Military Leadership
Over the centuries, leadership has played a major role, in the survival, success and endurance of any Army. However, in our history there exist clear examples that show lack of leadership. Developments in the conceptual and physical components have influenced campaigns and battles significantly. They have brought about great changes in the way these battles are conducted, but conflict, and particularly land conflict, remains a human endeavour. At all levels, it was good leadership that maintained morale in the trenches, held the thin red line, motivated troops and thus ensured the tactical battle field success. In the future, effective leadership will play an essential role if at all any Army is to succeed (The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, 2014).
Military Leadership
Military Leadership
Introduction
The Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst (2014), states that leadership is an intangible, yet a very powerful property. Many have attempted to give it a definition and quantify it. However, though it is apparently easy to recognise bad and good leaders, it is elusive to encapsulate its essence. Therefore, one might ask who is a leader. What are the main competencies of a good leader?
A leader's attributes include; empathy, possession of Army values, ethos of a warrior; a leader whose presence gives a military bearing, is composed, possesses physical fitness, confident and yet resilient; an intellectual capacity accompanied with mental agility, innovation, sound judgment, domain knowledge and interpersonal tact. A competent leader should lead by staying ahead of others, be a good example to the team and communicate effectively. his/her influence should extend beyond the existing chain of command; the leader is a developer; a leader ensures that the environment is positive, makes sure that he/she and the team are well prepared; the leader's achievement is in getting desired results (Sewell, 2009).
According to Sewell (2009), the character of a leader, presence, and their intellect through dedicated lifelong lessons enable them to master the vital leader competencies. The Army leader is empowered to build a cohesive and high-performing organization that is able to support land power and projects effectively. This is because they are empowered by the balanced application of the requirements of critical leadership. Positive organizational climates are also created, allowing the team and its members to learn, and empathy for civilians, all team members, soldiers and their families. The elements of emotional intelligence are inherent in each of the competencies (what an Army leader does) and the attributes (what an Army leader is).
Leader Development
The Department of the Army (2015) holds that the process of developing an Army leader should create and sustain leaders who are both, innovative as well as adaptive. Such capabilities empower leaders act boldly, with initiative in complex and dynamic situations in order to execute missions according to orders, doctrine, and training. Furthermore, these leaders should possess integrity. They should be willing to take action even when there are no orders; in case the existing orders, their own experience or the given doctrine no longer fit the situation, especially when unforeseen threats or opportunities arise. Leader development programs, designed properly produce trusted leaders who have character, are competent, and committed.
Leader development can be described as the continuous, sequential, deliberate and progressive process through which Army Civilians and Soldiers are transformed into confident and competent leaders who can act decisively, founded in Army values. This can be achieved only through synthesis of skills, knowledge, and experiences acquired through the education and training opportunities in the various operational, self-development and institutional domains throughout the leader's life. The ability to maintain focus on the leader's professionalism and those being led is very essential in a leader development program (Department of the Army, 2015)
Program Development
Without a program, and a plan for leader development, the emphasis of the organization on learning depends on the climate of the unit and the interest of the commander. Leadership development programs leverage the opportunities for development to address organizational and individual goals for development. Commanders are entrusted with the task of training and leader development in their respective units while providing a culture that encourages learning. They ought to deliberately prepare, plan, execute, and assess leader development and training as an inclusive part of their operations. Leader development must be integrated into the Commanders' and leaders' development programs or organizational training plans. Army leader's development at military and civilian levels is the best way to ensure that the Army will cope with any uncertainties that may arise in future (Department of the Army, 2015).
The most effective leader development programs are those that have both, multi-levelled dimensions and are, at the same time individualized. The leader development...
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