Leadership Philosophy/Commander Interview Essay Assignment

The intent of this assignment is to interact with a squadron level leader and reflect on your personal leadership/command philosophy. Capitalize on this pivotal point in your professional career and prepare for your next level of leadership.

1. Leadership Philosophy. You have been selected to take command of a unit with a mission similar to your current unit. You are in a meeting with your Group Commander (or hiring authority) who makes the following statement: “Tell me what your leadership philosophy is for this organization. I don’t have a lot of time, so I need you to make it as concise as possible.” What would be your response? After you have responded, you are asked: “How did you come to that philosophy, what traits and leadership characteristics do you think are important for a leader to possess, and how do those apply to your leadership philosophy and the success of your organization?” What would be your response? For the second question, use theories, principles, and concepts from the self-paced LC course to support your position.

2. Interview Summary. Conduct a two-way interactive (in person, telephonic, Skype, etc.,) interview of a squadron commander (sister service commanders, CAP commanders are acceptable for the assignment) or civilian equivalent. Discuss their most challenging leadership/command issue and how they resolved it or how they have dealt with it if it was not resolved. (Note: The interviewee must have at least 12 months experience in a command equivalent position; retired officers are not acceptable and any civilians must work for DoD). Discuss what influenced their decision making process, what skills/competencies they used to resolve or address it, what best prepared them to deal with the situation, and the outcome (personally/organizationally). Were there any decisions they would change? Did they take criticism (internal or external) for any of the decisions they made, and how has that influenced their professional development and/or their unit? Discuss what resources they used (peers, mentors, values, etc.) to make their decisions? Write a summary of the interview. Do not post any actual names or organizations. Do not delay in setting up the interview—Commanders are busy with mission requirements!

3. Interview Analysis. Write an analysis of the interviewee’s actions. Evaluate the situation based on your leadership philosophy. How would your philosophy influence your actions if you experienced the same challenge? Would you do things differently? Why or why not? This is another area of the essay where you should use theories, principles, and concepts from the self-paced LC course to support your position.

This paper will be 3-6 pages, not to exceed 1800 words (not counting title/endnotes), Times New Roman 12-pitch, double spaced with 1-inch margins, and

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with page numbers centered in the footer. The title page will include the paper title, your name, the course and section, the date, and will have the file name right-justified in the header (last name first initial_issue discussed_assignment name, e.g., SmithA_SqnDeath_LCPaper). The assignment grading rubric will provide more ideas on what makes a good paper—the rubric can be found in the lesson seven area of the self-paced LC course ( see the “Grading Criteria” link) and in the Applied LC course “My Course Grades” area.

Evaluating the actions of another person is challenging, but valuable. You are expected to incorporate ideas, concepts, and facts presented by others as you develop your paper. You must appropriately cite quoted and paraphrased material. Failure to do so constitutes plagiarism, a serious breach of academic and professional standards that can bring “serious professional repercussions.”1 Cite the interview IAW the AU Style and Author Guide for unattributed interviews (see AU-1 pg 132, 156 and sample below2).

1. Air University, AU-1, Air University Style and Author Guide (Maxwell AFB, AL: Air University Press, April 2005), 137. Online, available at: https://acsc.blackboard.com/modules/_1555_1/austyle_guide.pdf

2. Interview with squadron commander from Maxwell AFB, AL, 8 April 2013.

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https://acsc.blackboard.com/modules/_1555_1/austyle_guide.pdf