MAGAZINE
SPRING 2020
time on decision making should be spent . The Powel 40 / 70 rule ¹ ⁸ on the amount of information required to make a decision ( to make tough decisions you should have no less than 40 percent and no more than 70 percent of the information you need ) can often seem to be at odds with NATO activity , but it should be remembered that one of the key tenants of the NATO Alliance is its consensus approach . Add to all of this the future environment where uncertainty , high stakes , politics , multiple perspectives and complexity all seem to be at the centre of the debate and it seems that decision making ( intuitive , rational and experienced ) is not becoming easier ! The NSO offers a number of courses 19 like Alternative Analysis and Design Thinking that provide different ways of looking at problems to get you back into action mode .
TECHNOLOGY Awareness of the impacts of technology on Leadership and your workplan ?
Information Age . Information is becoming the driving force behind professional and personal activity with our ability to sift rapidly through large volumes of data becoming a daily requirement . For leadership the introduction of technology to aid in this task brings an additional set of challenges in terms of leveraging information in complex decision-making environments as well as opportunities to exploit new communication strategies and collaborate in different and more expansive ways . It will mean that our leaders will have to rethink the questions they ask ( to avoid being deluged with data ) and consider the various implications of their decisions . It also suggests that positions that manage data must become more automated in the future , but posts that use judgement , creativity , and experience will need to be nurtured and grown .
Human Machine . The Human / Machine relationship is a much studied subject both within our Nations and NATO . With the increased use of Artificial Intelligence ( AI ) the question of the ‘ human in the loop ’ will continue to be reviewed along with the ethical and legal implications of machines waging warfare . When considered for decision making the subject of bias and misuse need to be considered . Do you have enough understanding of the human / machine interface , both professionally and privately , to ensure that appropriate decisions are made ? How are we going to train leadership to work in this environment and do we still maintain training on traditional methods in case of failure / denial ?
Technology is impacting on your everyday life as well as your working environment . The effect on leadership and management activity will be considerable and challenge many of the current operating practices .
ONGOING NATO ACTIVITY Our Alliance and nations are focusing on many of the aforementioned thoughts .
RTG 286 . The Science and Technology Organisation ( STO ) within NATO sponsored a multinational panel in 2017 to report on “ Leader Development for NATO Multinational Military Operations ”. The team was led by the United States with Great Britain as co-chair . The report , which breaks the various leadership attributes into the following categories : cognitive , personal , professional , transformative , technological and social , is due to be published in the near future 20 .
MCDC . The 2019 / 2020 Multinational Capability Development Campaign on Future Leadership is being jointly led by Great Britain and Germany with 13 other contributing nations and three observing nations . The problem statement they are working on is to “ understand , analyse and respond to
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