Second In Charge

Episode 51:  Officer Of The Day

Radar:      Company…order arms!  Company’s arms are ordered, sir.

Frank:    Now then, during Colonel Blake’s absence, I will act in his capacity.  So, if there are any problems, you may bring them to me or to our fine adjutant here, Major Houlihan.  Talking to the major is the same as talking to me since we are intimate with each other at all times.

In Henry Blake’s absence, Frank is acting Commanding Officer and Hawkeye is rostered as Officer of the Day.  During their temporary command, Colonel Flagg from Army Intelligence brings in a prisoner for treatment and Klinger is caught several times trying a number of unsuccessful attempts at desertion.

I learned a valuable lesson a number of years ago while catching up with our leadership team upon my return from holidays.   A significant issue arose in my absence that required immediate attention and a decision was made that caused unintended consequences.  It would have been easy to criticize the decision, but I realized in the moment that it was more important for me and the team to affirm the process leading to the decision and their willingness to lead in my absence.  When authority is delegated it needs to be backed if we are serious about empowering leaders, because “Leadership is not just what happens when you’re there; it’s what happens when you’re not there” (Ken Blanchard).  Affirming leaders when you are present and empowering leaders when you are absent expands your leadership influence, whether you are there or not.

Command Decisions

Episode 50:  Rainbow Bridge

Colonel Blake:   Well, I’m afraid this is what you call your 

                 command decision.  It’s “lonely at the top” time.  

                 Strictly something for your leader. 

Hawkeye:         Well, Henry?

Colonel Blake:   Oh Golly.  Whatever you people decide is fine with 

                 me.

The Chinese send the 4077 a message to offer a prisoner exchange as they are unable to adequately treat the captured US casualties.  Colonel Blake calls together the officers to discuss the risks involved in the exchange and calls on volunteers to meet the enemy in their territory.

Leading an organisation into unknown territory always involves an element of risk and demands courageous leadership to make the call to lead where others fear to go.  These sorts of tough decisions cannot be avoided, rarely should be delegated and ought never to be abdicated.  While there are tough decisions that require the collective wisdom of other leaders or a committee to determine the correct course of action, more often than not, what makes decisions tough is not determining what needs to be done but having the courage to do it!  Leadership expert Peter Drucker writes, “Just because something is difficult, disagreeable, or frightening there is no reason for not doing it if it is right.”  From that crucial conversation to a corporate contract, the knowledge of what is the right thing to do can’t be compromised by the degree of risk or reservation by those we lead.  Command decisions require uncompromising character and courage from those entrusted with the responsibility to lead.

Keeping Mobile

Episode 49:  The General Flipped At Dawn

General:       We’re gonna have to move your unit closer to the 

               front Colonel

Colonel Blake: You mean where the guys are fighting Sir?

General:       “You do your best business on Main Street.” -   

               General Cornwallis

Trapper:       It’s not all that pleasant being on the 50-yard 

               line, General.

Colonel Blake: It’s very dangerous.

General:       Danger is our business.  Get your second in command 

               and we’ll find a new location.  MASH means Mobile 

               Army Surgical Hospital, and mobile you shall be.

The camp is tuned into chaos when General Steele arrives to inspect the 4077 and demonstrates some bizarre behaviour that makes him appear to be insane.  His order to relocate the 4077 closer to the front line convinces the officers that he is crazy.

In a constantly changing world the ability for organisations to remain mobile is critical to keep up with their particular market and client needs.  Organisations and leaders who refuse to adjust their position in response to their environment will not only miss opportunities for growth, but risk declining and slipping into irrelevance.  As a church leader, I am all too aware of the importance of keeping the church mobile to be a dynamic movement in the present instead of a static monument to the past.  In his book Where the Rivers Flow, Peter Kaldor identifies the challenge for the church to reach the moving masses:  “Traditional models of ministry tend to be based on a local area.  Greater mobility therefore presents considerable challenges to church ministries.”  Every context of leadership faces the same challenges in keeping their core business mobile to effectively reach beyond their local context.

The Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction

Episode 48:  A Smattering Of Intelligence

Frank:         Arrest me? What for?

Col. Flagg:    You’re a Communist!

Capt. Stone:   He’s a Fascist!

Frank:         I’m not either!  I’m nothing.

Col. Flagg:    I’ve got a list of 17 left-wing organisations and 

               charities you’ve contributed to.

Frank:         I never!  It’s a lie.  They’re all lies!

Capt. Stone:   Well, somebody’s lying.

Trapper:       That’s right, and we know who it is.

Hawkeye:      It’s us.  You two were so intent on finding some 

              breach of security, some leak.  You don’t need the    

              real thing.  You guys are self-leaking.

A mail call from home causes Henry to be up to his neck balancing his wife’s cheque book, Klinger to invent another family heartache story in want of a discharge, Frank to be obsessed about his stock portfolio and Trapper to get drunk and attempt desertion because he can’t see his daughters.

I’m often intrigued by conspiracy theories and urban legends and can understand how the line between truth and fiction becomes blurred with the ease and speed in which stories spread over the internet, especially through social networking sites.  When the saying, “Don’t let truth get in the way of a good story” normalizes the way truth is handled, personal and corporate reputations fall victim to our obsession with rumours and scandals.  There is sound wisdom to be found from one of the most successful leaders of Israel who warns, “keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies” (Psalm 34:13), which should serve as a guidepost when sifting through the fragments of truth in any story.   

No Discharge In This War

Episode 47:  Mail Call

Hawkeye:  Was it something I said?

Trapper:  I’m gonna grab a jeep, drive to Seoul and catch the first 

          plane home.

Hawkeye:  Right after they shoot you for desertion and book you for 

          drunk driving.

Trapper:  I gotta see my daughters... 

Hawkeye:  Trap, leaving a war in the middle is very upsetting to 

          those who invited us.

Trapper:  Hey, listen.  I don’t like a movie, I get up and leave. 

          I don’t like the war.  I’m going.

Hawkeye:  Oh, come on Trap, you gotta stick around to see how it 

          ends.

Trapper:  Oh, but it doesn’t end. It’s continuous. When it finishes 

          here, they take it on the road. I can catch it anytime anyplace.

A mail call from home causes Henry to be up to his neck balancing his wife’s check book, Klinger to invent another family heartache story in want of a discharge, Frank to be obsessed about his stock portfolio and Trapper to get drunk and attempt desertion because he can’t see his daughters.

Leading from deep within the trenches of business, politics, community services or church based mission can leave one feeling overwhelmed by the pressures and demands of leadership on the frontline.  When engulfed by what seems to be a raging battle at times, the ‘fight or flight’ responses of human beings are manifested.  Some leaders have the resilience to stand firm and the resources to fight through the conflict, while others choose to resign and retreat from the battle.  While these are quite normal and maybe even appropriate responses to our environment, the mark of an effective leader is to confront the challenges of frontline leadership with a resolve to stay the course and complete the mission!  In his one volume history of The Salvation Army, No Discharge In This War, General Frederick Coutts writes, “The only truthful conclusion is that there is no conclusion. There is no discharge in this war. One generation of the Salvationists may succeed another, but the work of the Army does not cease because human need does not cease.”  Whatever your frontline, there is no discharge in this war until the mission is complete.