Application in Business

Leadership . . . the Marine Corps Way is a demanding philosophy. Leadership by example requires that leaders share hardship with their people, make a regular habit of exerting effort that is above and beyond the call of duty, and hold themselves to the highest professional and moral standards, particularly when no one is watching. Taking care of those in your charge requires that leaders place the needs of their people before their own. And the recruit, train, mentor approach to leadership requires that leaders make a time-consuming , costly investment in their most precious asset ”people ”sometimes at the expense of day-to-day operations.

Nevertheless, as evidenced by repeated references earlier in the chapter to willingness , self-discipline, actions not words, and ongoing commitment, the Marines embrace these requirements as necessary to inspire and reinforce the intangibles that ultimately ensure the success of the maneuver organization. As an aspiring practitioner of maneuver warfare in business, you would be well advised to do the same.

Leadership by Example

Instead of thinking that rank has its privileges, consider your rank as a privilege that must be earned every day. Be your own toughest critic. Constantly remind yourself that your people are looking to your actions to set an example. Inspire superior levels of performance by exhibiting superior effort, and when you ask your people to perform certain tasks, be sure you would be willing to perform the same tasks yourself.

Taking Care of Those in Your Charge

Instead of thinking that your people exist to support you, constantly ask yourself what you can do to support your people and what you can do to make their personal and professional lives better. Get to know your people and what makes them tick. Keep them informed and listen to their input. Praise successes in public and counsel shortcomings in private. When your organization succeeds, pass the credit on to your people; when it stumbles, accept personal responsibility and shelter your people from blame. Take care of your people, and they will take care of your customers. Finally, always remember the words of retired Marine brigadier general Thomas Draude, a three-time combat veteran and now Senior Vice President at USAA, a major insurance company, Caring cannot be delegated. . . . It is not an HR requirement. . . . You can t fake it. ^[20]

Leadership Development

Instead of dismissing leadership development as a costly distraction from day-to-day operations, consider each and every member of your organization a leader and potential successor to your job and invest in his development accordingly . Hire for character, not skills, and challenge applicants to earn their way into your organization. Overinvest in initial training; your commitment will pay disproportionately large dividends later. Do not merely pay lip service to values and leadership traits; make them a primary consideration from day one and reinforce them over time. Use your most talented and experienced managers as instructors and role models. Train your people to take charge in uncertain situations and instill in them the courage and resourcefulness necessary to adapt to changing conditions and capitalize on emerging opportunities. Mentor your people and be mentored by your people. Observe, respond to, and coach failure: sit down with your juniors one-on-one and give them candid , constructive, and timely feedback on how to improve individual performance instead of shying away from such difficult, sometimes awkward , encounters. Form leadership partnerships and listen to more experienced juniors, whose insights will lead you to self-improvement. Push your managers to mentor their people and establish mentorship as an important performance evaluation criterion.

Each of these efforts will contribute to the cohesion of your organization, with all the benefits stressed in the preceding dozen chapters. Without cohesion, whether the senior team develops the right strategy, attempts to focus on critical vulnerabilities, or correctly makes bold risk-reward trade-offs matters little. Furthermore, without cohesion, tactical implementation is impossible : decentralized command degenerates into chaos, commander s intent is either incomprehensible or ignored, tempo is replaced by randomness, focus is lost, and combined arms disappears in a race for individual gain and self-interest.

^[20] Draude, Thomas, B Gen (USMC, Ret.), Zweig Speaker Series Presentation, the Wharton School, 2001.