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In November of 2008, LTC Jimmy Blackmon departed Fort Campbell with the soldiers of Task Force Pale Horse, enroute to Jalalabad, Afghanistan for a yearlong deployment in RC East. What awaited them could hardly be trained for in the United States, but with proper leadership and an exceptional staff Task Force Pale Horse went on to redeploy with no deaths, and received the AAAA Combat Unit of the Year award. I intend to discuss the leadership styles of LTC Jimmy Blackmon that led to the success of this Task Force, and how giving his staff and aviators freedom to make decisions in a fast paced environment allowed for the return of all of his soldiers. LTC Blackmon knew upon taking command of the unit that he would be leading them into war, and immediately started to prepare both through training and creating a hand-picked staff that could work together well, and learn from each other. Training began immediately with a Pre Deployment Site Survey (PDSS) to Afghanistan in July of 2008 to learn from the unit in country about the land, culture, and enemy they would be facing. He brought along his S-2 …show more content…
His trust and hands off approach gave his team the confidence and freedom to train for and fight a war as one team, vested in each other and the overall mission. I would recommend this book to others as an inside look into the war being fought in Afghanistan, and especially to learn of the leadership capabilities of LTC Blackmon and all who served underneath him. He utilizes his team members properly, and builds a team comprised of people from numerous units to come together as one. I believe leaders throughout the military can gain the lessons learned from this book, and apply the leadership styles of LTC Blackmon to their own careers to better themselves and their
The 7th Cavalry Regiment's destruction at the Battle of the Little Bighorn in June 1876 is the subject of over a century of debate. LTC George A. Custer failed to exercise four key responsibilities that were expected of him as the regiment’s commander. He failed to understand the problem and environment, visualize a feasible solution, clearly describe it to his subordinates, and effectively direct his forces. These four aspects of mission command are integral to the operations process and help Soldiers understand and execute their commander's intent. Custer's failure to properly fulfill his role in the operations process resulted in his death and a strategic defeat for the nation.
COL Prescott’s role in the Battle of Bunker Hill, or more correctly know as the Battle of Breed’s Hill, is a great example of how to properly execute mission command. An overview from The Cowpens Staff Ride and Battlefield Tour (Moncure) reveals a number of operation and strategic objectives that the American militia had to consider. In this instance, COL Prescott takes charge of 1200 men with instructions to defend against incoming British forces that were seeking to occupy the surrounding hills during the Siege of Boston campaign. COL Prescott utilized a variety of steps in the operations process that contributed to his expert utilization of mission command over his forces. Through various sources from published works by experts on the subject, COL Prescott’s mission command demonstrates its effectiveness in his understanding of the situation against the British, his visualization to create an end state for t...
The mission command philosophy helps commanders counter the uncertainty of operations by reducing the amount of certainty needed to act. Commanders can build teams and achieve their final goals through adapting the six principles of mission command to warfighting situation. I analyzed and compared the performance of General Sherman and General Hampton in four of six mission command principles.
Black Hearts was about the 2005-2006 deployment of the 101st‘s second brigade‘s 1-502nd (First Strike) to Iraq. The book more specifically honed in on Bravo Company and their first platoon’s decent into complete madness throughout the deployment. The 1-502nd and its commander Lt Col Kunk, was tasked with the mission of getting control of and hold the land in-between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers. Kunk was a particularly difficult man to get along with. He would explode and go on a tirade over just about anything, big or small. This caused serious problems at meetings when he only wanted things his way and would personally attack his commanders who he thought he could not trust. This area had been recently dubbed as the “Triangle of death”. The cities that were in this area were Yusufiyah, Mahmudiyah, Lutufiyah, and notably a thermal power plant that was never finished that housed many insurgents almost like a FOB. Bravo Company was sent to take care of a particularly nasty part of the Battalion’s AO; The north-western-side that encompassed Yusufiyah and the unfinished thermal power plant. Upon arrival to Iraq and to their AO, Bravo Company was to take over the duties of the 48th infantry brigade who was there before them. After riding around with the 48th Brigade to learn how things were being run, Bravo Company started to realize how scared the 48th were to even leave the wire. Any patrols that needed to be done were done in a Humvee that just raced around the area and got back to the FOB ASAP. Once they fully took over their AO from the 48th they started on building up fortifications and doing patrols of the area. One road in particular, Route Sportster, had been giving patrols and Humvees trouble since it was always laden...
