Leader Development in the V.U.C.A. Environment: Neo-DeMarcoian Thought

How many times have you heard our environment has changed—it’s now more volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) today than every before? I’m not 100% convinced this is true. Go back just in American history. Did George Washington live in uncertain times? Did Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, or LBJ live in uncertain, complex, …

Bootleg Innovation in the Military–or what happens when Punk Rock goes Mainstream

The massive military bureaucracy is daunting to any junior or mid level solider, marine, airman, sailor dare we say—any person working in a bureaucracy—giving way to an entirely different form of innovation.  If an Airman on a flight-line has a problem or a solider in field finds or discovers a new tool—it can take years …

Innovation and a Culture Of Conformity: DeMarco Banter

“Success no longer goes to the country that develops a new fighting technology first, but rather to the one that better integrates it and adapts its way of fighting …Our response will be to prioritize speed of delivery, continuous adaptation, and frequent modular upgrades. We must not accept cumbersome approval chains, wasteful applications of resources …

Three Things Organizations and Individuals Need to Thrive: DeMarco Banter

Recently I was listening to a podcast where a speaker mentioned the three "M"s:  Mastery, Membership, and Meaning.  The problem is... I listen to way too many podcast and I can't recall where it came from.  Of course I found several web pages devoted to the three, and in some cases four, "M"s--don't recall where …

A Simple Stoic Leader Philosophy We Can All Utilize—DeMarco Banter

or...Leadership Philosophy 201/We don’t need no stinkin’ philosophy—do we? Leadership Philosophy 101 was penned as part of a course I was teaching on leadership and command.  The piece has generated a great deal of discussion—both pro and con. Many of us have a desire to lead, some of us enjoy pondering leadership, and others assume …