Full Range Leadership Development (FRLD)

I am Joseph Maruska, I am currently a Major in the United States Air Force. This essay will introduce you to my personal command philosophy. It will also summarize and analyze a brief interview recently conducted with a current squadron commander using my own leadership philosophy as a guide. Throughout this essay I will draw upon my own personal experiences and thoughts, lessons discussed throughout the Leadership and Command Course, as well the discussion with a current squadron commander. Leadership and command styles come in many different forms and there is not necessarily a correct or incorrect way to lead depending on your organization or current turn of events. This essay is simply my thoughts after being in the Air Force for the last eleven years.

There are several leaders that I have admired in my career over the years. One in particular that stood out was a Chief Master Sergeant in the Air Force who I served under. He was a very intelligent and vibrant leader who placed importance in military customs and core values. He was one whom I emulated in the military because of his task –motivated leadership style. He focused on the goals of the organization with the emphasis on service before self. The implications of his style of leadership lead me to believe that there was little to no relationships formed with lower ranking airmen. He was always able to get the job done because of the driven culture he represented. I learned a wealth of knowledge and information from this particular leader; I was able to create a balance by embracing his style of leadership and relating it with my style, transformational leadership. I believe it was successful, because of my efforts to focus in on the mission and create a balance in inspiring, influencing, and motivating Airmen across the globe.

Poor leadership, or the more widely known phrase “toxic leadership”, has been a topic of concern throughout the history of the Army. The Army’s recently published leadership doctrine says that, “Army leaders motivate people both inside and outside the chain of command to pursue actions, focus thinking, and shape decisions for the greater good of the organization.” (ADP 6-22, 2012) There are many examples of leaders in recent years that have been relieved due to negative effects on their organizations. Poor leadership is commonly portrayed by telltale characteristics of those in leadership positions, revealed by detrimental effects on subordinates and mission accomplishment, and must be addressed through consistent education and

Leadership goals should always contain methods of a continuous process of learning through education, training, and individual experiences that help ensure that the message will be communicated in a confident and competent manner when leading troops. Soldiers tend to follow leaders that demonstrate and live the Army values, while displaying their confidence in every decision that affects change. Leaders are not born as organizational or tactical leaders; but grown by their genetic determinism, which is inside and the characteristics they work toward; that mold is which type leader they will become. Not just anyone can lead; you must have the desire to lead, be willing to make the commitment to being a leader, and prepare yourself properly, then you have the desire to become a leader. (Fulton, 1995).

This concerning issue is apparent between the total force leadership and the subordinate commands. It can be felt at the operational level with the advent of a new evaluation form that encourages more competition among Airman for promotion. The purpose of the assessment is to capture the workers’ job performance over a course a year to compare ratings with others in and outside of a career field. This systemic problem is only exacerbated by ignorance of the issue or intentionally disregarded. Whatever the case the sense of individualism is embraced where team effort is preached. For example, at my rank I have to withhold my intentions when it comes to professional development and volunteer opportunities so I can stand out more for the sake of promotion competition. In addition, there is another arbitrary test that is used to measure your ability to lead and influence others in the Air Force. This test is a replacement for face-to-face training for personnel to learn these interpersonal skills. This unnecessary examination puts another obstacle for the airman that care more about the mission than studying a 1400 pages’ worth of material to prepare for such

Given the opportunity to take command of a Remotely Piloted Aircraft Attack squadron actively engaged in combat is truly humbling, and standing on the shoulders of giants, now is the chance to test whether training, examples, both good and bad, and a lifelong building of one’s philosophy is enough preparation to meet that test. My leadership philosophy is one of proactive engagement, continual process/self-improvement, honest feedback, and 360-degree accountability. On Col Waddell’s continuum of Leader Behavior, my leadership style trends toward follower-dominant but not as far as TQM. I present ideas and problems, get suggestions and ultimately make the calls.

Leadership development in the military is critical to its mission and objectives. Understanding and embracing leadership will foster an agile culture and facilitate attainment of strategic goals. People desire quality leadership to assist with achieving their goals, albeit personal or professional development. Having a clear vision and the motivation to perform at high-levels influences others to work synergistically together to achieve organizational goals. Insomuch, employees value being treated respectfully, fairly, and ethically. Leaders serve people best when they help them develop their own initiative and good judgment, enable them to grow, and help them become better contributors.