As the incoming brigade commander, LTC (P) Owens, I see the critical leadership problem facing the 4th Armored Brigade Combat Team (ABCT) is the inability or unwillingness of Colonel Cutler to lead and manage change effectively. In initial talks with Col Cutler and in reviewing the brigade’s historical unit status reports, the 4th ABCT performed as well as can be expected in Afghanistan, but as the onion was peeled back there are numerous organizational issues that were brought to the surface while I walked around and listened to the soldiers of the 4th ABCT, in addition to reviewing the Center for Army Lessons Learned (CALL) report. One of the most formidable tasks of a leader is to improve the organization while simultaneously accomplishing
Black Hearts is a great example of the reality on how severe bad leadership skills can ripple throughout a unit and impact its overall mission. This book serves as a guide for future leaders of America and will set the examples of what not to do in leadership positions. The lessons we can take from these soldiers can help us as potential leaders to become more competent and effective. The fact that this book focused on the hardships, poor decisions and sound judgment of the soldiers it helped emphasize on what was not the best choice of action and leaves a moment for you as the audience to think how you would of done it better. So right or wrong there was a lesson to be learned and the book did a good job including the reader. This book puts you in the shoes of a small group of soldiers from the 502nd Infantry Regiment and gives you an up close and personal take on the experience of the soldiers, from the bottom of the the ranks all the way up to the commander. 502nd Bravo Company 1st platoon deployed in the fall of 2005 into one of the most dangerous battle zones in Iraq known as the “Triangle of Death”. Thrown into the heartland of a growing insurgency, with undefined goals and a shortage of manpower, Bravo Company began piling up casualties at an alarming rate. They suffered many losses, as well as mental anguish. Because of the long and tragic deployment, a collapse in leadership began to unfold causing one of the most tragic, brutal, and infamous deployments in U.S Army history. There were many reasons that caused the deconstruction of leadership, and eventually, the actions of the soldiers accompanied by the lack of control, lead to the rape and murder of an innocent Iraqi girl and her family. This is a story about character...
The 2nd Brigade of 101st Airborne Division found out in the summer of 2004 that they had to prepare for the war in the Middle East more particularly for Iraq. With Colonel Todd Ebel in Command of the 2nd Division with a year to prepare over 3,400 men and woman he got right to work. Colonel Ebel started by choosing his staff and who he thought was fit to take charge and lead this ever more complicated war. It was a huge religious civil war taking place in Iraq at the time with the Sunnis at war against the Shi’ite and after the capture of Saddam insurgency started uprising immediately. This uprising along with the uprising of Muqtada al-Sadr a key leader that had lots of violent followers that soon grew into a form of a militia called Mahdi Army which became another huge problem for the U.S. because the line between a legitamite populist movement and a huge theocratic organized-crime and terror ring was a thin one. The 2nd Brigade Infantry Battalions consisted of 1-502nd (First Strike) and 2-502nd (Strike Force) and 2nd brigade as a whole is known as the “Black Hearts”. Ebel’s mission was to deny insurgent’s access to Baghdad through his AO and as intelligence increased to uproot and destroy insurgent safe havens, while also training the IA so they could ensure the stability of the region later on. Ebel chose Lt. Col. Kunk as commander of “First Strike” 1-502nd and Lt. Col. Haycock as commander of “Strike Force” 2-502nd. By Ebel’s personality evaluations of Kunk and Haycock he decided that Kunk would work in the area that involved him being more engaging where populist centers were and work with local officials and Haycock more in the fighting areas. Kunk was in command of 3 rifle companies, 1 weapons company, 1 logistics company...
