Bridging the "Civil-Military" Chasm in Leadership
Quick answer: What leadership lessons cross the civil-military divide?
John argues military and civilian leadership can learn from each other: clear mission amid the fog of war, as in Eisenhower's “planning is indispensable,” and unified, empowered teams, like American POWs at the Hanoi Hilton who built covert communication and mutual support. He links that to Stephen M.R. Covey's Smart Trust and Anne Mulcahy at Xerox.
Leadership, John writes, crosses every sector, yet a widening chasm now separates America's civil society from its military. You see it in recruiting crises and in misconceptions about those who serve. It also blocks a wealth of lessons each side could learn from the other. Bridging it isn't just merging two worlds; it's creating a place where both sets of experience teach us to lead better. His first lesson is a clear mission. Military doctrine aims for a defined mission, but reality is often the fog of war, and well-led organizations move forward anyway. Eisenhower put it plainly: plans are useless, but planning is indispensable. Another lesson is the empowered team. American POWs in Vietnam, recounted in Lessons from the Hanoi Hilton, built covert communication, a shared code of conduct, and mutual support that kept them alive. John connects that to Stephen M.R. Covey's “Smart Trust” and to Anne Mulcahy, who extended trust to her team and helped save Xerox from bankruptcy.
Why it matters for leaders: Leadership lessons travel; borrow from both military and civilian experience to build clear missions and trusted teams.
Q: How does John describe the civil-military divide?
A: As a gap that has widened into a chasm, seen in recruiting crises and misconceptions about those who serve.
Q: What did Eisenhower say about plans?
A: “In preparing for battle, I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.”
Read the full article on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/bridging-civil-military-chasm-leadership-john-fenzel
By John Fenzel, founder and CEO of Heroes' Path Foundation