Rewarding Leadership

SSgt Timothy Prevost — Fri, 26 Feb 2021 14:52:57 -0500

A civilian might think the Military has the best leaders and most service members would even agree. Having been in the Military for nearly 10 years, I’d concede it does and it doesn’t. I once thought that being strong equated to being autocratic and being aggressive was the key to get people to follow you. However, I learned that that was certainly not the case. It took someone who had no service experience to teach me more about leadership and troop welfare (taking care of your employees) than I learned from every leadership PME in the last 10 years. I wanted to find a way to reward all these lessons he taught me, so I could think of no better way than to nominate my boss Ryan Callahan for an ESGR Patriot Award.

If the last 10 years in the military have taught me anything, it’s that no one is perfect and you will never be perfect. In the Marines, we strive for perfection. As an Infantryman, we expect nothing less than perfection; especially in combat. Before my first combat deployment, my leaders would often tell me to “be strong, aggressive, forceful and to show little to no weakness to subordinates,” essentially telling me to be autocratic at all times. Right then and there I realized that was how I wanted to be because I respected the leaders above me who had this mentality. When I received my first group of junior Marines, I
maintained my past leaders “autocratic at all times” style of leadership. I shortly realized using fear as a tool to lead was consequently causing my subordinates moral/work ethic to drop. This was the first time I realized I needed to figure out another style of leadership.

After my EAS, I started working as an intern for RallyPoint. This was my first real civilian job. I didn’t know much about tech or social media and was not very good at writing emails. Let me put it this way, I was very fortunate to have people believe in me when I started working in the civilian world. One of the people who believed in me from the start was Ryan, who later became my supervisor. Ryan was patient with me and understood that I wasn’t very tech-savvy.

He taught me about tech systems, writing engaging topics/descriptions, emails, and the works. Ryan also demonstrated a democratic leadership style that allowed me to think through things and be creative. In all my years in the Military, a leader never said “good job” or “nice work.” But at RallyPoint, I would constantly receive recognition for my work. This wasn’t something I was used to. Why did this style of leadership work and make me want to work harder? I was completely taken back and it changed my perspective about Leadership. I later deployed again for 1 year and spent 8 months in the Pacific as a jungle warfare instructor. I had limited internet and phone access there, but when I did have communication capabilities, Ryan would reach out to check on me and see how I was doing. RallyPoint was also kind enough to send me a care package which, as most service members know, opening one takes you back to Christmas morning when you were a kid. I couldn’t thank him enough for all his hard work and dedication he’s put towards the company and as my supervisor.

As a way to give back to Ryan’s teachings and mentorship, I nominated him for an ESGR Patriot award: http://rly.pt/2O4tRdv. The award is for, as Quoted by ESGR “an employee serving in the National Guard or Reserve, or the spouse of a Guard or Reserve member, may nominate individual supervisors and bosses for support provided directly to the nominating Service member and his or her family. The Patriot Award reflects the efforts made to support citizen warriors through a wide-range of measures including flexible schedules, time off prior to and after deployment, caring for families, and granting leaves of absence if needed. Patriot Awards are awarded to individual supervisors, not to an entire staff or organization as a whole.” On February 26, 2021 Ryan Callahan received the award via a virtual conference call with the RallyPoint team. I continue to learn and prosper everyday in my career, both at RallyPoint and in the Military due to Ryan’s teachings. I appreciate everyone for helping me make this happen

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Patriot Award – This award recognizes supervisors and bosses nominated by a Guardsman or Reservist employee for support provided directly to the nominator. Spouses of Service members are also eligible to nominate their supportive supervisor.

Response by SFC Melvin Brandenburg made Feb 26 at 2021 2:55 PM

SFC Melvin Brandenburg — Fri, 26 Feb 2021 14:55:57 -0500

I think the military puts a premium on leadership, but few actually reach for that

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 26 at 2021 3:49 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 26 Feb 2021 15:49:23 -0500

Excellent take on how to lead! Congratulations Ryan Callahan on your ESGR Patriot Award !

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Feb 26 at 2021 4:40 PM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Fri, 26 Feb 2021 16:40:05 -0500

Leadership is situational. A lot of depends on the situation and the amount of control you want and the authority you give to subordinate leaders. One needs to understand when to centralize and decentralize control.
- If my armor unit does a movement to contact then I want a lot of control.
- If something is seriously broken in the unit, mismanaged, there is a safety or moral issue, I want a lot of control.
- If I am commanding a finance unit then I will give a lot of authority or control to the NCOs.

