Thursday, May 06, 2004
Rumsfeld's Broken Rules: Leadership Lessons from the Pentagon
Keep the Boss Informed.
Rumsfeld's sleeping in the proverbial doghouse, these days, not so much because of what he did or didn't do, but what he did or didn't communicate.
The president was particularly disturbed at having had to learn from news reports this week about the scope of misconduct documented in an Army investigative report completed in March, according to the official, who refused to be named so he could speak more candidly.
Rumsfeld's Pentagon is not the only agency in Federal government. And it has possibly the worst PR crew of all of them, partly because of its own klutzyness, and partly because it squandered so much of its credibility with the press a generation ago, during the Viet Nam war.
"Look, boss, we've got a problem."
These are some of the toughest words for any manager to say. And also some of the most important.
The Abu Gharaib photgraphs were going to get out. When every other soldier has a digital camera and there's 40 laptops in every company and internet access, there is simply no way to suppress any sensational photograph. All the real cool photos are going to be on ten computers by the time the battalion finds out, and e-mailed to God knows where.
The information genie pops its own cork.
Had Rumsfeld given his boss a heads-up ahead of time, then the president could have directed a coordinated, multi-agency effort to contain the fallout.
He could have gotten the State department involved behind the scenes, working to soothe relations with other countries. He could have quizzed the CIA director on what his plan was to hold his own people accountable. He could have gotten the Attorney General to work up a way to enforce the law against private contractors and civilian government agency personnel abroad who are not subject to the UCMJ. He could have taken ownership of the story, rather than ceding initiative to 60 Minutes and The New Yorker
Rumsfeld blew several decision points.
He could have given the President a heads-up when the Pentagon got to review the photos. "Hey, boss--I have something here that might bite us in the ass when it gets out. I want you to be aware of it. We just got these photos at the Pentagon the other day, and an investigation is already underway."
Failing that, he should have directed a memorandum to the President briefing him on the salient points of General Taguba's report as soon as it came out.
Failing that, he should have given the President a heads-up when General Karpinski was relieved and sent home. If I were the president, and I had a general officer relieved of duty in Baghdad, I'd want to know why. And I'd certainly expect the SecDef to know the details.
Failing that, he should have briefed the President as soon as it became clear that 60 Minutes was on to the photos.
Back at the beginning of the Administration, the Wall Street Journal published "Rumsfeld's Rules," a list of proverbs, tips, and principles for senior staff members in government.
It's a must read for anyone in middle management.
Here's Rumsfeld's Rule number 7:
If you foul up, tell the president and correct it fast. Delay only compounds mistakes.
And later: See that the president, the cabinet and the staff are informed. If cut out of the information flow, their decisions may be poor, not made, or not confidently or persuasively implemented.
Obviously, Rumsfeld didn't follow his own advice. Had he followed rule number 7, he would have allowed the President to appear proactive in dealing with the Abu Ghraib story, and not reactive. And so Rumsfeld would have fulfilled rule number 11:
Preserve the president's options. He may need them.
And rule 20:
The price of being close to the president is delivering bad news. You fail him if you don't tell him the truth. Others won't do it.
The next two rules are related--and were both broken by the Pentagon:
If you are lost -- “climb, conserve, and confess.” -- U.S. Navy SNJ Flight Manual
If in doubt, move decisions up to the President.
And most prophetically: Don't do or say things that you would not like to see on the front page of the Washington Post.
Whoops.
Splash, out
Jason
Rumsfeld's sleeping in the proverbial doghouse, these days, not so much because of what he did or didn't do, but what he did or didn't communicate.
The president was particularly disturbed at having had to learn from news reports this week about the scope of misconduct documented in an Army investigative report completed in March, according to the official, who refused to be named so he could speak more candidly.
Rumsfeld's Pentagon is not the only agency in Federal government. And it has possibly the worst PR crew of all of them, partly because of its own klutzyness, and partly because it squandered so much of its credibility with the press a generation ago, during the Viet Nam war.
"Look, boss, we've got a problem."
These are some of the toughest words for any manager to say. And also some of the most important.
The Abu Gharaib photgraphs were going to get out. When every other soldier has a digital camera and there's 40 laptops in every company and internet access, there is simply no way to suppress any sensational photograph. All the real cool photos are going to be on ten computers by the time the battalion finds out, and e-mailed to God knows where.
The information genie pops its own cork.
Had Rumsfeld given his boss a heads-up ahead of time, then the president could have directed a coordinated, multi-agency effort to contain the fallout.
He could have gotten the State department involved behind the scenes, working to soothe relations with other countries. He could have quizzed the CIA director on what his plan was to hold his own people accountable. He could have gotten the Attorney General to work up a way to enforce the law against private contractors and civilian government agency personnel abroad who are not subject to the UCMJ. He could have taken ownership of the story, rather than ceding initiative to 60 Minutes and The New Yorker
Rumsfeld blew several decision points.
He could have given the President a heads-up when the Pentagon got to review the photos. "Hey, boss--I have something here that might bite us in the ass when it gets out. I want you to be aware of it. We just got these photos at the Pentagon the other day, and an investigation is already underway."
Failing that, he should have directed a memorandum to the President briefing him on the salient points of General Taguba's report as soon as it came out.
Failing that, he should have given the President a heads-up when General Karpinski was relieved and sent home. If I were the president, and I had a general officer relieved of duty in Baghdad, I'd want to know why. And I'd certainly expect the SecDef to know the details.
Failing that, he should have briefed the President as soon as it became clear that 60 Minutes was on to the photos.
Back at the beginning of the Administration, the Wall Street Journal published "Rumsfeld's Rules," a list of proverbs, tips, and principles for senior staff members in government.
It's a must read for anyone in middle management.
Here's Rumsfeld's Rule number 7:
If you foul up, tell the president and correct it fast. Delay only compounds mistakes.
And later: See that the president, the cabinet and the staff are informed. If cut out of the information flow, their decisions may be poor, not made, or not confidently or persuasively implemented.
Obviously, Rumsfeld didn't follow his own advice. Had he followed rule number 7, he would have allowed the President to appear proactive in dealing with the Abu Ghraib story, and not reactive. And so Rumsfeld would have fulfilled rule number 11:
Preserve the president's options. He may need them.
And rule 20:
The price of being close to the president is delivering bad news. You fail him if you don't tell him the truth. Others won't do it.
The next two rules are related--and were both broken by the Pentagon:
If you are lost -- “climb, conserve, and confess.” -- U.S. Navy SNJ Flight Manual
If in doubt, move decisions up to the President.
And most prophetically: Don't do or say things that you would not like to see on the front page of the Washington Post.
Whoops.
Splash, out
Jason
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