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OBT Director talks Business Transformation with Army Leaders

By Mr Lyle Hogue (Office of Business Transformation)April 25, 2012

LTG Bill Grisoli
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

LTG Bill Grisoli, Director of the Army's Office of Business Transformation shared his thoughts with Class 62 of the Army Senior Leader Development Course -- Intermediate at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The intermediate level course is designed to teach strategic leadership to Army Brigadier and Major Generals and select Senior Executive Service members.

LTG Grisoli used his time to facilitate a discussion about the challenges and opportunities that face the Army today and as we progress towards the Army of 2020, as part of the Joint Force 2020. He asked the students to reflect on their responses in the context of the New Defense Strategy announced in a joint statement with President Barack Obama and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta.

Much of the conversation during the classes centered on the fact of as Grisoli put it, "going forward, we know we are going to lose some capacity (endstrength) but we want to maintain capability." The conversation focused on how to do that with declining resources.

On the business side of the Army, Grisoli stressed the work that senior Army leaders are completing to adapt the many processes to better align the Institutional Army with the agile operating force -- ensuring we provide trained and ready forces at best value. The institutional or "business side" of the Army is responsible for training, recruiting, staffing, equipping and sustaining Army forces.

The session came to a close by Grisoli challenging students to step up to their roles as leaders in Army business transformation. He asked the students to promote resource-informed decision making, use available Army tools to measure outcomes objectively, attack waste, ineffectiveness, and unnecessary redundancy, and cultivate stewardship. Grisoli added this will lead us to arrive at Readiness at Best Value for the Nation.

The session was very conversational, which Grisoli was delighted about. "These leaders are part of the Army that will take us forward to the Army of 2020 as part of the Joint Force of 2020. These are real relevant issues and we need their thoughts and involvement as we search for solutions."