Unlike the US Naval Institute Proceedings there are remarkably few articles in the Journal of the Australian Naval Institute on command and leadership. One of the few was published in the August 1987 edition. It was “Discipline, Leadership and Command Skills for Combat” and was the transcript of an address by Commodore Adrian Cummins* given to the RAAF Staff College.
Discipline, Leadership and Command Skills for Combat
Group Captain Montgomery, Lady and Gentlemen,
Thank you for again inviting me to address this forum on leadership I was somewhat surprised and honoured to be invited last year and delighted to be able to make this presentation this year.
The subject you asked me to talk about was ‘Discipline.’ Of itself it is a little dry and leads to some odd perceptions. As a sailor, you would all gain from me a view of naval discipline which could start with the 18th Century Naval Discipline Act and such luminaries of its application as Captain Bligh, who must have been well thought of by the Admiralty as he was eventually promoted to Vice Admiral.
What I thought I’d do is talk about ‘Discipline, Leadership and Command Skills for Combat’.
In developing this theme it is useful to start at the purpose of our profession. Clausewitz states “War is only a continuation of state policy by other means” and further, “An act of violence intended to compel our opponent to fulfil our will”. We collectively are the people our Government would use to manage that application of violence should policy require it. We are the professional experts of our nation in all the gradations of the use of violence for the pursuit of international objectives; and also, should law and order break down, to support and aid the civil power of the State in restoring the peace at home.
Setting The Scene
As we all know, the cost and destructiveness of modern conventional war let alone any nuclear option has become extremely high. Other means of conflict such as subversion and terrorism are becoming attractive options for many nations and groups. In this area acceptable weapons are misinformation and disinformation. Bribery and religious fanaticism are used in a calculated way along with the usual terrorist instruments of indiscriminate attack on any suitable target.
The central source of resources of all kinds for these attacks is almost invariably the Soviet Union and the principal intelligence arms of the Politburo, the KGB and the GRU. Whilst it is true that there are some other mainly religious sources of propaganda and terrorism, the Soviet and Eastern Bloc origins of terrorism prevail but let me return to the problems of propaganda and terrorism later.
To further set the scene let me quote from General Fuller, from his famous book The Conduct of War 1789 to 1961:
“The conduct of war, like the practice of medicine is an art and because the aim of the physician and surgeon is to prevent, cure or alleviate the diseases of the human body, so should the aim of the statesman and soldier be to prevent, cure or alleviate the wars which inflict the international body. Unfortunately this has been little appreciated, and while in recent times the art of healing has been placed on a scientific footing, the conduct of war has remained in its alchemical stage; worse still, during the present century it has reverted to its barbaric form of destruction and slaughter.”
Fuller goes on to say:
“Brutality in war seldom pays, this is a truism with few exceptions. Another is never drive your enemy to despair, for although it may win you the war, it will almost certainly prolong it to your disadvantage.”
And now, here are some more points which I see as important:
- Those who must use violence in the service of their Government, must be the most controlled and disciplined of men, and
- Those who are responsible for the management of conflict must primarily be aware of the nature of conflict as Clausewitz states, “The first, the greatest, the most decisive act of judgement which the statesman and general exercises is rightly to understand the war in which he engages, not to take it for something, to wish to make it something, which by nature of its relations it is impossible to be.”
Leaders must have a thorough and very wide ranging knowledge of the nature of conflict, and of its causes and its effects. It is strange indeed that most of the recent writers on the theory of war and on the psychology of our profession have not reached the highest ranks within it, or should I say been allowed to. This tells us something important. Norman F. Dixon in his famous work On the Psychology of Military Incompetence devotes considerable space to this phenomena – anti-intellectualism.
The First Discipline
Our first discipline therefore is the one of acquiring the knowledge of our complex and vital business. A broad education in the arts and sciences, and a detailed study of conflict in all its manifestations must be the ongoing intellectual pursuit of the military profession.
Let me now shift tack a little, and talk about the development of leaders. I was reminded in the reading to prepare this talk, about our own revered Naval College as it was in 1950 and of some research I recently did in preparing a talk about Nelson for Trafalgar Day. I joined at 13, and have now served in the RAN for half of its existence. The basis of the education and training in 1790 and 1950 were alarmingly alike. The routine for midshipmen, the punishments, the chain of command, and the term of service (12 years past the age of 18 or your parents were not allowed to let you take up your place on board). The food had improved in both quality and quantity in those 160 years, but was exactly the same as that of a Borstal institution as I subsequently found when taken on an escorted tour of such a place.
