Free The Organization Behavior Of The US Army Recruiting Command Essay Example

Introduction

The US army lays emphasis on loyalty, honor, character, personal courage and integrity, all being integral especially in business and organizational leadership. This ensures that the product output is excellent and adequately disciplined. The army leadership framework is divided into three categories of skills, actions, attributes and values, as laid out in the army leadership framework. It identifies the various assets and qualities that are essential in being a successful army leader. The army, expects the leaders to “know, be and do” (US army guide, 19). In this instance it identifies 3 levels of army leadership including organizational, strategic and direct. These levels are then classified by their responsibilities, duties, headquarter level and span of control, among other things.
Direct leadership (US army guide, 10) involves first line leadership or face to face communication between a leader and the team players. Examples of these include squad leaders, team leaders, platoons and the company leaders. Their span of influence ranges between leading a handful of people to leading several hundred people. Organizational leadership (US army guide, 11) involves a sense of leadership which influences several hundred people to several thousand people as well. Their leadership methods are more indirect and make use of subordinates. It is their role to establish organizational climates and policies. Examples are brigade leaders. Strategic leadership which involves responsibility over large organizations influences thousands of people to hundreds of thousands of people they communicate some strategic visions through their subordinate’s allocation of resources and concern themselves with the entirety of the army environment US Army guide, 12). The examples include the department of defense leadership.
The leadership styles that are utilized by in the army are grounded in the values, beliefs and as well as the experiences of all the leaders. Although it seems easy to classify individuals as making use of a given leadership style, an army leader needs to be adequately flexible to be able to adjust the techniques and leadership style to suit the people they are leading (US army guide, 66). Five leadership styles are identified. Directing leadership is a leader-centered style where there is absolutely no input from the subordinates (US army guide, 66). It is best when being used where there is a time constraint or when leading inexperienced teams.
Participating leadership focuses on both teams and leaders (US army guide, 67). The leaders often involve the leaders by asking them to contribute input although the final decision is up to the leader. It is very effective when the goal is team building. Delegating leadership involves giving the subordinates the power to solve their problems and make decisions without having to clear with the leader. It is very effective in pleading mature teams of subordinates. In spite of this, the leader is still responsible for actions taken by their teams or units.
Transformational leadership is geared towards transforming the subordinates and challenging them into making progress (US army guide, 68). Its emphasis on mental stimulation and empowerment of individual growth with the leader being driven by ones subordinates. Transactional leadership involves direct motivation through punishment or reward. It is a direct contrast to transformational leadership. It is only appropriate in short term commitment and focuses on the subordinates failures.
In regards to the values of a leader are dependent upon the attitudes about people’s worth, concepts as well as other things (US army guide, 22) telling the world who the army is and what they stand for. Attributes of an army leader speak of a person’s fundamental’s characteristics and qualities. The skills of a leader means that a leaders should strive to have improvement on what they do. Leaders actions should be geared towards bringing together the things they do, they are and everything that they realize what to do to provide direction, purpose and motivation US army guide, 48).
The process of organizational communication is the process of sending and receiving messages by making use of organizational communication is a key element of an organizational climate. There are several functions of organizational communication such as subordinate and staff motivation, staff behavioral control, developing the personal relations and decision making. Another approach may define functions of organizational communication as leading, motivation and influence, sense making, gaining of compliance, conflict management and decision making and problem solving. The most effective role however is building relationships so as to achieve strategic objectives.

Sender receiver

Purpose reception
Medium decode
Encode meaning & behavior
Feedback
Figure 1.0 the process of communication

Source: (Beckham, king 1992)

There are various types of organizational communications which relate differently with the set organizational structure. They could include upward communication, downward communication, diagonal communication and horizontal communication.
The most common communication form in the US army is downward communication which is a flow of communication from the senior officers to the junior officer. This would coordinate with a top down structure which make use of leadership styles such as autocratic leadership. It is most suitable in organizations with an authoritative style of management such as the US army. Communication may involve:

