General Stanley McChrystal Book Report

Question 1. 7 “practical nuggets.”

1. At the very beginning of the book, General Stanley McChrystal, mentioned his conversation with Steve Jobs. He asks Steve, which made him most proud of his creations. It might be his first platform Macintosh or the cellphone iPhone. But, he answered that he was proudest most of were the teams he had created. Thus, not material things but peoples play a significant role.

2. Remarkably, but Al Qaeda gets its distinct advantage from the new environment that allows the networked organization like them, to make and realize decisions into actions immediately. The U.S. military and its allies around the world had to transform their operations continuously, changing the vision and way they deal with terrorists.

3. The Task Force organization had been created in response to some previous tragedies. The group, trying to compete in the contemporary environment, take the best units in special operations of the most powerful military organization in the world into a single team. Modern organizations had challenges similar to the Task Force, which in turn, craft remarkable abilities to deal effectively with the new world order.

4. Noteworthy correlation between human body infections and state insurgencies was found by Dr. Kristina Talbert-Slagle. Attackers indirectly empower and strengthen itself while the host weakened by the environment. So, environmental factors are in close relation to the possible consequences.

5. Individual initiative and critical thinking rewarded by the culture that Nelson promoted in his organization. Contrasting to complete execution of commands, Nelson`s idea that every commander should act based on his initiative, if he sees the real opportunity. Opportunities sometimes cannot be observed from the top.

6. In contrast to the previous statement, the Franco-Spanish fleet, relies on orders from a central command. Traditionally, the French and Spanish navies were relied on, orders from the flagman ship. But, problems with clear communication were occurred too often; when the flag just couldn't be seen or understood faultily during the combat.

7. Certain standardization of tasks among Roman soldiers enables them to construct quickly and efficiently. Deliver messages immediately without delays in time, because they know where to find the commander. Most important thing in a standardization of the tasks during an enemy attack is that Roman soldiers could organize themselves immediately and efficiently.

Question 2. Describe the genesis of the changes addressed by General McChrystal.

General McChrystal described many real situations that he encountered as a commander in Iraq and Afghanistan. He explains, based on real examples, how different organizations should change themselves. The real teamwork and collaboration across divisions yield the flexible response when transformation includes destroying of the outdated frames.

It is not surprising that the greatest innovations such as the internet, microchip or personal computer derived from great organizations of teams, working together they focus on the common objective. It is merely not possible to achieve for a lone developer or in a frame of problem-solving in command-and-control style.

Our networked world needs more efficient solutions to resolve complex issues that described in the examples of General McChrystal and detailed examination of the experiences of his colleagues and different organizations. To be a successful organization in a complex and highly networked world, not sufficient to have an efficiency alone. Today's challenges need flexibility and constant adjustments to changing circumstances. Therefore, organizational management models could not survive based on planning processes. To succeed organizations should move from simple hierarchal structures to network frameworks. Continued organizational adaptability, not efficiency only, should be their main focus.

The author of the book suggests that in the midst of a war, the transformation of an elite military organization is the genesis of this story. Also, they had an opportunity to compare themselves with that evolution. They evolved rapidly, assessing after changing and so on. Over time, they realized that there is no perfect solution, it is not existing. The dynamic, constantly adapting approach demanded by the environment in which they were.

Solutions that works for our parents or grandparents cannot be employed effectively these days. Understanding and adapting to the new circumstances isn't a matter of choice. Doing that will be what differentiates success from failure in the years ahead. That is why special forces were transformed