Each Sunday we were solemnly paraded at divisions and sent to Church. It was an offence for our senior officers not to do so. On occasion we were read the Articles of War and part of the Naval Discipline Act. The Act had been left largely unchanged in substance since 1790 but the delegations to apply punishments had been substantially lessened. However, it was somewhat of a shock at 13. and a proud officer and therefore gentleman, to find out that for many acts of neglect or commission, one was liable on the face of it, “to suffer death or any other punishment hereafter mentioned”.
The Naval College seemed to run like a combination of a second class boys high school and a slightly easier version of a 1790 frigate of the line. The continuing personal battle to survive in the early years there was more preferable than the punishment for daring to make any suggestion of change. Fortunately times have changed.
Underlying the routine of the place was harsh discipline by immediate seniors, a rote style of learning, an emphasis on sport, and a cruel application of fitness training, combined with obsessions about neatness, drill and a code of privileges. The basic aspects of the qualities and disciplines required at sea were all in those routines but they had been distorted in the means of application. The line between the obsessions of ‘Bulldust’ and the need to train for a safe life at sea were muddled. We were not to see this until much later in life.
The needs of life at sea are quite different to hose ashore.
- If you don’t provide it for the voyage you can’t get it later.
- If you don’t secure it, it will break loose and damage something.
- If you don’t notice something you could go aground or have a collision.
- The weather is always an overriding factor, constant attention to it is vital.
- Maintenance and replacement of gear is essential for safe sailing, and
- Cleanliness prevents disease. You don’t get replacements for those who get sick.
You will excuse me if I use the sea environment. I’m a sailor. The sea is a harsh and unforgiving environment, for both small craft and larger ships. On top of all that, add the intense demands of any level of combat at sea.
Instant reactions to orders, the perfect execution of drills for the use of equipments, as an individual and as part of a team, in daylight, darkness, fair weather or foul are some of the basics for safe and effective duty at sea.
In addition, you have to live in cramped and often wet quarters even in modern warships. It is a young man’s business. You learn, as a midshipman, the realities of life at close hand in all of its human and professional reality. There is no place for the lazy, slow, untrained or incompetent. The professional skills of the seaman, engineer, navigator, gunner etc, are ingrained as part of life. For some, these basic professional skills become the limit of their world. The characteristics ascribed to the majority of naval officers last century were reliable, well trained, stubborn and dull. Resistance to change, obsession about neatness and cleanliness prevailed. Some would say that elements of these characteristics remain. Brute force was seen as the route to victory. I have set a broad scene on the environment in warships.
The Second Discipline
The second discipline is more complex. It is made up of many components. I suppose it is the discipline of perfectly using our vehicles of war for whatever the purpose of the moment. Key features are:
- It is a 24 hour a day business.
- Training, maintenance and hotel services run on a continuous basis.
- Whilst structured and hierarchical it is a family – a ships company.
- A warship is a true matrix management system.
- All sailors share the domestic tasks, and,
- The navy’s basic man management system, the divisional system, is built in. Accountability runs upwards within working groups, to petty officers to divisional officers to heads of department to the Commanding Officer.
There are a couple of other points worth noting. The Commanding Officer of a warship is in a unique personal position of authority and responsibility. He is suitably backed up with disciplinary powers. How he uses these powers is pivotal to the morale and effectiveness of the ship’s company. Their average age is around 21 to 22. Let me illustrate some things that attract severe penalties in the navy:
- asleep on watch,
- drug taking, and
- offences on shore, particularly abroad
Our warships are kept at a high readiness state, they are ammunitioned, provisioned and manned for war. This is the front line of our national deterrent. Thus wherever those warships are, the Government of the day has the option of their actual operational use at whatever level required. Further, warships have to be ready to respond to unexpected attack at any time.
100% is the Pass Mark!
So you see, there has to be a thoroughly trained, practiced and totally disciplined team of people who are confident in their own capabilities, the skill of their officers, and in particular the capability of their Commanding Officer. There are two key elements to remember in my professional business:
“You can win as many weapon exchanges as you like, but you can only ever lose one.”
And, concerning the way in which your ship is operated: “100% is the pass mark”.