Directions of how to go about doing something

Information on concrete tasks
Information on rules and regulations
Information in ideological characters
Horizontal communication infers a flow of communication between individuals who are on the same organizational level enabling coordination of activities in a departmental capacity. This can be utilized by senior officers in coordination of activities between different units. This will cause the organization to acquire a unified vision. It may involve exchanging ideas perhaps on how to motivate the employees or to come up with solutions within units.
Diagonal communication refers to communication flow between individuals who do not belong to the same organizational level and they are not involved in a direct relationship in the organizational hierarchy. It is rarely used in the army because there exists a structure where the senior officers do not develop casual relationships with the subordinates from various departments. This form of communication is not directly relatable to the organizational structure in the army.
A high organizational structure is most relatable to downward communications and since this is the most likely structure to be taken up in an army situation with the senior officers preferring a high organizational structure. This kind of structure creates many levels before the junior officers can interact with the top management. As such, the communication between them is minimal as opposed to a low structure where communication between them is easy to navigate.
Recruiters accept that the task of recruiting is very difficult because they are required to either make mission of face consequences that may affect their career. The reason why quotas are very important begins with the fact that the military requires many people to do the work of protecting the nation. In addition to this, congress has mandated that every service have a certain number or end strength at the end of every year. This number is closely linked to the budget required for operation. If the numbers fall too far below the number, perhaps because they missed their annual recruiting goal, then congress might reduce the size of the service and consequently, the budget and money they operate. They are very important and must be reached ethically and legally. Yet recruiters make use of so much effort to try and recruit as many individuals as possible. On March 18, the DOD announced their recruiting and retention numbers for the 2014 fiscal year for both of the active and reserve components. In recruiting all the four services either met or exceeded the numerical accession quotas for the 2014 fiscal year.

Army- achieved 17002 accessions and a goal of the 16720 resulting in 102%

Navy-achieved accessions amounting to 10116, a goal of 10116, achieving 100%
Marine corps-7173 accessions and the goal of 7162; 100%
Air force- 8726accessions, a goal of 8726; 100%
The question many raise on diversity is whether the right numbers in terms of demographics are included. With every answer that is given, statistics need to be offered as a back up to justify what the right number looks like. The US census bureau provides information in 2013 provides that women make up more than 51% of the population with men almost at 49%. The number of the non-Hispanic whites people in the US is almost 64% and within total minority data, the Hispanics make up less that 10%with African Americans making up a little more than 13% of the U.S population. This data explains that the American armed forced try to be representative of the overall demographics across the country even though they sometimes come short.

