Military Review English Edition November December 2016

STRATEGIC LEADERS Core Capabilities Differentiating Leadership Behaviors Strength of character Physical and emotional resilience Commitment to self-development Intellectual agility Tactical and operational mastery Extraordinary technical competence Compelling conveyor of information Adapts to individual and group dynamics Passion for teaching and mentoring Teacher Thinks in time, resources, and space Gifted at systems development Critical thinker and presenter of information Excellent coalition builder Organizer Exceptional tactical/operational proficiency Passion for command and leading soldiers Student of history and warfare Demonstrates impeccable judgment Commander Gifted oral communicator of shared vision Natural ability to operate interagency Comfortable operating outside military circles Distills complex situations into simple terms Communicator (Graphic from authors) Figure. Strategic Traits Map clarity, and the continued expansion of social media is likely to foreclose some options for national decision makers. This coming period of inevitable turbulence demands strategic leaders whose intellectual sabers are sharp, but sharpening those sabers requires a course refinement. Powell expressed the difficulty associated with developing our future strategic leaders: The contemporary problem is complex. We have been at a tactical level for fourteen years with repeated non-broadening tours. Less schooling, less time to think and debate. Less time to read.2 As Powell suggests, the development of strategic leaders begins with an officer’s own personal and enduring commitment to self-development. Understanding complexity only comes with such a commitment to ongoing personal study. The operational environment is becoming increasingly complicated, while our defense budget is becoming increasingly tight. As the global outlook portends a proliferation of military challenges, the future success of our Army and our nation rests in the hands of our (yet-to-be developed) next generation of strategic leaders. Importance of Intellectual Agility In order to respond to the threats we are facing today and remain prepared for those of tomorrow, we must identify and develop extraordinary talent. The best military advice now requires a deep understanding of all instruments of power and an ability to communicate persuasively with civilian leaders. It requires intellectual agility. MILITARY REVIEW November-December 2016 The foundational strategic trait of intellectual agility is worth defining for these purposes. An officer who is not confined to what he or she was previously taught but possesses sufficient breadth of experience and a natural ability to adjust quickly and comfortably to circumstances and conditions is intellectually agile. We suggest that such agility begins with tactical and operational mastery. Indeed, it is a prerequisite for higher-level military leadership. Our future strategic leaders must have the ability to transition quickly and seamlessly between tactical concerns and strategic issues. Ready or not, senior officers are thrust into these roles at a stage in their careers where the cost of failure is unacceptably high. In-depth discussions and due consideration of methods to manage these situations are essential, before intellectual agility becomes a zero-sum game and the cost of getting it wrong includes either American blood and treasure or damage to our national reputation. The accumulated experiences of colonels and general officers assigned complex missions are the connective tissue in the body of expeditionary contingency operations. Those collective experiences have taught senior leaders over a quarter century or more how to plan and carry out nearly any operation, with an understanding that mission-specific expertise can be surged but organizational acumen cannot. This is poignantly expressed by three West Point professors who directly address the importance of intellectual capital: As technology and industry dominated the wars of the twentieth century, intellectual human capital will likely decide many of the world’s future security issues. Army officers 83

Military Review English Edition November December 2016 | Page 85