Now I would like to talk about some of the leadership factors that make the difference between a ‘properly’ run command and a happy, wholly effective and fully productive one. You can see that the training processes produce a competent corps of officers who are reliable, well trained and keen. Referring again to Norman F. Dixon:
“The ideal military leader is, of course, one who manages to combine excellence as a task specialist with an equal flair for the social or heroic aspects of leadership. Since the traits required for these two aspects of leadership are rather different, these so called ‘Great Men’ leaders have been comparatively rare. Amongst the best examples are Wellington, Nelson, Lawrence and in recent years Field Marshal Slim. Such leaders manage to combine extreme professionalism in the realizing of military goals with a warm humanity which earned them the lasting affection and loyalty of their men.”
Know your men, visit them, understand their jobs, their way of life, fears and ambitions. In those books on the pursuit of excellence by Peters and Partners, the modern concept of management by ‘wandering around’ was ‘invented’. It’s an old and well known quality of the leader. Further, the men at the ‘coal face’ can best suggest how things can be better done or the dangers that could appear. Closely allied to these aspects of leadership are a genuinely felt concern for conditions of service, and rigorous follow-up on problems, and this includes all matters concerning the families of our men. Careful planning, forethought, and carefully nurtured communication systems are essential. Concerning communications, tell it how it is, tell it now, and as far as you can, tell what can be expected. Say what you want achieved, broadly how it is to be done and insist that all officers do the same. Report grievances where you cannot resolve them. State problems in clear unequivocal but polite terms, and be unconcerned about the touchy sensitivities of higher commanders as a result.
In the final part of my talk today, I would like to discuss aspects of higher command in the management of conflict. Many who can pass muster as unit commanders, fall hopelessly further up the line. I hope I will not be looked upon unkindly if I assert that examples of such officers abound in peacetime defence forces. The higher management of conflict is the most complicated enterprise of all. Risk, uncertainty, stress, complexity, speed of action, distorted communications and human error all prevail. Recently, I found a definition of leadership in an unlikely place –Regency Magazine of the Hyatt Hotels Corporation, as reprinted in Engineers Australia, August 24 1984 Edition.
- Leadership is about vision, imagination, flexibility and innovation all in the interests of charting the future. It relies on a clear understanding of objectives and an ability to translate these objectives to the rest of the organization.
- Leadership cannot be based on or rely upon luck, whim, fancy, hope or ad-hocism. It is also not something which can be turned on or off like a switch, it is a way of living.
- It involves an appreciation of the big-picture concomitant with an ability to motivate people to exceed even their own personal expectations. To succeed as a leader, a person must understand people and be sensitive, concerned and caring.
- A leader motivates first and foremost by example. He/she is a communicator and an initiator, an action-oriented person who is neither prevaricator nor presider. He/she is results-oriented and never makes excuses.
- A leader looks for solutions while delegating authority and responsibility and seeking expert advice and help from whatever source makes sense. However, the leader is always the one who carries the can – the person of final responsibility.
- It is impossible to be a leader without imagination or a sense of vision. A leader has to possess an ability to chart the future from the past, building upon what has gone before to set goals for the future. Above all, a leader must have the ability to create a social structure that channels other’s energies and abilities.
- Leadership is not a part-time job and relies upon an extensive knowledge and appreciation of the strength and weakness of people within the system. This information cannot be easily obtained second-hand.
‘Grey Star’ Generals
Let me now look at some of the problems of leadership according to Norman F. Dixon These are:
- “A serious wastage of human resources and failure to observe one of the first principles of war – economy of force,
- A fundamental conservatism and clinging to outworn tradition. Inability to learn from the past. A tendency to misuse available technology,
- A tendency to reject or ignore information which is unpalatable or which conflicts with preconceptions,
- A tendency to underestimate the enemy and overestimate the capabilities of one’s own side.
- Indecisiveness and a tendency to abdicate from the role of decision maker,
- An obstinate persistence in a given task despite strong contrary evidence,
- A failure to exploit a situation,
- A failure to make adequate reconnaissance,
- A belief in brute force,
- A predilection for frontal assaults,
- A failure to make use of surprise or deception,
- An undue readiness to find scapegoats for military set backs,
- A suppression or distortion of news from the front, usually rationalised as necessary for morale or security,’
- A belief in mystical forces – fate, bad luck. etc.”
