Five Things I Learned From the Men on a Submarine

A few weeks ago, I wrote a blog about customer (no)service during a recent buying experience and it prompted some interesting discussion with Adrian Bashford in Ontario. People who responded to the blog were unanimous in their agreement that leadership is accountable for the customer relationship. That led to the question: where do leaders learn skills other than finance, marketing and operations? Adrian suggested that the lack of military training in our leadership ranks over the past few decades might be at the heart of the problem. My first reaction, was “heck no” but it got me thinking about an experience I had a few years ago when I spent two days with the officers and men of the USS Nebraska at the King’s Bay Nuclear Submarine base in Georgia. Adrian might be on to something.

• Values Guide Every Decision: every man knew the Navy’s core values and the expectation that behaviors and decisions were guided by those values.

• It’s About the Mission: The purpose of each 3-month trip under the ocean was well understood by all men on the boat; it was the plan of execution.

• Train to the Mission: training was embedded in every task during a voyage and was reinforced during dry dock periods. Every training session included an After Action Review. Nothing long or drawn out, just What Happened? What Was Supposed to Happen? What Accounted for the Difference? What Will We Do Differently Next Time? During those days and nights at sea, the men were engaged in learning and studying for their exams to move to the next position.

• Only Warheads Exist in Silos: the men worked in cohesive groups, teaching their jobs to others and learning new jobs from more experienced men. The most dangerous element of a voyage is fire and each man not only knew what he was supposed to do but how to do another man’s job if necessary.

• Every Man is a Leader: rank did not preclude a man speaking up if he felt that a decision by a superior went against either the Navy’s Core Values or the Mission. This was an expectation that was constantly reinforced by the Captain and the Chief of the Boat.

It's a lot easier to run a business or manage one when people know what the expected behaviors are and act accordingly; understand why they are doing what they are doing; cooperate to achieve common results and are confident that if they speak up, they will be heard. If you’re aligned with Mission and Values, everyone is a Leader and everyone understands the accountability piece.

Isn’t it better to build the foundation at the front end instead of trying to fix things in the organization that should never have broken? Is your mission inspiring? Have your values retained their meaning over time? What do you do to learn the hard(er) skills of leadership?