by Christina Pomoni

Created on: February 11, 2013   Last Updated: February 12, 2013

One of the biggest misconceptions widely made is that the military is monolithic and cannot be applied in business. As a matter of fact, the military is a highly diversified organization consisting of different cultures, people and roles. Moreover, it includes the active duty forces as well as military employees and families. In this context, the military produces great leaders who are well-equipped with the appropriate education and training to hold high levels of responsibility in any organization.

Core military leadership concepts

In the Field Manual (FM) 6-22 leadership is defined as “influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation, while operating to accomplish the mission and improve the organization.” In this context, core military leadership competencies can enhance organizational performance in the effort to meet corporate mission.

In this context, core military leadership concepts can be summarized as follows:

Motivating subordinates: the military leaders, similar to corporate leaders, motivate their subordinates to accomplish specific tasks and meet organizational objectives. Often, they use their lines of authority to shape corporate culture as they shape army culture to achieve results.

Improving communication: communication within the organization as within the Army is extremely important. Effective leaders are effective listeners who can better relate to their subordinates. Through effective communication they can considerably improve employee satisfaction. In addition, by employing advanced goal setting techniques they can meet organizational objectives through enhanced productivity.

Contributing to corporate development: by encouraging and supporting the growth of their subordinates, military leaders, similar to corporate leaders, contribute to the realization of organizational goals. By capitalizing on personal strengths and identifying weaknesses, they create a productive working environment where each subordinate contributes its best.

Contributing to personal development: leaders perform a self-assessment in order to be able to identify their strengths and weaknesses and improve their performance. Their goal is to lead their subordinates effectively, and therefore, they need to be prepared for any corporate challenge (as military leaders prepare for war challenges) to meet their responsibilities.

Leading by example: military leaders are role models and seek to lead by example. By maintaining high leadership

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