Describe the best and worst leader you ever knew? What made them good/bad?

SGM Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 16:05:42 -0400

Response by CW3 Scott Castlen made Sep 30 at 2014 4:42 PM

CW3 Scott Castlen — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 16:42:42 -0400

That's the best part of being able to recognize the difference of good and bad leadership. They can both be inspirational in their own ways. Good Topic!!!

Response by SGM Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 30 at 2014 7:41 PM

SGM Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 19:41:14 -0400

My answer: Have had the good fortune to work with some inspirational leaders of every rank.... and their cartoon counterparts. THE GOOD: My Senior Drill Sergeant in Basic Combat training ranks highest among the best NCOs I ever knew (SFC Robinson). He led by "Be, Know, Show, Do--Trust, Inspire!" He had a kick to pat ratio that focused on the positive. He WANTED you to succeed. He led you to success, and you followed not because he was the Senior Drill, but because he knew his stuff. We were lucky to have him as our Platoon Sgt as well as Senior Drill. I was lucky to be chosen as Platoon Guide, and learned simply by standing in his shadow. He'd show you how to do it right, not just tell you, then have you show him. Then you would show others. Sounds simple? Try it on EVERYTHING you do. Patiently, constantly, consistently. Never saw him lose his cool. Similarly his kick-to-pat ratio was outstanding. And, he knew the art of public praise and private counseling (a very rare trait these days). Similarly, I'd single out LTG Chelberg and GEN Galvin at SHAPE/NATO--they never forgot where they came from and were sensitive to their impact on others. As one of the first men at the Women's Army HQ (yep, no kidding)--some of the finest leaders I ever met were women, in fact, nearly all of the senior women were CONFIDENT and COMPETENT and CARING. MG Mary Clarke among others stands out. They cared about you just as much as they cared about the mission. They cared about tradition, and history; and treating people fairly. THE MIDDLE : Worked for one fellow who was an absolute genius. Trouble is almost no one survived his personal "academy". Those of us who chose to learn from him survived. The others bit the dust. I learned a great many skills from him, including what hot and what's NOT. Nearly killed me and many others. What doesn't kill you truly makes you stronger... THE UGLY: Every now and then you encounter an Equal Opportunity jerk. A person so in love with his/her own opinions that there is no hope for reality. The world is chock-full of them. You did your duty and not much more in a sea of people seething with contempt, from the senior officers on down. Poison personified. The point here is that the Good, the Bad, the Ugly all help to shape you in the years ahead. Because of them we are successful--if we learn the right lessons. #1 = no commission, no leadership position is not a license to exercise your personality quirks. #2 = nothing is forever.

Response by Lt Col Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 30 at 2014 8:36 PM

Lt Col Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 20:36:25 -0400

Good: My first operational squadron commander as a copilot. He was personable yet you knew he was in charge. He did not have to be a (fill in the blank) to project his authority. he seemed to have a genuine sense of concern for everyone in the squadron. He was mission oriented but without being alienating about it.

Bad: There are few runner ups but the one that gets the gold was one of my last leaders as an active duty guy. He was more interested in looking like the leader than being one. He always let you he was in charge of the squadron. He did the DO's job. He was very demeaning to everyone who did not do things exactly his way. He overlooked a lousy NCO because he was afraid that he would get an MEO complaint, that's as far as I will go with that. He had no issue taking it out on the rest of us. He had the junior officers and enlisted go on spirit missions that eventually started getting out of control. We ended up in a turf war that started to go beyond simple ha ha fun. When my troops started to decide that it was getting ridiculous, he actually had the nerve to chew out the squadron for not having any unit pride. This was when they decided stop doing graffiti on the base with our mascot. The irony was that graffiti of the base was considered a punishable offense during the in brief yet this was what we were supposed to do. The guy was a real chump and I will be glad never to run into him ever.

