FORT HOOD, Texas - From outside the Army looking in, onlookers might imagine that Brigade Combat Teams are made fairly even. Given personnel and equipment numbers, overall purpose, and basic mission, some might venture to say that BCTs are pretty standard across the board. But, what would happen if by chance you belonged to a brigade where business was not carried out quite as usual?
Soldiers within the 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division don't have to worry about their commanders and command sergeants major spending hours and hours at the brigade headquarters for meetings. The necessity for executive officers to build everlasting PowerPoint slideshows for never-ending command and staff meetings just doesn't exist within the Greywolf battle rhythm. Instead, leaders are empowered to carryout business within their battalions and focus their attention on their Soldiers.
"I wanted Greywolf to be an organization where people want to come to work and be part of an organization where we learn from each other every day," said Col. Matthew Van Wagenen, 3rd ABCT commander. "We've taken a lot of the staff process and made it go away so we could quickly achieve results with staff and support."
Focusing on the command team-to-command team dynamic rather then multiple meetings, PowerPoint or massive amounts of email, leaders said the brigade and subordinate units exercised the opportunity to concentrate on the human dimension so that organizations maintained the velocity to create change very, very quickly. Given that 3rd ABCT is the only maneuver brigade that hasn't deployed in support the 1st Cavalry Division these past two years, learning the culture of how to be a supporting unit proved key in establishing a positive operating environment.
"Giving time back to leaders by not having meetings expressed trust in them to take care of their business," said Command Sgt. Maj. Scott Peare, former 3rd ABCT command sergeant major. "This contributed to the overall command climate by decentralizing information requirements and placing the responsibility of making appropriate decisions at the appropriate level."
Noting that being part of such an organization is far outside the norm they had previously experienced in other units, commanders said they felt empowered and appreciated in Greywolf by having more time to spend training and accessing their Soldiers rather than being stuck in a swivel chair.
"Without a doubt, the highlights of my tenure as a battalion commander are being in the motorpool pulling pack, walking live fire lanes with rifle teams and being on the firing line with our tankers," said Lt. Col. Brian McCarthy, commander of the 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment of his experiences with the Warhorse battalion. "I submit every commander, first sergeant or leader in this brigade would say that they can talk to GW6 and be confident that their words are being heard."
McCarthy said he felt encouraged to throw ideas up on the wall to see what might work. The Lancaster, Massachusetts native says the culture of success within the Greywolf brigade established an upbeat, positive climate where ideas aren't considered crazy when they work.
"We operate in a collaborative environment where everyone contributes to planning and executing operations," said Lt. Col. Andrew Watson, commander of the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd ABCT. "Understand that you can't build buy-in to a vision unless you truly hear and value the opinions of your subordinates and find a way to make adjustments as necessary."
Responsible for a number of diverse missions within the division, 3rd ABCT adjusted to the environment through daily application of the Army Design Methodology, which lends creativity and critical thinking skills to the operations process.
"Leaders create focus through intent and empower leaders to ensure success," said former 3rd ABCT executive officer Lt. Col. Johnny Sutton of the business not as usual command culture. "Obviously, a unit cannot focus on all things, so choosing what is important and ensures readiness becomes paramount."
Sutton noted that clear and articulate commander's intent created an environment that allowed commanders and staffs to make mistakes, gain experience, and achieve results. He says leaders create focus through intent and empower others to ensure success.
Peare said it's important to accept that sometimes good results are good enough, compliment subordinates a lot, and talk daily and often with leaders in their environment.
"Trust your people and empower them to think and act on their own," said Peare. "Know the difference between what is important and what really matters. If you, as a leader, inundate yourself with needless 'good to know' information, you will miss something important or be so bogged down in the weeds you will not be able to put the energy into what really matters."
Van Wagenen noted that what's important about having a flat organization is that it's not about command relationships, but instead about relationships in command and among the staffs. A fairly simple concept of focusing on people and those relationships, he said the unit made adjustments along the way based upon the surrounding environment.
"We've grown a culture of leaders who have a fundamentally different approach on how we solve problems and how we grow teams," said Van Wagenen. "I hope that as leaders leave here and go throughout the Army that they take this approach with them."
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