General Patton Leadership Analysis

In WWII leading up to the battle of Bastogne, Patton’s leadership style and keen ability to continuously assess the battlefield enabled him to visualize and articulate to his subordinates what his vision was. The innate ability of Patton choosing the right subordinates to help lead his 3rd Army enabled him to have great success on the battlefield. Many things went right for Patton, most of all was his successful implementation of mission command. He was able to understand quickly his environment and formulate a successful plan and seamlessly articulate it to his subordinate officers. Was it luck or skill that facilitated the General to achieve all his success during this one single battle? Patton's intuition and perhaps the best thing that

During the push by the 3rd Army to Bastogne and after its liberation Patton said many derogatory things to the press that undermined his leadership and also demonstrated things like urinating in the Rhine River. These actions perhaps inspired and rallied the troops but were also derogatory for his overall success of command that made it difficult for the leaders to utilize his skills in anything but warfare. Often he was described as a bully and insubordinate to his peers and superiors and brutal towards his subordinates. Patton was a necessary warrior out of time. When WWII began he was at the end of his fifties and this fact alone was a huge generation gap between the troops and him. As I instruct young lieutenants, captains, and senior leaders today, I see the generation gap in how today’s Army leads, communicates and disseminates information. My goal is to try and be that legacy leader that can perhaps reach a few to reignite that teambuilding spark of leadership that modern military has lost. Few remain that remember the overwhelming odds that a genuine team can accomplish as to what an average, mediocre group might (Harvey,