 7 years for all the cells in your body to completely regenerate.  In 570 days he will have never touched this body of mine. 

The craziest thing about being raped is time continues onward. You make new friends, get married, and even contemplate having children. Eventually you wonder, would it be safe for my child to join the Army? 

Am I safe? 

The Army Profession: Reconnecting with our Sense of Duty

by Daniel Blackmon

In early December, I was fortunate enough to sit in on a presentation on the profession of arms, given by General (ret.) David Perkins. He asked: “The Army Profession…do we actually have a profession or do we have a bureaucracy?” 

While there is no doubt some bureaucracy in our military system, Perkins noted that there is a difference between having bureaucracy and being a bureaucracy. He defined bureaucracies as how to do things. He noted that typically, bureaucracies are built around organizations where people do jobs, have tasks, and are motivated by pay, their boss, time off, or certain benefits. We can all imagine why that would not work well in the military. Employees with jobs are motivated by metrics. Instead, professionals are motivated out of duty.

If we take motivation as the differentiator between a bureaucracy and a profession, the question should then become—where, as an Army, are we now? 

Affinity Over Alikeness: How to Mentor Soldiers Different Than You

by Emma Abusch 

“The delicate balance of mentoring someone is not creating them in your own image, but giving them the opportunity to create themselves.” -Steven Spielberg 

It’s 0200 and I’m flying to my first no-notice deployment. I look up and see my new commander calling me over. I move to the empty seat next to him and receive a brief verbal initial counseling. Afterwards, as I stare out the plane window at the black water below, I reflect on the meeting. It had gone well. However, instead of fixating on the mission or tasks at hand, my immediate and inescapable thought is these leaders are nothing like me. 

For many minority groups in the Army, this is a common experience. According to the 2021 Army Demographics Report, out of the over 1.3 million active duty service members, 82.7% are men. 68.9% self-identified as White, while 31.1% self-identified with a racial minority.  

Yet, no matter what background you bring to the Army, being able to mentor those unlike you is crucial. The Army’s diversity is increasing. According to recent scientific studies, when leaders reach across racial and/or gender differences and embrace underrepresented minority groups through mentorship, individuals are more likely to stay and succeed in the workplace. 

So, below are a couple of concepts to frame how you mentor those who are unlike yourself. 

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Social Media is an Essential Tool For Modern Army Leaders

By Michael Everett

Leaders in the 2023 military need to interact on social media. Period.

Whether you like it or not, modern leadership has spilled over into the digital domain. If you fight the social media current, you will almost certainly meet the undertow, pulling you out to sea, never to return to leadership relevance. So, shed your cranky inner self, and prepare to dive headfirst into the world of digital interaction. If you commit to this path, acknowledge its importance, and leverage its power, you will add another dimension to your effectiveness as an Army leader. In this short guide, I will lay out the why, when, where, and how to leverage this powerful tool.

First, a disclaimer. I am not a psychologist or a social media expert, nor am I professionally trained in public affairs. However, I have managed social media accounts at the battalion, company, and platoon level with great success, and have established enough comfort in discussing the topic that I feel qualified to share some lessons learned with fellow military leaders. 

AI for the Win: Four Game-Changing Resources for Your Organization

by Joshua Caballero

The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read or write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn. -Alvin Toffler

Innovation is no longer a choice but a necessity in today’s constantly evolving world, where organizations need to continuously improve to stay ahead of the competition. The Army, with its level of responsibilities and complexity, is no exception to this rule. To thrive in this environment, our enterprise needs to embrace innovation, and adopt the latest tools and best practices. Artificial intelligence (AI), one of the most powerful tools available for driving innovation, is transforming the way organizations operate. 

Today, we will explore four AI tools that the Army can use to automate and streamline tasks, gain new insights from data, and create new products. By embracing AI and other cutting-edge technologies, our organizations can become true innovation leaders and build the military of the future – one that is more efficient, effective, and requirements-centric. 

Is Foreign Service ILE Right for You?

by Jake Kohlman

As I filled out my location preferences ahead of Intermediate Level Education (ILE), I knew I wanted to try something other than the traditional path of the Army’s Command and General Staff College (CGSC) in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. I considered sister service schools like the Naval War College in Rhode Island or the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterrey, California but ultimately decided, after discussion with my wife, to put a foreign service school, the Ecole de Guerre in France, as my number one preference. 

A few weeks later I was thrilled to learn I had received the assignment with the Schools of Other Nations program (SON) and would be PCSing with my family to study in Paris.

Counterproductive Leadership: Impact to People and the Organization

by Jakob Hutter

Effective leaders who demonstrate confidence, courage, compassion, and character enable an organization’s success. Stay in any organization long enough, and you will understand that counterproductive leaders can leave serious harm to both the individual and to the organization. These behaviors are not immune from any one individual, but regardless of where it occurs, the short- and long-term effects can be destructive and detrimental to the future success of the organizational climate and culture. It is important then to understand what leaders are responsible for, the impact of counterproductive behaviors, and how you can recognize and overcome these behaviors to benefit your team and organization.