In the combat of Russell Hill and concerning some of the Civilian Central Divisions (the Grey Star Generals’). I would be tempted to award high marks against these examination factors, or do I myself succumb to ‘an undue readiness to find scapegoats for military set backs?’
However, as I have limited myself to ‘discipline, leadership and command skills for combat,’ I must exercise the discipline of no further comment on the bureaucratic monstrosity which is our Defence Department.
Combat Management
It is useful to look at some basic guidelines for combat management. First and foremost in the mind of the leader is the strategy of the nation and the overall campaign. May I point to the record of success for those who have embraced a campaign strategy of the indirect approach, and a national security strategy of offensive action and projection of power. Then there are the first principles of war:
- Selection and maintenance of the aim,
- Concentration of force,
- Co-operation,
- Economy of effort,
- Security,
- Offensive action,
- Surprise,
- Flexibility,
- Administration, and
I have already referred to intelligence, and the failure to use intelligence information. The technical means of providing information is now so advanced that the problem becomes the sorting out of the important and timely from the less accurate and irrelevant. Throughout history the successful military commanders have invariably been those who had a very finely tuned appreciation of intelligence, its gathering, dissemination and its strategic and tactical use.
The need for security, and for long term protection of sources and methods has made this aspect of military leadership a poorly publicised part of the study of military performance. Let me highlight but a few who were masters of intelligence – Ghengis Khan, Wellington, Nelson, Nimitz and the modern leaders of the Kremlin.
Highly developed security and intelligence systems and, in particular, higher commanders experienced in the intelligence business are vital factors in the exercise of military leadership in modern war. This applies particularly to guerilla war and to terrorist and subversive warfare. I said I would return to this important aspect of combat leadership. Essential to success against these forms of intimidation and violence are the mental disciplines of open mindedness, tact, flexibility, innovation patience, unconventional solutions and expert use of intelligence assets. All these coupled with an acute understanding of psychological warfare factors, consistent with sound administration and the other principles of war. Let us not believe that terrorism and other forms of unconventional combat are new. Earliest accounts come from 3000 BC.
Conclusion
In talking briefly about discipline, leadership and command skills for combat I have sought to outline the disciplines which are essential ones for a military leader in all forms of combat. These are:
- Knowledge of war itself,
- Outstanding professionalism, in the performance of military tasks,
- A genuine humanity and understanding of people, and
- Observance of the principles of war.
The use of intelligence
Commandant, lady and gentlemen, I was surprised once again and delighted to be asked to join in your leadership panel. I have sought to generate some controversy and hopefully provoke some searching questions. Personally, I have enjoyed the research necessary to prepare this talk. I have benefited from the books read and re-read. We can all be better leaders, we can all apply the disciplines of our profession more thoroughly. Admiral Nimitz, who had the biggest military command in history from 1942 to 1945, had a sign above his desk:
- Is the proposed operation likely to succeed?
- What might be the consequence of failure?
- Is it in the realm of practicability of material and supplies.
In our endeavours today let us ‘Dare to be wise’.
*Commodore Adrian Cummins AO RAN was born in 1936 and educated at the Hampton State School and Wesley College in Melbourne. He joined the Royal Australian Naval College in 1950. He was awarded the Otto Albert Memorial Prize for Seamanship on graduating in 1953. He saw service in the 1958 Malayan counterinsurgency; counter-terrorism operations for the British in Northern Ireland in 1960, in the 1963 Aden emergency, Borneo in 1964, as well as in Saigon during the Vietnam War. From 1975 to mid 1976 he was Head of the Fleet Training Group. His sea commands were the minesweeper HMAS Ibis, the destroyer escort HMAS Swan and the guided missile destroyer HMAS Perth. He was awarded a British Admiralty Commendation for brave conduct while on exchange service and Perth earned the Gloucester Cup.
Ashore his appointments included Officer-in-Charge West Head Gunnery Range, Director of Surface and Air Weapons, Director Naval Manpower Planning, Director General Defence Conditions of Service and Director General Naval Warfare.
At a time when there were more than a few colourful and idiosyncratic commanding officers at sea, Adrian Cummins was particularly notable. He had a somewhat Pattonesque personality and like the General the views of him by his subordinates were mixed. To many of his ship’s company, however, he would be a leader to be followed confidently into battle.
Commodore Cummins retired from the Navy after 39 years service and held a number of senior positions in defence industry. He later lived the US, initially in Washington, DC and finally in Santa Fe where he died of a heart attack in 2005.