I would like to say all the NCOs I worked with took care of the soldiers and the daily operations. When it came to the training calendar I might have the 50% solution and asked the NCOs to help me with the other 50%. If operations were going well, I would be pleased and the NCOs got the ball and ran with it. One of the commands I had was a Finance Detachment at Ft Riley. I said we will give world class support. I said that because earlier in my career I was the combat arms soldier who got muddy and needed help. I love the concept of world class. Somethings have to be world class. When the Finance Detachment accomplished that level of quality support, I did stuff that I told nobody why I did it.

I felt I had to reward them in a world class manner. I did it to say thank you and to build morale. I arranged helicopter rides for the soldiers. We played football every friday morning. I gave the NCOs dinner gift certificates to pass down to the soldiers who busted ass. A couple times after a 3 mile run I had hot chow and a bus waiting for us at the finish line, at the dam outside Ft Riley. The door prizes at the Christmas party were things soldiers wanted to win: TV, Boom Box, CD Player, it got cheaper. The soldiers and NCOs gave me their best, so I had to give them my best. That was only fair.

The soldiers rewarded the NCOs and me by reenlisting. None of them ETSed.

Response by Capt Brandon Charters made Feb 26 at 2021 6:18 PM

Capt Brandon Charters — Fri, 26 Feb 2021 18:18:34 -0500

Well said, Tim. There are very few leaders I’ve worked with in the DoD and civilian world that care for their people and their development as much as Ryan Callahan does. Big salute for that ESGR award and to you SSgt Timothy Prevost for living the in the Jungle during most of 2020. Marines like you are the first thing I think of when I see the US flag flying high.

Response by SFC Casey O'Mally made Feb 26 at 2021 6:19 PM

SFC Casey O'Mally — Fri, 26 Feb 2021 18:19:45 -0500

SSgt Timothy Prevost I think you may have mistaken strong and aggressive for autocracy.
Generally speaking, leaders who have a strong sense of identity, strong purpose, and strong idea of what they want to do / where they want to go are more respected and more successful. I think of it kind of like a man wearing the color pink. It takes a strong man, confident in who he is, and what he stands for, to pull off wearing pink. But you can be a strong person, a strong leader, while still caring for your Troops, and still showing compassion and humility. Being strong doesn't have to mean being unapproachable. As a matter of fact, the strongest leaders, IMHO, are the ones who ARE approachable, who DO show humility, who DO admit their mistakes, who CAN handle negative feedback - even from subordinates.

You can also be aggressive without delving into autocracy. When I think about an aggressive leader, I think about the phrase "get after it." I think about leaders who set high standards, and do everything they can to ensure their Troops meet them. They find the white space on the calendar to get their Troops out to the back 40 to train, train, train, and train some more. They hit PT HARD, and push their Troops to hit it just as hard. They encourage their Troops to try and beat them - but push themselves even harder to make sure they are never weaker (less knowledgeable, less proficient, etc.) than their Troops. They are actively seeking the skills, knowledge, and competencies to get that next rank - and are pushing their knowledge down to make sure that their subordinates are ready to take over. THAT is aggressive leadership. It isn't about barking down someone's throat, or smacking them around, or push-ups "just because." It isn't about "my way or the highway," it is about "OUR way is the best way" - and we are going to prove it by being the best damned team/squad/platoon/etc. out there.

It isn't democracy, per se, but it isn't autocracy, either. You put out the mission, and you expect the Troops to fulfill it. But, if there is something wrong, the Troops should be ready, willing, and able to bring it to your attention. They are invested in fulfilling the mission, and therefore they actively seek to help you come up with the best possible plan. It is more like feudalism. When the noble tells the serfs what crops to plant, they go plant them. But if it is the wrong plant for the season/climate/whatever, the serfs have a vested interest in letting the noble know - else they ALL will starve.

