Critical Leadership Problem Facing the 4th Armored Brigade Combat Team (Essay Sample)

THE 4TH ARMORED BRIGADE COMBAT TEAM
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The art of military leadership can be learned through the development of character traits of a person to master effective leadership techniques and principles. In the United States, leadership in the military can be defined as “the process of influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation to accomplish the mission and improve the organization.” Values and attributes guide leadership in all levels of the military, with leaders in every rank expected to exercise professional competence and impeccable character. There are several leadership theories that are applied in the military. The character trait theory opines that a person is born with the necessary qualities to lead others. The situational leadership theory states that leaders should “adapt their behaviors to different situations and characteristics of the followers.” The emotional intelligence theory can be defined as “the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions effectively in ourselves and others.” Transformational leadership theory states that leaders motivate their subordinates to achieve higher levels of productivity through their charisma and morality. I will explore the critical leadership problem facing the 4th Armored Brigade Combat Team (ABCT), outline my vision for the brigade, and propose the strategies I will implement to accomplish the vision using the various leadership models and theories.[Charles R. Gallagher, “Muddling Leadership and Management in the United States Army,” Army Press Online Journal 16, no. 32 (2016): 1.] [Flavio De Almeida Serapiao, “Leadership Effectiveness in the Army: A Perspective from the US Army College,” (Diss., University of Pennsylvania, 2020): 10.] [Serapiao, “Leadership Effectiveness,” 15.] [Ibid, 16.] [Ibid, 17.] [Ibid, 20.]
The critical leadership problem facing the 4th Armored Brigade Combat Team (ABCT) is the lack of intellectual skills, charisma, and character by the brigade’s commander to enable soldiers in the unit to focus on their core competencies to achieve organizational goals. Leaders in the brigade seem to lack the required emotional intelligence to inspire their troops to achieve high levels of excellence by sacrificing their ambitions for the betterment of the unit. There appears to be a lack of direction, purpose, and motivation throughout the various units of the brigade. For instance, when I left the brigade three years ago, all the soldiers in the unit were quite motivated, where it seemed that the most qualified commissioned and non-commissioned officers were drafted into the 4th ABCT. Members of the brigade were focused on delivering on their core mandate, leading to the creation of a conducive, family-like environment where leaders and soldiers in the battalion pushed each other to accomplish the brigade’s mission. Leaders in the organization practiced the transformational theory where, through their sheer charisma and competence, they inspired all the soldiers in the unit to maintain strong work ethics. Moreover, leaders possessed emotional intelligence that enabled conflicts within and among the battalions to be solved amicably without creating an adversarial atmosphere.
Captains and lieutenant colonels in the battalions were competent and possessed the necessary problem-solving and communication skills to handle the issues that arose in their areas of influence. To achieve success and maintain high levels of excellence, soldiers within the brigade collaborated in sharing intelligence, lessons, and resources. The only competition present in the group was aimed at pushing each other to operate at their best and achieve organizational goals and objectives. To augment the feel-good atmosphere in the brigade, commanders and soldiers organized informal forums to socialize and cultivate stronger work ties among themselves. Leaders capitalized on these events to articulate their vision for the whole brigade and share any new information to improve the soldiers’ effectiveness and tactics. Furthermore, the relationship between the battalion and non-commissioned officers was equally friendly, with soldiers supporting each other to accomplish the set objectives. However, the current environment within the brigade is the exact opposite of the one I left before my redeployment to another unit. There are incidents of infighting leading to battalions angling to break away from the brigade and join other units. Moreover, the relationship between the outgoing senior leaders is superficial since none is genuinely supportive of the other.
The army is an amalgamation of people with different backgrounds, roles, and statuses that differ from their core competencies and position in the organization. According to Wong et al., “The military actually consists of a diverse collection of organizations, roles, cultures, and people.” My main vision for the brigade is to provide purpose, direction, and motivation to all officers in the brigade to enable them to accomplish the 4th ABCT mission and improve the organizational culture. Another vision is to eliminate the toxic environment prevalent within the brigade and develop a friendly and family-like environment among the commanders and soldiers. Leaders are required to possess intellectual skills, charisma, and character that would enable them to master and execute core competencies to achieve organizational goals through leading and developing human resources under their control.[Robert Stănciulescu and Elvira Beldiman, “The Issue of Leadership Styles in the Military Organization,” Land Forces Academy Review 24, no. 1 (2019): 55.] [Leonard Wong, Paul Bliese, and Dennis Mcgurk, “Military Leadership: A Context Specific Review,” The Leadership Quarterly 14, no. 6 (2003): 659.]
Warfare can be greatly complicated by the indecisiveness of military leaders or the absence of tangible objectives. The critical dimensions of military leadership are the chain of command, responsibility, and authority. I will apply various strategies to solve the existing problems in the brigade. I will ensure that all the soldiers in the respective battalions train and perfect the required core competencies to conduct a regionally aligned force (RAF) mission successfully. I will ensure that the maneuver battalions and the security force advisor teams (SFAT) commanders implement strategies that will better equip our forces for the upcoming task in Africa. I will ensure that each officer, as well as non-commissioned soldiers, undertakes readiness exercises incorporating the latest scientific models to achieve agility and flexibility that would enable them to dismantle enemy troops and gain control of the region. Moreover, I will ensure that command and control throughout the brigade are harmonized through the adoption of a single