Changing the Ways" of the Institutional Army's Leader Development Strategy"

Abstract

Abstract : The Ways of the Institutional Army's Leader Development Strategy must change to accomplish the stated including developing agile and adaptive leaders. Specifically, the Institutional Army must change from strict reliance on task-based, input-focused Ways to incorporate a skills-based, outcome focused Ways to develop agile and adaptive leaders to face the challenges of the current and future environments. Developing agile and adaptive leaders who are critical thinkers is instrumental to the Army's successful conduct of Full Spectrum Operations in the 21st Century. This paper will explore the current and future operational environments, discuss why the Army requires agile and adaptive leaders for these environments, and why the institutional Army is resistant to change its Ways of producing such leaders. This paper will offer Outcome Based Training Education (OBTE) as the Ways for the Army to reach its Ends, utilizing the Army Reconnaissance Course as a case study. The paper concludes with recommendations on how the Army, as an institution, should itself be agile and adaptive in making adjustments to help change its organizational culture, resulting in the sustained production of agile and adaptive leaders.