Jocko Willink writes of his experiences as a Navy Seal Commander, sharing the lessons he learned as a leader in intense battle situations. Jocko’s leadership has zero room for error and must be extremely decisive; lives are at stake. For this reason, Jocko must make the
... book to characters in other novels, you begin to see styles of leadership that are used and the effectiveness that they can have on a person’s character and ability to accomplish a mission. I feel as if a constant leadership style was put in charge from the beginning of their deployment that followed the standard that was necessary, then the soldiers would have been unable to commit the crimes they did during their deployment. On the flipside of that coin, I feel as if more competent leaders had existed through the tumultuous time of the deployment, they would have been able to adapt to the situation and control the soldiers they were responsible for no matter how difficult the deployment became. Despite the fact that 11 of 33 original 1st platoon leaders were removed by the end of the deployment a strong leader duo could have prevented the actions that took place.
Sir, I am honored by the privilege to once again serve in 4th Armored Brigade Combat Team (ABCT). Over of the last 30 days, I had an opportunity to reconnect, and reflect on the current state of the Brigade. The 4th ABCT has a rich history of success and glory. It is my goal to put in place the systems and practices for this great organization to exceed all past and present accomplishments. As a result of my assessment, I identified three areas of focus that will improve our organization: a unit vision, a change in organizational culture and climate, and building organizational teams. I have no doubt that with the implementation of these three areas of focus, I will be the transformational leader that 4th ABCT needs as we prepare for the upcoming National Training Center (NTC) rotation and tackle the task of the Regionally Aligned Forces (RAF) mission.
Why did he pick the Marines as his topic? Attracted to the Corps perception and morale, Thomas E. Ricks expresses the Marines as the only service still upholding its honor and tradition. Due to society changing into a commercial society with a “me” attitude, civilians focus on how they can splendor themselves with material items—never looking big picture at all that we can accomplish as a team if we give our heart and soul in life. Team meaning everyone on earth, for we are the people that provide for one another with peace and prosperity. As a Marine, it is imperative to have leadership skills along with being capable to work with others. This book was written to enhance the reader’s mentality of how the Marines operate. It informs those who are looking into the service, and provides an in depth look into the trials and tribulations it has been through—as well as conquered.
CF02,Full Range Leadership Development. (2012). Maxwell Gunter AFB. Thomas N. Barnes Center for Enlisted Education (AETC)
The most effective commanders through their leadership build cohesive teams. Mutual trust, shared understanding, and accepting prudent risk serve as just a few principles for mission command. Mutual trust is the foundation of any successful professional relationship that a commander shares with his staff and subordinates. The shared understanding of an operational environment functions, as the basis for the commander to effectively accomplish the mission. While my advice for the commander on what prudent risks to take may create more opportunities rather than accepting defeat. Incorporating the principles of mission command by building cohesive teams through mutual trust, fostering an environment of shared understanding, and accepting prudent risk will make me an effective adviser to the commander, aid the staff during the operations process, and provide an example for Soldiers to emulate.
As we transition from subjective training to objective, it is critical to understand the emphasis on training has not changed, just the language. Commander will continue to focus on battle focus training developed by long- range, short- range and near- term planning. The Sustainable Readiness Model (SRM) is the Army’s newest system for prioritizing resources for units on a 5-year cycle based on the level of readiness they must achieve. Each year of the cycle has established Personnel (P), Sustain (S) and Readiness (R) Aim Points on the Unit Status Report (USR). The SRM seeks to stabilize units in a “band of excellence,” even following their READY year, maintaining the highest readiness level instead of automatically downgrading their readiness to a C4 level regardless of whether they deployed. Guidelines in the Prepare Year (PY) found in the SRM will assist Commanders at every level on key training events they will need to focus on for that particular
Regardless of the career you choose in your life, whether it be an accountant or a Soldier in the United States Army, someone, somewhere most likely had an influence to bring you to that decision. The Army defines leadership as the process of influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation while operating to accomplish the mission and improve the organization (JP, p. 1). Now imagine you are a young Private, in one of the most dangerous places in Iraq and you have constant leadership changes, and not much support from your direct leadership. I am sure at this point you can imagine, it is not the best scenario to be in. Throughout the duration of this essay you will read about Sergeant First Class Rob Gallagher and Sergeant First Class Jeff Fenlason, their leadership abilities, and the techniques they attempted to use to resolve the issues in this Platoon that was in a downward spiral after losing many leaders to the hell of war.