The Preparation of Strategic Leaders
Abstract
World events brought General Eisenhower quickly from obscurity to a critical moment in history, the Normandy invasion during World War II. Indeed. his advancement to strategic-level leadership was meteoric -- from Lieutenant Colonel to General of the Army in four years. However, the significance of Eisenhower's story is not in his advancement, which was accelerated by the requirements imposed on an Army at war, but in the fact that he was so well prepared to assume the responsibilities of strategic-level leadership when the nation called. It is a story of strategic leader development, a career-long process involving experience, formal professional education, and self-study. Strategic leadership and strategic leader development have recently attracted considerable attention in the Army, as evinced by the publication of DA Pamphlet 600-80, "Executive Leadership" (1987), the publication of Field Manual 22-103, "Leadership and Command at Senior Levels" (1987), and the Army War College's Strategic Leadership Conferences in February and October 1991. What does it mean to develop officers as strategic leaders? This article explores the concept of strategic leader formation from the point of view of developmental psychology, addressing in the process two fundamental questions: What is development? and What can the Army do to foster the development of strategic leaders?
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1992
- Accession Number
- ADA528179
Entities
People
- George B. Forsythe
Organizations
- United States Military Academy