Response by Ryan Callahan made Feb 26 at 2021 7:12 PM

Ryan Callahan — Fri, 26 Feb 2021 19:12:51 -0500

Thank you for this award SSgt Timothy Prevost. It's been an honor to work alongside you. There are many skills you learned from the USMC that translate well into the civilian world. Your hard work and dedication helps the military community every single day. I have learned a lot from your leadership too, like staying left of bang. I slept well during your deployment knowing there are Marines like you watching our 6! I look forward to celebrating our achieved goals and continued success together. Semper Fi brother.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 27 at 2021 6:02 AM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 27 Feb 2021 06:02:04 -0500

You made part of the journey, maybe you made the whole journey. I agree with your findings and would like to hear more about what you understand leadership to be.

Response by Wayne Soares made Mar 2 at 2021 9:44 PM

Wayne Soares — Tue, 02 Mar 2021 21:44:02 -0500

Thanks for the share Sgt. Prevost

Response by CPT Earl George made Mar 5 at 2021 10:05 PM

CPT Earl George — Fri, 05 Mar 2021 22:05:29 -0500

Leadership is the ART of influencing subordinates to reach a desired outcome. I too have seen many different types of leaders in my time in the service. There were some I would not dare follow to the latrine. a good leader should be learning while leading because no leader knows it all(and you should avoid those who say they do).

Response by CAPT Edward Schmitt made Mar 7 at 2021 6:03 PM

CAPT Edward Schmitt — Sun, 07 Mar 2021 18:03:27 -0500

I retired a Navy O6. This opinion is absolutely fantastic. There were times in which the E3 was right and provided leadership and direction. You have no idea how much I depended upon and valued my junior and senior enlisted and junior officer opinions and insights. We were a TEAM and depended upon each other. Thank you Sgt Prevost for your insight

Response by SPC Curtis Underwood made Mar 14 at 2021 1:43 PM

SPC Curtis Underwood — Sun, 14 Mar 2021 13:43:38 -0400

Leadership is and has always been an issue that takes on different forms at different times and situations.
In a combat situation being autocratic and being aggressive might be the best way to lead because a in that situation it pays to lead and not just give orders.
I have been in some varying leadership roles and found it depends on the situation, the people you are leading and the mission. It does not matter if it is in or out of the military.
First off a leaders has to have confidence in them selves. To lead is to be able to do the job yourself and to be willing to do it. I would never tell anyone I was in charge of to do something I had not done myself. Then always give prays where prays is deserved. If someone your in charge of needs help with anything always help them best you can and most of the time it will return you big dividends in how much your are liked and how well you get the mission completed.
Keep in mind how you give out instructions things you want done is a prime part of leadership. Outside the military the best way is to ask them to do this or that in ways that increase their want to achieve this. Inside you have to phrase it as an order.
I have had hard core leaders that was you will do this or else types and this only works if you have individuals that can not find other work and has no choice but to do it. I would purposely respond to those types with slow motion lol because I had other choices and did not give a darn. I was young and dumb back then. Now I change them by the way I act and do, not easy but it will eventually give some results.
The too easy going leaders does not work because they are taken advantage of, so you have to be somewhere in between.

Response by CAPT Edward Schmitt made Mar 30 at 2021 7:11 PM

CAPT Edward Schmitt — Tue, 30 Mar 2021 19:11:40 -0400

Excellent and insightful. I absolutely agree that leadership requires sometimes making and implementing difficult and possibly unpopular decisions. However that is completely different than being an autocratic martinet throwing around abuse

Response by GySgt Kenneth Pepper made Mar 31 at 2021 2:16 PM

GySgt Kenneth Pepper — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 14:16:44 -0400

A very nice piece. I understand completely what you are saying, although my experiences have been a little different.
I served in very technical roles during my military career and was a subject matter expert after a very few years. There was not a lot of micromanagement and I was free, especially the last 10 years or so, to manage my processes and people how I saw fit. This was partially attributed to leaders that recognized that I taught my people how to do it right the first time. I sought out and valued my guys input and encouraged collaboration, while knowing that the buck stopped with me. Every success was shared and any failure fell directly into my lap when in charge.
The funny thing is in the last 12 years in the "real world" I see much less of that. Managers and even executives are so worried about the slightest misstep that they micromanage processes and people that they have very little or outdated practical knowledge of. It seems that the Covid crisis and ensuing mess has made matters worse.
Kudos to you for recognizing your supervisor/mentor for a great leadership style. And even bigger Kudos to Ryan.