Response by LTC Hillary Luton made Sep 30 at 2014 9:00 PM

LTC Hillary Luton — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 21:00:51 -0400

Best: My previous boss when I worked at FORSCOM. He was fantastic to work for, because he made sure you were taken care of if you deserved it, but he wouldn't hesitate to be honest when someone was worthless. He wasn't brutal about it, unless you really ticked him off. In the three years I worked for him, he yelled at me all of once. I deserved it. :-) He delegated what he needed my team or I to do and then he let me handle it from there. When any of us in the office traveled with him, he was always quick to introduce us to people he knew. He never treated me any different than he did AC officers, and in fact he went to bat for me on more than one occasion to secure a top block for me. I never asked for it, and in fact, I told him I was perfectly fine with a COM. But he would always take care of those who took care of him. And as an added benefit, he had a great sense of humor. It was an honor and a pleasure to work for him.

Worst: Well, I will tell you why, but not when I served under this person. The individual I'm thinking of is somewhat of a micro-manager. I just don't think he understands how a chain of command works or how to delegate. Instead of telling me what he needed my team to do, he always told me who on my team needed to do it. Drove me crazy!!! He often would go directly to my team and task them without going through me or at least keeping me in the loop. Also drove me crazy! He often would tell two or three people in the office to do the same thing, so we had more than one person wasting time do a project someone else was doing. He is a meeting freak and we had a staff meeting nearly every day. OK, I hate meetings, so that's just me whining. He makes it a habit of dumping everything on the people who work hard and lets the lazy ones float, instead of holding them accountable. He would cow-tow to the senior leaders and kiss butt at every opportunity, but would throw us under a bus or step on our toes. OK, I think I've said more than enough on this. You get the picture.

Response by PO3 Shaun Taylor made Sep 30 at 2014 10:56 PM

PO3 Shaun Taylor — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 22:56:24 -0400

Best- LT. Roberta Neighbors. Firm but fair with a big heart and always encouraged everyone "to be more than a collar device." Always pushing people to give back and constantly mentoring people. Even her discipline was positive in nature.

Worst- won't say his name because he's on here lol. But my HM2 from 3rd LSB in Okinawa. Very cocky and often wrong and would throw his subordinates under the bus any and every chance he got. He lacked integrity big time lol. However, I will say that he did improve his attitude after his "meeting" with the 1st Sgt. from Charlie Company.

Response by CSM Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 30 at 2014 11:50 PM

CSM Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 23:50:39 -0400

Best: I have had many great leaders, both enlisted and officer. One that sticks out the most is the commander that I worked for in a BCT Battalion. He had a great balance of formal/informal, he inspired you to achieve your best and was in the thick of it with you.

Worst: A former 1SG I had years ago. Dad told me you can learn as much from a poor leader as you can from a great. And this was true. I have a mental list going of "things not to do". The leading contributor is my former 1SG.

Response by SGT Richard H. made Oct 2 at 2014 10:52 AM

SGT Richard H. — Thu, 02 Oct 2014 10:52:16 -0400

Best- LTC James Critz. My Battalion commander at 7/6 Inf. This was a man in command of 700+ soldiers, and I'm pretty sure he knew and cared about every one of them. You always knew he was in command, but you were never scared to have him show up unannounced, because he inspired you to care too. He would show up at any given time during field training, pull the NCO or a soldier aside and ask questions, offer advice, but NEVER undermine his NCOs.

Worst- My Platoon Sergeant at 7/6 Inf. (I'll reserve his name) I went head to head with him many times, and probably came close to losing a stripe over it once or twice, but in the end, I never compromised my integrity, and he ended up being relieved as a PSG and sent to S-2. My 2LT Platoon Leader went off on me a couple of times over taking on the PSG, but later thanked me (privately) for doing so, even admitting that he had allowed the wrong guy to influence and mentor him (this was after spending some time with a GOOD PSG).

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 2 at 2014 12:39 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 02 Oct 2014 12:39:35 -0400

Best Leaders: There are many. 1SG Charles Vaughn, CDR Dan Gage, COL Reynold Hoover, to name a few.

Worst Leaders: Thankfully, there are only a few, but I wont name or describe them. A couple were so bad that I honestly have a hard time getting rid of the baggage they created. Maybe I should consider therapy. :D

Response by SFC Dr. Joseph Finck, BS, MA, DSS made Oct 2 at 2014 2:31 PM

SFC Dr. Joseph Finck, BS, MA, DSS — Thu, 02 Oct 2014 14:31:46 -0400

SGM Dan Coberly,

Thank you for this question.