A race profile of the Active duty force

Service %White %Minorities %Black %Other
Army 61.9% 38.1% 21.5% 4.6%
Navy 66.2% 33.8% 19.3% 14.4%
Marine Corps 83.7% 16.3% 11.1% 5.2%
Air Force 78.1% 21.9% 15.6% 6.3%
Coast Guard 82% 18% 6.1% 11.9%
Total 74.6% 25.4% 17.8% 7.6%
This data is extracted from defense manpower center and it was verified in November of 2013. This data from the army does not reflect Hispanics as a minority. This graph depicts them as a minority. Separate data for the Hispanics on the other services is not available.
The representation of minorities in the active duty force is at 38.1% which is higher than the 36% minority representation in the US. In addition to this, the African Americans reflect a larger segment of 21.5% in the military than their representation in the American population of 13%. In addition, the Hispanics representation of less than 10% is less than their representation in the army where they occupy more than11%.
Autocratic leadership is sometimes used interchangeably with dictatorship whereby one individual presides over the subordinate with complete authority. The leader’s decision is the golden rule and cannot be questioned. All their plans are laid out by the leader and the subordinates have to operate by the given rules. They are do not have the capacity or permission to participate in the process of decision making and this may hinder the rate of growth of the organization and reduce productivity of the staff. As such, the authoritative leader possesses full control on the subordinates and as all the authority to treat them as he or she pleases. Senior leaders in charge of army recruiters need to be strict so that the recruiters can work hard so that they can meet the quotas. In an instance of recruiters failing to meet their mission goals, a senior leader may make use of an autocratic style of leadership seeking to influence this circumstance and change it positively. Some advantages may result from this undertaking or this choice of ruling.
This style of leadership works very effectively in emergency situations as well as in stressful situations. Such a time may occur when the recruiters have a deadline to meet, yet they continue to fail in recording new recruits. During such a time, the senior leader will act in such a manner where he takes the reins directing the recruiters to work harder in order to move forward. If the recruiters were to have the room to make excuses for failing to register new recruits, it might slow their process down and be rendered time wasting. As such it is better to have an autocratic person, the senior officer who commands the recruiters on how to go about the activities on completing their missions successfully.
Because an autocratic system is also effective in group projects, it may make it most useful and effective in recruitment projects. This would be the case because the senior leader would be able to address the recruiters who are not bringing in any new recruits. The superior leader is able to easily enforce a deadline among the recruiters who then have to work hard to beat the deadline. The deadline rush on quotas means that senior officers using an autocratic rule can benefit from quick implementation. This is because the instructions of the leader are carried out without ambiguity meaning that the task of making mission is completed quickly within the stipulated time.
If the leader is capable, even in if the rule is autocratic, then they can exhibit foresight that allows them to have an accurate level of decision making and the autocrat steers the organization towards great success. The autocratic leader helps in reducing errors because the responsibility and accountability lies with one authority figure. In following a streamlined operations the senior leadership and his subordinate follow a strict process management and hierarchy as well as reporting systems ensuring that the operations of achieving the quotas are conducted smoothly.
It also reduces any level of information leak, information of any kind that may cause an individual to be passive in their working. This is especially important in an army set up and because information remains classified. This leads to smooth management of the organization resting practically in the hand of the senior leader.
Participative leadership as a style of managerial style inviting input from subordinates in making of decisions. The senior officer is provided with pertinent information regarding the organization and develops a healthy relationship with the subordinates and as such they are able to achieve their mission goals in a friendlier environment. It has advantages that make it suitable for use in the recruiting process.
The level of acceptance of the policies and strategies that the senior officers come up with to increase the rate of achieving mission quotas. The circumstance here is attributable to the involvement of the subordinates in selecting these strategies. With this strategy applied and the acceptance of the mechanisms in place, the organization experiences a speedy rate of implementation of any new ideas. They are given a personal stake in decision making and therefore achieve a rapid acceptance rate for the policies and the recruiters are able to recruit more individuals.
The employees develop morale because they have a voice in the organization’s operations and therefore they feel personally responsible to achieve the success for the organization. The subordinate’s morale remains at a very high level because they appreciate the chance of being involved in the organization’s decision making process. As such, if they are involved in the process of making decisions on the deadlines and strategies involved in being able to recruit many new recruits, the subordinates take up a more active role in the recruiting process when they realize that they can directly affect the decisions governing their conditions.
Allowing participation of staff is important because it allows them an opportunity to give their opinions on company issues. Intimately involving the staff in the process will encourage them to have more productive work processes and as such increase even further their efficiency. Offering the junior officers a participatory style of leadership will increase retention as they will feel more comfortable in the given unit or team. They also transfer this feeling to their recruits and this will ensure a healthy relationship between the senior officer and the junior officers.
A democratic leadership offers the subordinates a very high level of freedom to express in decision making. The senior officers consult with wither one or more of the subordinate officers in order to make decisions. After basic training many military teams make use of this approach in promoting teamwork as well as fellowship within their unit. This teamwork ensures that recruiters can help each other in the recruiting process and gain more recruits.
Democratic leadership helps the subordinates to develop their skills and opportunities by making use of experiential learning and the subordinates can also develop their interpersonal skills. It encourages the spirit of loyalty and sportsmanship in the team. It discourages laziness and the people feel the need to work towards the growth and success of the organization. This encourages the recruiters to use techniques which they participated in their selection.
In the process of decision making, in the military setting, various processes and styles may be used in order to achieve the stipulated quotas. Examples are leader-made decisions which are leader focused and as such the leader makes decisions that have to do with the recruiting process. This will heighten the process of decision making and is most suitable when there are short deadlines. Another process of decision making may be leader made decisions that involve dialogue and explanation. This is similar to the first but can serve to reduce or prevent altogether any form of rebellion that may emerge among the employees.
Another may be the leader-follower-made decision which is almost simultaneous to the follower made decision that has support and encouragement from the leaders. This will encourage the recruiters to gain confidence and as such they work together towards the success of the organization in their recruitment process. It may also be a suitable alternative to have follower made decisions. This is not appropriate for the army situation because the followers need to be regulated.

Works Cited:

Beckham, K., King J., (2008), Building Coalitions: Communication in Coalitions, University of Florida
Crocker, Lawrence P. The Army Officer's Guide. Stackpole Books, 1981.
Goldhaber, Gerald M. Organizational communication. Madison: Brown & Benchmark, 1993.
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