Leadership

An Assessment of the United States Army's Organizational Culture

The purpose of this paper is to provide a brief analysis of the United States Army's organizational structure and its culture and how these two elements impact its workers, associates and affiliates. This paper will first examine the Army's history, development and structure to highlight the origins of the Army's. Secondly, a brief history of the Army's organizational development will be followed by a close examination of its philosophy and supporting beliefs. Lastly, this paper will discuss the role of the Army's leadership, their response to critical issues and the organizational structure of the Army. An analysis of the army's top leaders will help the reader to understand the Army culture more thoroughly in the context of the Army's organizational structure. More specifically this section of the paper will examine the Army leadership's response to the current geo-political environment and other related issues. In conclusion, this paper hopes to highlight the Army's overall functioning from an organizational standpoint and emphasize that idea that the Army is like a functional corporation. This will be accomplished by addressing various key questions throughout this text.

The U.S. Army Organizational Development

Army History and development

The Army's history includes many unique global events such as World War I and II, the Vietnam War, the Korean conflict and most recently operations Desert Storm and Iraqi Freedom. An in depth study of these historical events is beyond the scope of this paper however, the origin of the Army is relevant in discussing the Army's overall culture.

According to David W. Hogan's historical text Centuries of Service cited on the United States Army's website the United States Army was born on 14 June 1775 (Hogan, 2004). Members of the early Army forces were largely volunteers drawn from local militias. In light of conflict with the British Army the Second Continental Congress recognized that a regular military force was necessary if the colonials were to have any hope of standing up to the British Army. On 14 June, Congress adopted the New England army besieging Boston as an American army and authorized the recruitment of soldiers from various colonial states to form the Continental Army. This emerging Continental Army provided the permanent nucleus of a force that would be supplemented by local militia units. Congress chose one of its own, George Washington, as Commander-in-Chief of the new Army (Hogan, 2004).

Since 1775, the United States has grown from a loosely organized confederation of thirteen English colonies scattered along the Atlantic seaboard to a superpower whose influence reaches around the globe (Hogan, 2004 & Schrader, 2003). The U.S. Army has contributed immeasurably to the rise of the American nation, first as the shield of the Republic during its colonial days and later as a means to project power in defense of American interests worldwide. The Army's contributions, however, go far beyond the role of a military force. Its ready availability as a source of disciplined and skilled personnel has made it an attractive option for American leaders confronted with a wide array of nonmilitary demands and crises (Heller, 2004).

Army's Structure

The Army, as one of the three military departments (e.g.: Army, Navy and Air Force) reporting to the Department of Defense, is composed of two distinct and equally important components: the active component and the reserve components. The reserve components are the United States Army Reserve and the Army National Guard. The President of the United States is also the Commander-in-Chief for all U.S. military forces. Although the President is the commander-in-Chief this does not mean that the Army only has one leader. Like many corporations the Army has various levels of leadership. Although the exact details of the Army's structure are complicated and well beyond the scope of this paper the basic army structure consist of Army personnel who are either ranked as Officers or Enlisted (non-commissioned officers). The Army also has civilian employees as well as Warrant Officers. The Army has a well defined structure called a Chain of Command.

The Chain of Command is the military hierarchy for responsibility. It is the chain of commanding officers from a superior to a subordinate through which command is exercised. It is also referred to as the command channel (cited on www.train.army.mil). The Army is divided into smaller units. A Division is composed of brigades and is commanded by a Major General. A Battalion is made up of companies and is commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel (with a Command Sergeant Major). A Company is made up of platoons and is commanded by a captain (with a first sergeant). A Platoon is composed of squads and commanded by a lieutenant (with a platoon sergeant). A Squad is composed of approximately a dozen soldiers and commanded by a sergeant or staff sergeant. A Fire Team is made up of soldiers and commanded by a Team Leader (cited on www.train.army.mil).Regardless of component, The Army conducts both operational and institutional missions.

The operational Army consists of numbered armies, corps, divisions, brigades, and battalions that conduct full spectrum operations around the world. The institutional Army supports the operational Army. Institutional organizations provide the infrastructure necessary to raise, train, equip, deploy, and ensure the readiness of all Army forces. The training base provides military skills and professional education to every soldier-as well as members of sister services and allied forces. It also allows the Army to expand rapidly in time of war (www.train.army.mil). The industrial base provides world-class equipment and logistics for the Army. Army installations provide the power-projection platforms required to deploy land forces promptly to support combatant commanders. Once those forces are deployed, the institutional Army provides the logistics needed to support them. Without the institutional Army, the operational Army cannot function. Without the operational Army, the institutional Army has no purpose. (www.train.army.mil).

Army Philosophy, Beliefs and Slogans

The Army has many formal and informal statements such as slogans, mottos, cadences and chants that are often used as recruiting or motivational tools for new and existing soldiers. Recruiting efforts are on going and positions in the world's largest military force are regularly filled with new soldiers everyday. Some people are motivated by the money the Army