¶ … Leaders: The 4th Armoured Brigade Combat Team
Organizational development is often a challenging task for most organizations. The challenge appears in processes such as leadership development, employee management and engagement, as well as change management.[footnoteRef:1] If not handled properly, these processes may hinder the achievement of organizational goals and objectives. The 4th Armored Brigade Combat Team (ABCT) is currently facing significant challenges as far as organizational development and leadership processes are concerned. The challenges specifically include communication concerns, ineffective leadership, poor motivation of soldiers, lack of team work, interpersonal conflicts, as well as organizational culture issues. It is imperative for these challenges to be addressed if the team is to effectively execute its deployment goals and objectives in the future. As the new commander of the brigade, I have an instrumental role to play in addressing the challenges. This essay describes the major challenges facing the brigade and the measures I will use to address them. [1: Thomas Cummings and Christopher Worley. Organization development and change (Boston: Cengage Learning, 2015), 1-13.]
One of the major challenges facing the brigade relates to leadership. The style of leadership used in an organization can significantly influence the extent to which organizational goals and objectives are achieved.[footnoteRef:2] Leadership style informs the culture of the organization. It influences the values, beliefs, norms, and practices that bind a certain group of people. Generally, leadership style may either be authoritative (dictatorial) or democratic (inclusive or participatory). At ABCT, the style of leadership is evidently dictatorial. This is normative, as authoritative leadership is often the norm in most military contexts -- subordinates are expected to follow the instructions of their superiors without questioning. While authoritative leadership may be important in such contexts, especially in terms of quickening decision-making, it may sometimes prove to be detrimental. [2: Ibid, 476-477.]
In the last three years, many changes have taken place...
In addition, there has been reduced willingness to include subordinates in decision-making as well as decreased commitment to
coaching,
counseling, and developing subordinates. Essentially, the friendly, supportive, and somewhat informal culture that characterized the brigade a few years ago has been replaced by a dictatorial regime, which is increasingly threatening the brigade's ability to successfully accomplish its future missions.
As the new brigade commander, I will first focus on changing the leadership style by restoring the culture that existed three years ago. I will particularly pay attention to creating a positive atmosphere, inspiring confidence, building trust, and empowering subordinates. My style of leadership will also be characterized by empathy, effective interpersonal relationships, leading by example, active staff engagement, as well as reduced bureaucracy in garrison procedures and inspections. I strongly believe that cultivating the right organizational atmosphere will be crucial for maximizing the effectiveness of the brigade. Nonetheless, I recognize that permitting democracy in a military context may not be an easy undertaking; as at the same I must time ensure that the values that generally characterize the military (such as discipline and result-centeredness) are espoused. With the right influence, I believe that a balance between
authority and inclusivity can be achieved.
Ineffective leadership at ABCT largely explains why remarkable challenges were experienced during the mission in
Afghanistan. These challenges included resource inadequacies (incompatible communication equipment), insufficient personnel authorizations, role ambiguities, inadequate
training, poor coordination, and inadequate understanding of mission requirements. An important role of leadership in any organization entails providing the support required to accomplish the set organizational goals and objectives.[footnoteRef:3]…
