Countdown to D-Day - Leadership of Omar Bradley and Dwight Eisenhower - Essay Example

Leadership COUNTDOWN TO D-DAY General Omar Bradley Actor James Remar, who is from the United s Army, played the role of GeneralOmar Bradley in the movie, Countdown to D-Day. General Omar Bradley served in the United States Army between the periods of 1915 to 1981 as a general of the army. He qualifies as a leader of analysis from the movie since in real life, the character held majority of ranks in the political arena and in the army. Some of these roles that qualify Bradley as a suitable leader were; at one point he served as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, he was also bestowed with the responsibility of being the chief of staff for the army of the United States. His role in the World War II was very crucial in the co-ordinations of the activities of the United States army since they were directly under his command and control. All the United States ground forces that were using the western side to invade Germany were under his control and this army consisted of forty-three divisions that consisted of 1.3 million men (Harmon, 2004). This has been marked in history as the largest group of American Soldiers that have ever been under the command of a field commander. Communication was a very essential tool when it came to the ground level operations. It was very important that the invasions that were channelled towards Germany succeeded therefore General Omar had to maintain a close link with British’s Second army that comprised of the 21st Army group under the stewardship of General Montgomery (Harmon, 2004). Majority of the operations with which he spear headed were a success owing to the fact that there was adequate preparation and communication between the teams as the conducted the operations was very key. For instance, during an operation called Operation Overload, he adequately commanded three corps to the two main American invasion targets. These targets were Omaha beach and the Utah Beach. Most of the army battalions acted on the stewardship of General Omar. It became very crucial as a leader to be able to be very open and communicative to the generals in order to successfully be able to win the war against Germany, which was at the moment under the directive of Hitler. Mentoring is another key leadership element that General Omar portrayed in the movie. He is seen holding consultative meetings with different generals of the army to clearly express out his mind and plan and he also trains them on how to successfully win missions since he was quite experienced in that particular area of field (Harmon, 2004). Team Work is an important element that has been seen throughout the movie. The united stated army collaborated with the British army which was under the stewardship of General Montgomery. The value of team work is seen wen majority of the missions were a success. The movie, through General Omar, makes the viewer’s understand the value of trust. Without trust, the essence of war will be lost. There are various dependencies when it comes to battle and this is solely based on trust. General Omar shared information that was very sensitive with the juniors who in turn were able to use it to their advantage without compromising the position of the United States army (Harmon, 2004). According to Kouzes and Posner’s (2011), ‘practises on exemplary leadership’, they describe leadership as a behaviour composed of an observable set of abilities and skills. They actually analyse some of the actions of the great leaders when they are at their best. It was however noted that at their personal best, they portrayed similar behavioural patterns since the possessed five common practises that were similar. In this context, the General of the Army, Omar Bradley portrayed these distinct features. One of the features possessed by general Omar was modelling the way. He was able to create the various objectives that were to be accomplished since he played a very important role in the US army. Through the battle, he was able to give the soldiers inspiration towards a shared vision which becomes their primary goal. It was through this that the soldiers found a reason to fight tirelessly until their quest was successful. One other distinct thing that was brought out was the innovativeness proposed so as to take the invasions by surprise. This was a form of challenging the known procedures and this was a great quality showed by General Omar. He enabled other generals to take command on the basis of human dignity and trust. This made him more powerful and boosted the morale of his subordinates. He constantly encouraged his arm y officials to stay on course since it was a battle that was to be won on a clean slate. I have been able to derive numerous lessons from this leader. The most essential lesson I have learnt is that trust is a key component in establishing a good relationship with the subordinates. It is a source of morale since they feel more in charge when some of the obligations are delegated to them. The characters main focus to the main goal and making it possible for the others to share in the same dream was another source of inspiration. General Omar will remain a true leader whose qualities brought him victories in battles. General Dwight Eisenhower He had to make difficult decisions which led up to the D-day. He also dealt with varied personalities and characters of the people who were under him. He displayed good leadership techniques and this ensured his success. He was faced with situations that required complex decision making. He was faces with dilemma about whether to be involved in the war or not (Harmon, 2004). His modern equivalent is the presidents of the warring countries like America they are faced by dilemmas in deciding whether to declare war or peace. They presidents usually have to make a decision regarding the deployment of their soldiers or not. They also face different characters and people who are hard to deal with or people who tend to oppose their way of leadership. To address this issue as a leader he had to develop trust from the people under him. He did this by ensuring there was effective communication. He communicated his plans and objectives to the people this showed transparency and good motive making the soldiers and the other leaders to develop trust in him. The trust made the soldiers to be determined as they knew they had a better understanding of their aims, goals and achievements. To solve his dilemma issue he developed team work where he involved the team members in the decision making process (Kouzes & Posner, 2011). He encouraged the people to work together. This was especially important to the soldiers as it ensured unity and effectiveness in their missions. He was accommodative to the varied personalities and characters that were under him. He listened to the various opinions without discrimination or prejudice. This made him a better leader as he paid attention to every detail. He also acted as a mentor to the soldiers. He accompanied them to some missions and this gave them encouragement. It was a motivational factor for the soldiers and it also boosted their morale. All this actions made his handling of issues right. He was accommodative to his own chief of staff and lieutenant general. He showed aspects of Exemplary leadership. He modelled the way by making the right decisions and political moves. He led by example in hard work and this made his subordinates to follow suite (Kouzes & Posner, 2011). He also inspired a shared vision through effective communication and transparency. He made the soldiers aware of his objectives and plans hence they had a better understanding of what they were working to achieve. He also challenged the practise as he was innovative and skilful in his war tactics and strategies. He encouraged the soldiers to move outside their boundaries and think of new ways of being effective. This helped him to motivate and encourage the soldiers. He enabled others to act by gaining their trust. He enhanced the creation of safe and trusting environment which made people to collaborate, engage and experiment. This also enabled him to enhance unity and build team work. The lessons and insights that I can learn from this analysis is that the success of a team depends on the decisions and inputs of a leader. From General Dwight I learn that i can be a better leader if I ensure good communication, mentorship, team work and trust in the team in which I’ll be managing. To ensure success I should lead by example in order to motivate and encourage the team members. I should encourage the team members’ heart by being sincere and honest. A good team leader should be honest and devoted to appreciate the success of the team members (Kouzes & Posner, 2011). I also learnt that a leader should include the team members in the decision making process. The leader should communicate effectively about the objectives and goals of the team. This ensures preparedness and better understanding by the team members, it also builds the trust of the members. A leader should be open minded and accommodative. He should be able to listen and to people and understand their way of reasoning. The important lesson is that a leader should be visionary, objective and determined. The leaders should have plans and strategies that ensure the success of the team. The plans should be long term and not temporary. A leaders should also recognise the achievements and contributions of the members of the team. This encourages competition and hard work. A leader should also model what they want from the employees through leading by example. A leader should also be understanding and human. One should understand that human beings are prone to make mistakes. References Harmon, R. (Director). (2004). Ike: Countdown to D-Day [Motion Picture]. James M. Kouzes, B. Z. (2011). The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership, Enhanced Edition. New York: John Wiley & Sons. Read More