The best leader I experienced was CW3 Russell W. Hudson. He was my Detachment Commander in a CID unit. I was his Detachment Sergeant. He allowed me as his NCOIC to act and he supported me knowing I was supporting him. He supported Soldiers, but always accomplished the mission. Under his leadership we deployed to Bosnia-Herzegovina (he was OPS at that time) and then to Iraq. He led by example, was devoted to his Soldiers, understood his role and responsibilities, and allowed the success of his Soldiers to be acknowledged and any failures (I don't remember any) were his responsibility.

The worst leader I experienced was LTC Axx X. Xxxx now COL Axx X. Xxxx. She was a leader who micromanaged her subordinate Commanders, did not respect her NCO leaders (including her CSM), failed to listen to SMEs pertaining to operations, training, intelligence, or any other topic. In sum, she was the definition of a toxic leader who claimed anyone who did not agree with her, "did not see the big picture." She focused on short term objectives versus long term goals and any failure was blamed on an identified junior leader. She decimated careers and her leadership resulted in premature retirements, discharges, and requests for transfer. Likewise, she had numerous IG complaints (I have no idea what the results were).

The difference between the two, were mostly based on leadership style. CW3 Hudson was a leader who was confident in himself and his Soldiers who was concerned with the welfare of his Soldiers and the accomplishment of the mission. LTC Xxxx was a leader who was solely interested in herself, her welfare, and her success regardless of the cost.

I used CW3 Hudson's name as he is retired and this is complimentary in nature to him. I did not use LTC Axx X. Xxxx's name as she is still serving.

Thank you,

SFC Joseph M. Finck USA (Ret)

Response by SPC Paul Shene III made Oct 5 at 2014 3:42 PM

SPC Paul Shene III — Sun, 05 Oct 2014 15:42:57 -0400

All the NCOs and Officers in charge of me were excellent, so picking best and least best (when the worst was still excellent) is a little difficult.

Drill sergeant SFC Lloyd at Fort Jackson SC had the most positive impact directly on my life and career. He was a lot like the DI in Full Metal Jacket, but better?

Least best was the company XO in basic (a butter bar LT) --- but he was still EXCELLENT, so the only down side was he was fresh out of university.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Jul 24 at 2015 9:14 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 24 Jul 2015 21:14:46 -0400

The worst - my first PSG. As a private I went into the office to be briefed by him and his first words to me were..." Let me tell you something, I HATE PRIVATES", I have to admit I turned off after that. My second worst was a SGM that we had. This guy was simply dangerous to his Soldiers that he lead. He had NO confidence from his Soldiers.
The best...ohhh my I have had some GREAT ones...CSM Kelly when I was at Hood, I had a CSM at Riley that was amazing and I had CSM Harris who was amazing. Going lower than that my last 1SG , 1SG Heston was incredible. I had to deal with him on a day to day basis because I was a PSG and he never treated me like anything other than a PSG even though I was only a lowly SSG. I have had too many to list that were my PSGs over the years. I would say that I have been VERY fortunate. I have had far more AWESOME leaders than bad leaders. My PSGs throughout the years taught me so much, SFC Cofer, SFC Riniker, one of my Tank Commanders SSG Saxton. All of these guys groomed me to be a SSG and beyond and never let me think that I was expected to do anything other than 2 levels above where I was. It helped me to learn to ALWAYS strive for not just the next position, but make sure that I was not only making myself ready for that, but learning how to understand the job two levels above me. It helped, because if you are PSG, and you understand what your 1SG and CSM are going through, then you understand more (may still not agree with and be pissed off about) the decisions that they are making.
I have been blessed for sure.

Response by Maj John Bell made Feb 19 at 2016 6:39 PM

Maj John Bell — Fri, 19 Feb 2016 18:39:11 -0500

Best - LtCol V often called me in and asked me how I would do something, pointed out the flaws and then made me do it like I told him. When I asked him why not correct my plan, he said "there is no teacher like screwing up. You aren't going to kill anybody, You aren't going to break anything that can't be fixed, but it will improve your ability to foresee the foreseeable." His job in peace time was always the development of his subordinates. His terminal rank was LtGen
Worst - LtCol B saw everything in terms of how it reflected on him and his chance of promotion or securing a good State Dept. job, if he got out. Even when things went well, some NCO or junior officer got a smack just so he looked like he was on top of things. The only bad field grade officer I met in the Marines. Fortunately LtCol was his terminal rank.

