This week I had the honor of attending the 65th Annual National Security Seminar at the United States Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. I was humbled to be among the 160 hand-selected civilians who joined hundreds of resident students and international fellows. Throughout the week we discussed and learned from each other to discuss the instruments of national power, represented as “DIME,” Diplomacy, Information, Military, and Economics. What follows are some leadership lessons I took from each of these topics which can be applied in nearly any field. All information is provided without attribution to any particular speaker and represents my personal learning based on information presented and discussed by our distinguished guests, speakers, students, faculty, and/or others.
I’ll articulate some of what I learned and my reflections after leaving the program as “Signs of a Great Leader”:
! – Be amazing and help others find success!
@ – Defining points, places, dates and things on your leadership journey
# – Numbers that quantify and prove your progress and accomplishments
$ – Dollar values of your contributions, achievements, or objectives
% – Figures that easily show growth and results
If you’re leading in the military and are planning to join the civilian workforce, be sure to check out my article about
Military Career Transition tips as discussed with my esteemed colleagues at the National Security Seminar.
Seminar 14 Discussion:
Each day following a keynote speaker, our seminar cohort would meet to engage in discourse and dialogue around the topic at-hand. My seminar included O6 & O5-level (colonel, lieutenant colonel/ commander) military leaders from the United States Armed Forces, a US Army civilian comptroller, as well as our international fellows from Poland, Denmark, Uganda, and Japan. I was joined by civilian leaders from Lockheed Martin, the University of Connecticut, CyberGRX, the City of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, and Dickinson College. Our seminar was led by professor of security studies, the distinguished
Dr. Frank Jones, and Faculty Instructor Colonel Collin “Trent” Hunton, US Army.
Signs of a Great Leader: Take time to set a ! vivid vision and explain your values to your team.
Much discussion was had about how military leaders keep their teams engaged when they themselves, or their direct reports, may personally disagree with a national security policy, decision, or tactic. What they anchored to was that all US service members take an oath to defend the Constitution of the United States. While it was our Founding Fathers who established these values back in the 18th century, it’s the role of today’s leaders to interpret our national values and rally around the shared value of their oath to put politics aside get the job done. They did share that they will provide their “best military advice” when presenting options to senior leaders or even to the Commander in Chief, but that ultimately they stay true to the values established by the framers of our democracy and uphold their oath.
My Takeaway: Be sure your team knows why you’re doing what you’re doing. Don’t change your values – change your strategies, operations, and tactics.
Signs of a Great Leader: There can be #, $, and % benefits to taking risks. Sometimes risk-taking yields intangible ! payoffs like learning and growth.
We explored several topics wherein risk was a major factor. When it comes to innovation, we discussed the notion of risk being welcome as long as safety and the shared values aren’t compromised. A senior leader who addressed our group said that when it comes to operationalizing national security strategies you “have to be OK to go right after you decided to go left and to tell your team it’s OK to come back to you if you’re heading the wrong direction.”
Signs of a Great Leader: Consider whether your strategies and plans will work @ different locations around the world or throughout your organization.
An interesting international perspective was presented when it comes to risk. One of the international fellows with whom I spoke said that he has come to learn that the United States Military and US culture in general are relatively risk-tolerant. However, he said that his own military’s point-of-view is that risk is not viewed as an opportunity to learn and grow. Rather risk is assessed against consequences and not potential reward. He posited that this is born from his country’s own history where certain military risks did not pay off. This speaks to the need to align to local cultures, particularly as the US looks to collaborate with foreign nations for strategic planning related to today’s emerging threats.
Signs of a Great Leader: Tell a clear story about your vision; communicate @ what point you’ll know you’ve succeeded.
We had an interesting discussion about the role of technology in urban warfare. A perspective was shared that technology can provide an edge in urban battles. Storytelling was discussed as a complement to technology to create a strategic advantage. It was mentioned that it’s critical to share the “narrative of battle” with the lowest echelon of the organization BEFORE the operation begins. This is particularly important in urban combat (in dense cities) wherein the enemy’s narrative is clear and teams cannot always readily communicate in the moment. If everyone knows why you’re doing an operation, and you’ve communicated it vividly, you increase the chances for the operation to be successful.
Diplomatic:
Keynote Speaker: Ambassador Deborah McCarthy – Former U.S. Ambassador to Lithuania
Signs of a Great Leader: Keep your ! values consistent to rally support and drive long-term success.
Because our national security interests largely don’t change, there is a consistency to strategies overall from one presidential administration to another. What changes is the emphasis and interpretations of our core values. We stand tall on our values because we try to help others.
My Takeaway: It was reassuring to consider that despite what we hear most about in the media, and how divisive headlines can be, our national interests are anchored by a shared set of core values and delivered by our military and by the more than 18,000 professionals serving in diplomatic positions worldwide.
Other Learning or Topics Discussed:
The four pillars of diplomacy:
1. Protection of the American People
2. Promotion of American Prosperity
3. Preservation of Peace Through Strength
4. Advancement of American Influence
Signs of a Great Leader: #, $, and % aren’t the only measures of success.
