The New Jersey Police Chief Magazine | January 2023 Leadership Makes the Difference : The Leadership Staff Ride
By William “ Pat ” Schuber , Professor , Fairleigh Dickinson University
“ A leader is one who knows the way , goes the way , and shows the way ” John Maxwell
Leadership makes the difference in the success or failure of any organization , especially in law enforcement . I have always believed this . As a former government leader , I have always been interested with the primary role that strong effective leadership contributes to the success of an organization or any endeavor .
Now as an educator at Fairleigh Dickinson University , I have the opportunity to teach leadership to new generations of students of all ages . I have no doubt , based on my experience and research , that effective leadership can make the difference between an organization accomplishing its mission regardless of the industry sector . Leaders are not necessarily born but are developed through training , education , and professional experience . The question is how can the leader of an organization foster the development of necessary leadership skill sets among his or her key personnel while working to improve his or her own skills ?
Let us start with a definition . A review of the shelves in local bookstores displays more than 100 titles concerning leadership . It seems everyone has their own take on what defines effective leaders . My definition of effective leadership is the process of influencing and inspiring people , groups , or organizations to accomplish their goals . This definition is brief but embraces many different skill sets .
Leadership involves both the rational and emotional sides of the human experience . It includes actions and influences based on reason and logic as well as those based on inspiration and passion . Thus , leadership can be looked at as both a science and an art .
While much ink has been used to define or describe leadership , much less has been used to provide guidelines on how to teach leadership .
A recent survey conducted by Zippia The Career Expert , an employment recruitment website , reports that U . S . businesses spend $ 166 billion on leadership development each year – nearly half of the $ 365 billion spent globally . Troubling , however , the survey also finds that only 48 % of employees view their organizational leadership as “ high quality .” While 83 % of organizations polled believe it is important to develop leaders at every level of the organization , only 5 % have implemented leadership development programs at all levels .
I believe The Leadership Staff Ride can be an effective and unique training vehicle which can provide a number of tangible leadership benefits for any organization looking to improve its performance and provide for the professional development of its personnel at all levels .
What is a Leadership Staff Ride ? Have you ever been happy to hear your teacher say , “ let ’ s take our classroom outside ?” The Leadership Staff Ride is that classroom taken outside . It is an experiential method of teaching leadership by using actual historical places as the outside classroom .
Through this teaching model , a student can study leadership characteristics and skill sets by examining historical case studies and the leadership exercised by historical figures at the very location where those events and people came together .
Certainly , a person can read about historical events , places and personalities in books . However , it is an entirely different perspective when you actually walk on Omaha Beach or stand where Abraham Lincoln gave his famous Gettysburg Address or overlook the Delaware River where George Washington made his famous Christmas night crossing . What powerful lessons in leadership these are !
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