Improving Mentorship and Leader Development in the US Army

Abstract

Mentorship is a critical component of the greater function of developing leadership in the U.S. Army. Even though mentorship finds its origins in classical Greece, it has proven to have great utility in shaping the Army leadership of today. Even so, many senior Army leaders have stated that Army mentorship needs improvement. As the U.S. Army returns from 10 years of persistent conflict, the time for revitalizing leader development is now. There is a renewed vigor to catch up on those years when leader development played second fiddle to the generation and deployment of combat forces to Iraq and Afghanistan. This research paper defines mentorship, examines the historical roots of mentorship, describes a number of successful mentor-protege relationships and the phases of the mentorship process, and identifies the functions mentorship serves as a component of leader development in the Army. The paper provides a blueprint for action as the Army seeks to improve mentorship across the force.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 15, 2012
Accession Number
ADA561068

Entities

People

  • Andrew Cole Jr.

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Human Systems
  • Materials and Manufacturing Processes
  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Combat Forces
  • Doctrine
  • Education
  • Enlisted Personnel
  • Human Behavior
  • Leadership
  • Lessons Learned
  • Mentoring
  • Personnel Management
  • Professional Development
  • Social Psychology
  • Students
  • Training
  • United States
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Economics
  • Military Training and Readiness Simulation
  • Military and Counterinsurgency Studies.