As an officer in the United States Army, it has been imperative for me to understand every facet of leadership and why it remains important to be an effective leader. During this course, I have learned some valuable lessons about myself as a leader and how I can improve on my leadership ability in the future. The journal entries along with the understanding of available leadership theories have been an integral part of my learning during this course. For all of the journals and assessments that I completed, I feel it has given me a good understanding of my current leadership status and my future potential as a leader. All of the specific assessments looked at several areas in regards to leadership; these assessments covered several

Leadership is the ability to get more from personnel and resources than the science of math supports. With that in mind, it is imperative that leaders, at all levels, find the tools to engage what is sometimes referred to, in my circle of colleagues, as the 3M generation (me, money, and medals), and more precisely the ‘me’, in order to meet the requirements of the military today and to propel it into the future. It is on this premise that I intend to put forth an argument that supports transformational leadership as the style of choice. In the following dissertation I will deliver my concept that mastering transformational leadership techniques is vital in motivating our soldier’s through inspiring their intrinsic motivational triggers. An overview of several articles covering debating transformational leadership and the warrior ethos will be the precursor to the main point of argument followed by my conclusion and final thoughts.

For this assessment, the industry is defined as the handful of top business schools within the world that provide elite MBA degrees to Executives.

According to Bruce Avolio, “What we have clearly learned is that leaders who can balance transactional and transformational leadership across time, situations, and challenges are the most effective” (Avolio 2011, 49). “People have a greater sense of ownership at the highest levels in terms of identification and are willing to provide the extra effort needed to succeed” (Avolio 2011, 49). Yet, Rusty Ricketson wrote, “Those who embrace the followerfirst perspective are not dependent on titles or positions in order to gain a sense of identity and worth. They understand that good leaders are good followers” (Ricketson 2014, 197). Although Avolio supports Full Range Leadership and Ricketson support Following-Leaders there are both

Throughout my Air Force career, I had supervisors that did not use the right leadership approach for me or my fellow Airmen. They never showed any initiative to expedite processes and/or come up with new innovative ways of doing business. They relied on the “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it” mentality. I followed in their footsteps and became a Management by Exception-Passive (MBE-P) leader once I became a Staff Sergeant. I found out very quickly that my subordinates didn’t have trust in me as a leader because they felt like I wouldn’t have their best interests at heart.

Once a cadet reaches his or her fourth year, he or she will be given the opportunity to become a flight commander. As a flight commander, cadets are expected to take control of the class in the absence of an instructor or lead them in a lesson or assignment. Different flight commanders have their own motivations to lead cadets. Cadet Colonel Chase Winans’ motivation is “to help build the foundations of future leaders”.

Out of all the different concepts in Module 5, The Adaptable Leader, Individualized Consideration (Caring) is the one concept that I found the most important. A form of adaptation is adjusting my preferred leadership behavior to the present circumstances to realize goals and shape my Airman. Caring stood out the most to me because it is my highest scoring area in the Self-Assessment of Leadership Behavior results. Also, it is the most important to me because I want to use the most effective management style, Transformational Leadership. Individual Consideration is paramount to me as I want to adapt my strongest area to close the gap between my other Transformational Leadership behaviors.

My time in the military has shown me that I have a need for order and discipline. I want to instill this trait into my subordinates and affectively give them the tools to succeed and complete the mission both home and abroad. I lead from the front and never leave those willing to strive for betterment. My plan involves completing my degree and obtaining the knowledge level needed to effectively take care of and train my replacements in true values, pride in ownership and family values. A stepping stone is that anyone can learn from anyone, even if it’s what not to do. I challenge myself to right all the wrong styles of leadership that I have experienced throughout my career and be that exception to the policy/good ole boy club members. The Air Force can change with assistance from those willing to make the change. I have given blood for my countries ideals and know I will give my every effort to help produce the most capable and experience airmen for the purpose set by our CINC. I