In reply to Capt. McGarrahan's intro (LO3768), Thomas Lifvendahl asked how
the Marines can "fully integrate the knowledges of enlisted personnel
within the Corps tight, vertically integrated management style."
This is a great question, and I will anxiously await the Captain's
response! Can a strict "chain-of-command" survive in a true learning
organization? I am a Navy lieutenant. In facilitating teams and groups of
learners in the Navy, I have found this to be one of the biggest concerns
of our "middle managers" - they are reluctant to relinquish their position
power. This is also true, in many cases, of the "senior leadership" as
James mentions in his intro.
I often hear from military personnel - both officer and enlisted - that
our time-honored authoritarian style of leadership is necessary in combat
situations. But it seems that, the closer we get to true life-or-death
situations, the less we rely on formal power, and the more we rely on
knowledge power. For example, if someone yells, "GET DOWN!" in a combat
zone, not many of us will search for the source of the advice to find out
if that person really has the authority to tell us what to do.
Thomas, you wrote that if officers relinquish some of their control, it
"undermines the command structure required of the USMC unique mission."
I wonder... is our current "command structure" really required, or do we
assume that it is because "we've always done it that way"?
-- Jane Collins TQL Coordinator, Naval Air Station Pensacola e-mail: b624!b624a!collins@gate.ncts.navy.mil