Leadership Models for HFN

Leadership for a Hastily Formed Network

An HFN is an ad hoc intersection of multiple Communities of Practice (CoPs) committed to the resolution of a major catastrophe. This creates the necessity of creating a collaborative structure to accomplish this relief mission between CoPs without the formal establishment of a hierarchical command and control structure. But at some point leadership will be required in the Giuliani style of 9/11. Someone must inspire, coordinate, communicate and envision for the team in order to create change within the emergency. This may require sharing of power, abrogating ego or delegating authority, in order to move the collective will forward.

This new type of leadership thought is a compilation of three great military minds. The first is Vice Admiral. James Stockdale who taught a generation of officers how to lead themselves using his own example as a senior POW in Vietnam and the Stoic philosophy that created his success. The next officer’s theories that add to the model is Major General John Lejeune, the Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1922 to 1930. He believed in the necessity to create learning environments for the leadership of Marines. The last officer, Vice Admiral Cebrowski, saw the requirement to ensure transformation, or the questioning of the status quo, as a key component to changing mental models that inhibit the flexibility required to respond to such large-scale efforts as HFNs are called to solve.

The Roman Stoic philosopher, Epictetus (n.d.) wrote that moral progress for people begins when desires are mastered, duties performed and a clear understanding of the relationship between the individual and the larger community is developed. As one constantly reflects on those elements of self within one’s control that add value to society, the chances of initiating change grow. This yields a definition of leadership that is powerful in its simplicity, “authentic self expression that creates value” (Cashman, 1998, p. 20). By taking Epictetus’ concept from self on to a surrounding organization and then into the environment overlaying that organization, a systemic leadership approach can be developed as a way to move from self, to small unit and to overall organization.

Much as personal leadership requires motivation and empathy, interpersonal leadership will require understanding Situational and Transformational Leadership along with the other theories found in literature. In this author’s view, these aren’t end solutions to be taken for single application only. Rather they are models within a leadership philosophy or overarching model. This higher model is known in the U.S. military as Teacher-Scholar Leadership (Marine Corps University [MCU], n.d.).

First developed by General John Lejeune, 13th Commandant of the Marine Corps, shortly after World War I this concept has proven itself on numerous battlefields as well as in private sector endeavors (MCU, n.d.). This philosophy is a caring relationship between people with the accomplishment of the mission and the welfare of the subordinates foremost in the leaders’ minds. General Lejeune designed this leadership model with the following considerations:

1. Leadership is an unchanging process but applied across a continuum of ever changing scenarios through the application of various leadership models dependent upon environment and relationships within and without the organization. A functional leader must have the knowledge to ensure validity in all arenas.
2. Leadership can’t be developed as a uniform approach to all scenarios. Individuals must have knowledge of all styles and theories.
3. Ethics are embedded with leadership and the two cannot be studied without emphasizing the interconnectedness. The difference, though subtle, is crucial between leadership and ethics as compared to leadership with ethics. The cultural understanding of ethics by an organization is ethos or common ethics and forms the unspoken core called underlying assumptions (Schein, 2004).

But the end state of these thoughts is that the leader is a teacher; guiding, coaching, shaping, inspiring and mentoring their team of scholars towards greater understanding. By using this model, Argyris’ (1985) learning system is culturally embedded with leadership creating sustained superior performance by individuals functioning inside a high performing team. General Lejeune believed with great ardor that the leader’s role was to produce better constituents in every regard using education, training, personal example and especially care for others’ welfare (MCU, n.d.).

At the Marine Corps War College in Quantico Virginia, Navy and Marine Corps officers undergo a one-year, Masters level, intensive program designed to develop strategic planning, systems management and leadership knowledge with a rigorous post-graduate curriculum. Specific to the subject of leadership, a Leadership Continua Model is prescribed for use and is perhaps the most thorough found in the U.S. military. This is a series of continuums that describe leadership across the environment inside military service and is a great template to begin adding for HFN leadership thought. The process begins with a concentration upon individual leadership, followed by emphasis on tactical or team leadership and concluding with strategic or systems leadership based on the Teacher-Scholar relationship with subordinates. The point of this approach is that leadership is not stagnant using the same tool repeatedly but requires multiple concepts to be used dependent upon situation, followers readiness and communication media.

These Blog contributions will review literature in a similar fashion, beginning with leadership models dedicated to individual personal leadership, followed by models concentrated upon team efforts and concluding with the systemic thinking view. Leadership must be studied with Senge’s (1991) system in mind, understanding impact at both the personal, organizational and environmental level striving for the creation of a learning organization.

Next….Personal Leadership Development
References:

Argyris, C. (1985). Strategy, change and defensive routines. Mansfield, MA: Pitman Publishing.
Epictetus. (n.d.). The art of living. (S. Lebell Trans.). New York: HarperCollins Publishing.
Frankl, V.E. (1959). Man’s search for meaning. New York: Beacon Press.
Marine Corps University. (n.d.). Lejeune’s thoughts on leadership. Retrieved January 19, 2007, from http://www.mcu.usmc.mil/lejeune/default.htm
Schein, E.H. (2004). Organizational culture and leadership (3rd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Schein, E.H. (2004). Organizational culture and leadership (3rd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.