Character and leadership in an age of image.

• Author: Zubrod, Gordon A.D.
• Position: General Sir Richard Dannatt - Report

Character and Leadership in an Age of Image

By General Sir Richard Dannatt, Commanding General, British Army

Review by Gordon A.D. Zubrod, Assistant U.S. Attorney, Middle District of Pennsylvania

http://www.ttf.org/index/journal/detail/where-no-one-sees/

On November 8, 2008, General Sir Richard Dannatt, the commanding general of the British Army, addressed a gathering of Rhodes and Marshall Scholars at Oxford University. Speaking only four days after the U.S. presidential election, General Dannatt pointedly noted that the new president will need to distinguish between the task of leadership and the political function of "promising much" and "presenting an image of success." Titling his comments, "Character and Leadership in an Age of Image," the general opened his remarks by quoting British business leader W. H. Smith: "Character and integrity are as important in a manager or leader as capability."

The bulk of General Dannatt's remarks focused on specific leadership principles and approaches that are applicable to the conduct of foreign policy, such as strategic, operational and tactical thinking: the steps necessary to convert strategic goals into an operational plan that separates out and delegates tasks and equips the subordinates to carry them out. These leadership skills comprise "the energy and the drive to take the team on the journey," and are needed now more than ever by the West, which is engaged in what many believe is a clash of civilizations.

Dannat stressed, however, that such ideas, without the ability to translate them into action and to convince an organization (or country, or civilization) to take ownership of them, rendered them no more than theoretical propositions. The test is whether those who are integral to your plan will come on the journey with you. Leadership is one thing; successfully promoting "followership" is another.

What is it that gives a leader his authority--his right to lead? The answer comes down to who that leader is as a person. A self-seeking, bottom line-oriented leader will never be trusted, his goals will never be seen as honorable, and he will never lift his organization from the mediocre to the exceptional. "Integrity establishes the moral baseline...