What is success in diplomacy? Success should not be measured by cooperative agreements or hours trained alone. Success is about blending cultures, influence, collaborations, and creating career trajectories.
Informational:
Keynote Speaker: Hon. James Clapper – Former Director of National Intelligence
Signs of a Great Leader: Provide #, $, and % to add details and depth to your communication. Be ! truthful, even when it’s not what people expect to hear.
Information’s purpose is to reduce risk and uncertainty. Intelligence is “truth to power.” President Obama on the occasion of Clapper’s nomination to be Director of National Intelligence, said “He possesses a quality that I value in all my advisers: a willingness to tell leaders what we need to know even if it's not what we want to hear.” We discussed the best way to do this: be truthful and direct.
My Takeaway: This is simple advice for leaders in any field and what I aspire to do whether I’m working in the Fortune 100 or advising veterans on their résumés and interviews.
Other Learnings or Topics Discussed:
Signs of a Great Leader: When communicating, spend an equal or greater # of minutes listening.
In Clapper’s book,
Facts and Fears Hard Truths from a Life in Intelligence, he recounts how he had to inform President Obama about the Snowden leaks. The president was not happy, but in his trademark controlled demeanor had many more questions. Clapper just had to listen to gain more information about how to proceed and provide the best information possible. The main point: even when you’re in the room specifically to convey information, listening is super important.
Military:
Keynote Speaker: Lieutenant General Jeffrey Buchanan – Commander, U.S. Army Northern Command
Signs of a Great Leader: Find common ground and establish a ! shared goal. Let the ! experts do what they’re good at.
Unity of effort = working together on shared goals.
My Takeaway: Communicate your style, plan, and goals, then get out there and “execute violently” as one of the leaders in my seminar put it. I appreciated the idea that you also need to know when to turn back over an operation to the sustainment team or local leaders. The Army may go in and clear roads, but they don’t clean up the debris from the side of the road – local contractors who need the work can do it can fuel the economy and the same time. As civilian leaders we need to recognize when it’s time to get out of the way and let our teams or clients carry the banner.
Signs of a Great Leader: Explain the ! overall goal, purpose, or objective – and let that guide decisions in the moment.
The United States provides support with Coalition forces in Afghanistan to our partners as well as to the Afghan people and military. We discussed how to identify opportunities for success in Afghanistan and elsewhere. The notion of “dominance of purpose over task,” was a key learning. Telling a coalition member to do something doesn’t work. Collaborating around a unified purpose does. There was discussion of this being similar when it came to our military relationship with Mexico. No matter election outcomes or policies put in place, both Mexico and the US are anchored in a desire to serve a higher purpose – to enable long-term international security strategies. “Leadership by persuasion,” and not telling people what task to do, helps to maintain a focus on the purpose.
Economic:
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Jeffry Frieden – Professor of Economics, Harvard University
Signs of a Great Leader: Put your $ and your effort towards whatever serves the most good.
We have to invest strategically in opportunities that will pay back dividends. Providing tax breaks is only a short-term solution to attract business and industry. Strategic investment in education, infrastructure, and other factors that improve quality of life are better long-term investments.
My Takeaway: During the week, I met with the presidents of two community colleges, one from New York and one from Arizona. Both of them concurred that preparing students for success means understanding the needs of your market. Instead of purely academic pursuits or whatever degree programs generate the most $ for the college, our higher-learning institutions need to also consider the needs of their local job market and try to match their programs to available opportunities. Much like economic investment in the right opportunities helps communities to thrive, investing in programs that meet the needs of your job market and that prepare students for long-term success is a strategic way to approach higher education.
Other Learning or Topics Discussed:
“Where you stand determines where you sit”
My Takeaway: This for me was a variation on “all politics is local.” It essentially means that we should consider where people are coming from that informs their opinion.
Gettysburg Battlefield Tour:
Signs of a Great Leader: You must provide ! information to your team as often as possible. Listen to new ideas from the front-line @ any point. Be detailed, specific, and vivid using #, $, and % to bring the details to life.
As the culmination of the last full day, we took an immersive tour of the Gettysburg Battlefield. A history professor from the war college walked us through leadership lessons and strategic thinking as exemplified in this epic battle. He gave example after of example of how failures in communication led to failed strategy execution on both sides. What was discussed was the idea that if you value your subordinates’ opinions, you have to let them speak. For example, Captain James Smith, an artillery officer from New York was told to hold his battery at Devil’s Den, even though he recognized and later reported that he could have gained a better advantage by falling back to Little Round Top. Because his leaders did not listen to his objections, he was unable to gain an advantage.
My Takeaway: Listen to people on the front line. Gather intelligence and change the plan as needed.
Perhaps some of these examples help you consider how you’re leading strategically today and in the future. I hope your leadership is full of !@#$%.
Learn more about how you can succeed in your leadership journey from the military to civilian roles, visit
www.ScottVedder.com.