Response by Maj John Bell made Apr 20 at 2016 4:14 PM

Maj John Bell — Wed, 20 Apr 2016 16:14:44 -0400

Best -- Used to call us in, and hand us a project asked for three substantially different courses of action (CoA) with pros and cons of each and a final recommendation. When we were done, he would invariably in a very paternal fashion, tear apart our CoA's then tell us to implement one of the three just as briefed. I asked "Sir, why do I go through this, you've pointed out flaws I didn't foresee, or underestimated. Why not fix it before I get started?" "Because, it is peace time. You CoA isn't going to kill/injure anyone or break anything. You get to be a better planner, leader, and problem solver by dealing with problems, not avoiding them. When I tell you there's a problem, - maybe there's a problem. When YOU tell YOU there is a problem, its the TRUTH." He taught me to let my Marines make mistakes, learn from the mistakes, and still stand by them.

Worst -- Viewed an assignment to Embassy duty, as a three year safari vacation. When he did a Command visit at a detachment, he used the Marines as his personal tour guides. Showed no interest the security mission. Dept of State personnel openly joked that his priorities were 1) Sightseeing, 2) Buying curios, 3) Greasing the skids for a State Dept. job, 4) the Mission. He taught me anger and embarrassment.

Response by GySgt Cornelius Cunningham Jr. made Mar 29 at 2017 12:15 AM

GySgt Cornelius Cunningham Jr. — Wed, 29 Mar 2017 00:15:18 -0400

The American Indian with the hickory stick he instilled greatness in all of us

Response by SGT Mark Saint Cyr made Apr 29 at 2018 9:18 PM

SGT Mark Saint Cyr — Sun, 29 Apr 2018 21:18:27 -0400

BEST: Those who listened, and KNEW they didn't know everything, but would still command, give orders and sound like they knew what they were doing.

WORST: One on active duty, over in Germany, in '81. The folks who were there and KNOW me KNOW to whom I'm referring to and I doubt very much that he would recognize himself from this description. He was simply the one commander who thought that discipline meant handing out 3 article 15s every week like clockwork. Soldiers couldn't relax or be human in his command, because it was be perfect or get busted.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made May 7 at 2018 11:35 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 07 May 2018 23:35:42 -0400

Best: CW3 Tania Nicole Dunbar (1974-2015); it's hard to put in words who she represents and what I saw in her. I don't use this word lightly, but she was a pioneer. She risked her life in Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan. She helped support various military lgbt organizations and co-founded one. She left us roughly two weeks before the DoD announced its study of transgender Americans, three weeks before I graduated from ALC. She gave me hope when there really wasn't a valid spit of evidence to be hopeful. She hated crying Soldiers, especially females. Though she rests in Arlington, I picked up her habits and focus on Soldier care. To be there for others when there wasn't for me, regardless of background or what they do on their free time; care for every Soldier. I miss her to death and try to do my very best in what accomplished both in and out of uniform.

Worst: They still serve so I won't say names or ranks. Bullying of junior soldiers in a training unit, to help push as many soldiers out under DADT (this was 2009). Rewarded Soldiers to photograph and plant evidence on other Soldiers so as to help kick out more junior personnel. Conducted various room inspections to find out who're Pagan, Jewish or Muslim, so as to create a Sunday cleaning roster while the Christian Soldiers were at church. Various physical training style punishments instead of retraining (this was before anti-hazing policy and the death of PV2 Daniel Chen). There is more, but the focus was that I was trained not to trust in senior leaders. The memories are still there but we're getting better as a force.

Response by CPT Robert Boshears made Jun 15 at 2018 2:38 AM

CPT Robert Boshears — Fri, 15 Jun 2018 02:38:00 -0400

A Bn Cdr that gave me an illegal order (I was the second Co Cdr to disobey) the same illegal order.