CHALLENGES OF 21
ST
CENTURY MILITARY
LEADERSHIP – HOW DO WE TRAIN?
“An officer of the future is required to be an intelligent warrior,
who is a manager, a bureaucrat, a specialist technician and a
well informed citizen; an officer who obeys and yet thinks
before he acts; who is young yet mature, and who is both an
idealist and a realist”
The end of the 20
th
century saw the emergency of a tremendous explosion in new
technologies and information access. The national security strategy of the United
States describes the change in the last decade as, “The world is undergoing an
accelerating process of globalization in which technology is developing exponentially,
information is exchanged around the globe cheaply and instantaneously; economies
are increasingly becoming interdependent, borders are more porous, people are
seeking political and economic freedoms, and more and more groups are seeking
expression of their ethnic identity.”
With these changes in the world and introduction of new technologies into the Armed
Forces, there is a new leadership challenge to officers at all levels. The way leaders
will communicate with their subordinates in training and combat is changing. Leaders
also have a responsibility to become technically proficient with new informational
technologies centered on computer literacy. Leaders of combat arms units can no
longer pride themselves on being `Computer Illiterate’.
However, the Revolution in Military Affaris (RMA) occurring in the 21
st
century does not
mean that leaders in information age will `update’ the core military values of honour,
patriotism, honesty, integrity, loyalty, competence, unity, physical and moral courage.
Neither the basic leadership traits are going to change. This is because these values
and traits do not change with time. It is precisely for this reason that just as it was
wrong 1000 years ago for a soldier to lie, cheat or steal, it is still wrong today and it
would be wrong 1000 years from now. RMA will face to update the doctrinal,
managerial, organizational and technological systems associated with it. These
systems must keep pace with the current technology, otherwise they will be left behind,
as the rest of the world progressess
1
.
Desired Attributes of a 21
st
Century Leader
“ It we should have to fight, we should be prepared to do so
from the neck up, instead of from the neck down”.
- Jimmy Doolittle
In addition to all the time tested leadership qualities, leaders in the information age
have to possess some more skill to operate successfully. He has to meet the demands
of high tech battlefield and legitimate expectations of today’s soldiers. He should have
excellent skills for; communication with his command and handling of media personel
