Hanscom personnel learn the art of great leadership

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. C. Michaela Judge
  • 66th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
HANSCOM AFB. Mass --  The best leaders do get mad.

This statement was among 37 other leadership principles from Retired Maj. Gen. Perry Smith's "Be a Better Leader" article that was discussed during an Integration Week course March 11.

The class, taught by retired Col. Al Moseley, professor of program management at the Defense Acquisition University, challenged attendees to build a working definition of leadership, examined the motives of leaders and followers and looked at how to become a better leader.

Since retiring from his 30-year Air Force career in 2005 at Hanscom, Mr. Moseley now regularly teaches program management skills courses, to include the leadership course, to Department of Defense lieutenant colonels, GS-14s, industry partners, and equivalent-level individuals at the Department of Homeland Security. Mr. Moseley also teaches other courses at the executive level within the School of Program Manager's at the university.

March 11 was the first time the "Be a Better Leader" course was open to the entire Hanscom community.

More than 20 students attended from a diverse range of career fields, and many found themselves there for different reasons. Becoming a better communicator, a more effective leader, a team player and seeing a different perspective on leadership are just a few of the areas students hoped to learn more about.

In addition to looking over General Smith's 38 leadership principles, the class openly discussed what it meant to be a leader.

"The focus of leadership lives with the people you lead and the way you prepare yourself to lead others," Mr. Moseley said during the discussion.

This people-centered philosophy resonated throughout Mr. Moseley's presentation. "Some people in leadership positions feel that they have to choose between focusing on the mission and people -- and that can be a problem. If leaders put their energy into taking care of their people, those individuals will have their leaders' backs, and because of that, they will take care of the mission."

Leaders, however, have to communicate that message to their people and physically sit them down and tell them "I will take care of you," and mean it, he said.

This type of verbal communication, he said, is also important when it comes to feedback sessions. "Leaders have to always communicate -- feedback is the breakfast of champions. People want to know how they are doing, if they are meeting the leader's expectations and what's going to happen in the future."

To further bring up questions and topics for discussion, Mr. Moseley gave the class a "pop quiz." The quiz asked questions on different aspects of leadership -- what makes a leader, what do people look for in a leader and the principles of leadership were all integrated during the test.

However, class discussions weren't the only method of teaching. Mr. Moseley had the class split into five teams, and each team analyzed a scenario and had to come up with a solution or decision for a leadership problem.

While groups worked on scenarios, Mr. Moseley touched on the importance of decision making, and how leaders have to factor in a lot when making them. "You always have to be thinking about the organization and how your decisions will affect the cohesion of the organization because people are always watching you."

The wisdom that Mr. Moseley passed on didn't stop in the classroom; he said he's tried to carry many of these principles throughout his career.

Some of the lessons learned along the way have come from General Smith's article that he discovered years ago while still in uniform. "One of my favorite principles in that article that I've tried to live by is 'Thank people creatively.'"

It's easy to thank the people in the organization who are out front daily, he said; however, Mr. Moseley stressed the importance of thanking the "invisible" people, the behind-the-scenes workers, and making a connection with them. "These individuals, to a large degree, are the heart beat of the organization -- they make it run."

He also said that taking time to get employees out of the office to do something different on occasion is a great way to let individuals see their leaders in a new environment, and a great way to motivate them. "Remember, both leaders and followers have a mission to accomplish. Motivated followers will achieve more than the mission, and will go further than any leader could ever imagine."