Editor’s Notebook: Creating a Positive Environment

I was never in the military, but I recently read a book about leadership written by a Navy captain. I’d like to share some ideas of the book with you and recommend that you read it.

The book is called, "It’s Your Ship: Management Techniques from the Best Damn Ship in the Navy" and it was written by Michael Abrashoff. Even if you aren’t supervising people today, you may be soon. And this book will give you some excellent pointers on how to be an effective leader no matter where you work.

The first thing that the author comes to terms with as he is taking his first command of a naval vessel, was that the crew he was inheriting was not that pleased with his predecessor and they weren’t exactly star performers.

Numerous responders answered the biggest problem facing the maintenance industry from the recent salary survey like this: "Finding quality employees. Most of the newer (younger) employees don’t have very much pride in doing a ‘job well done’ and only seem to care about getting out of work and whining. Their professional habits are lacking and cleaning up seems foreign to them. The safety of the aircraft, the passengers and crews seems to extend only towards their personal liability and not the collective good."

Even though you are just one person in a complex, multi-layered organization, with numerous challenges in your way, you can create a positive working environment

In spite of the fact that Abrashoff’s crew wasn’t exactly stellar, the author felt he could make a change and get his crew into shape. Abrashoff began looking at the exit interviews of crewmembers that had recently left the military to determine why they were leaving. He immediately assumed that pay would be the number one reason and, being in the Navy, that wasn’t going to be something he could control. However, he was surprised to learn that pay was fifth on the list of reasons given for leaving the military. "I assumed low pay would be the first reason, but in fact it was fifth. The top reason was not being treated with respect and dignity; second was being prevented from making an impact on the organization; third, not being listened to; and fourth, not being rewarded with more responsibility. Talk about an eye opener," Abrashoff said.

Armed with that knowledge, he set about to change the model of leadership on his ship. The first thing he did may defy the logic of some: "I assumed [the crew] wanted to do well and be the best." This philosophy is in line with a management principle that states that workers will rise to the level that is expected of them. The chapters are broken down into about a dozen basic tenets that the young captain learned to live by as the leader of the ship. They include: lead by example; listen aggressively; communicate purpose and meaning; take calculated risks; and build up your people.

These tenets are explained in the book by way of anecdote and these real life stories illustrate his points nicely.

Some of the things Abrashoff did to make the working environment better were simple and didn’t cost much, if anything. For example, he said, "I ordered a big supply of greeting cards that read ‘The Officers and Crew of the USS Benfold Wish You a Happy Birthday.’ Each month, my ship’s office gave me a birthday list of my sailors’ spouses. I would write, say, "Dear Marie" at the top and sign it ‘Love, Mike.’ Every card included my P.S. saying, ‘Your husband or wife is doing a great job,’ even if he or she were not."

Another similar technique involved reaching out to his young sailor’s parents. "I observed that most of my young sailors came from hardscrabble backgrounds and had struggled to make it into the Navy. I put myself in their parents’ shoes and imagined how they would feel if they got letters from their kids’ commanding officer. I began writing letters to the parents, especially when their sons or daughters did something I could honestly praise. When the letters arrived, the parents invariably called their children to say how proud they were of them. To this day, I get Christmas cards from grateful parents."

This book does a great job of showing managers that even though you are just one person in a complex, multi-layered organization with numerous challenges in your way, you can create a positive working environment for your crew and yield fresh, positive results.