Young Oak Kim: An American Leader and a Leader of Americans

Abstract

Captain Young Oak Kim, U.S. Army, may seem like an odd choice for an essay on leadership. He had no connection to the Sea Services and few people today recognize his name or associate him with the U.S. military. However, Captain Kim was one of the most remarkable and yet under-appreciated officers of the 20th century. As a platoon leader and operations officer in the famed 442nd Regimental Combat Team, the Japanese-American unit that fought in Italy and France in the Second World War and became the most decorated unit in U.S. military history. He demonstrated four leadership traits of use to junior officers and leaders in today's Sea Services: (1) tactical proficiency, (2) leading through example, (3) building unit cohesion, and (4) protecting your people. He proved, against the prevailing wisdom of the times, that he was an American leader and a leader of Americans.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 11, 2023
Accession Number
AD1207874

Entities

People

  • George Hageman

Organizations

  • Naval War College

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Cohesion
  • History
  • Leadership
  • Military History
  • Second World War
  • War

Readers

  • Forest Ecology
  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.
  • Military Leadership and Professional Education.