The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

David J. Dorsett Vice Admiral, U.S. Navy July 2008

“One only gets to the top rung of the ladder by steadily climbing up one at a time, and suddenly all sorts of powers, all sorts of abilities which you thought never belonged to you—suddenly become within your own possibility and you think, ‘well, I’ll have a go, too.”

- Margaret Thatcher

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence 2

Introduction This document is a revised version of an earlier pamphlet I published for use by members of the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) staff, U.S. Pacific Command (USPACOM)/Joint Intelligence Center Pacific (JICPAC), and the Joint Staff. This pamphlet is intended to provide Intelligence and Information Warfare Professionals (active, reserve and civilian) a few tips and insights into what I believe it takes to be successful in our profession.

When I was a young Lieutenant, freshly transferred into the intelligence profession, I wondered what I needed to do to be a successful intelligence officer. I already knew how success was measured in the Navy’s Surface Warfare Community in the late 70s/early 80s: insanely long hours micromanaging the work force, intricate knowledge of the ship’s engineering plant, and a high threshold for pain. Once I transferred into “intelligence” I soon recognized the measurements for success were different for our community. Memorizing the basic “steam cycle” or knowing how to plot an intercept solution on the maneuvering board were no longer prerequisites for success.

Over the years, I’ve pondered the question of “what does it take to succeed?” The question routinely pops up on two occasions: 1) about the time I receive new Permanent Change of Station (PCS) orders; and 2) when I meet with, and talk about our profession with junior officers, enlisted members and civilians. Since this question is frequently asked, I thought it might be useful to take time to jot down some thoughts…and share them with you.

David J. Dorsett Vice Admiral, U.S. Navy

3

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

SEVEN PRINCIPLES OF SUCCESS

I believe there are a handful of fundamental principles that, when followed, can lead to success in the intelligence profession. These principles, I believe, apply to all members of our business, regardless of Service, specialty, personal or professional background and skills, paygrade, position or seniority. What are the fundamentals? They are: professional competence, relevance, dedication, sense of urgency, attention to detail, leadership and maintaining the highest ethical standards. There are other attributes of the successful Naval Intelligence professional, and I will discuss them as well.

First, I intend to address these seven principles.

Professional Competence The most important criteria for succeeding in the Navy, as in most places, is to attain professional competence. Seniors, peers, and juniors all judge us based on our basic knowledge of our business. Generally, the greater breadth and depth of professional competence, the more opportunities you will have to be successful. I hope this revelation doesn’t shock anyone, but it is important to emphasize. I believe individuals will be more successful if they spend time and energy on improving their professional skills, rather than wasting time trying to get face time or maneuver to find the right assignment. Depth and breadth in our field is immediately recognized.

For officers and enlisted members, the best way in our business to expand professional competence (and professional reputation) is to go to sea and other operational assignments and do well there. Future selection boards will evaluate how well you performed while at sea. Remember, 70% of the Lieutenant Commander (LCDR), Commander (CDR), and Captain (CAPT) selection board members will be comprised of Unrestricted Line Officers (URLs)…URLs with operational, seagoing mentalities. Operational duty is the one common thing that will resonate with all members of the board. For enlisted members, warfare qualifications are a must and can only be achieved in operational assignments. When reaching the senior ranks, the majority of the board members, again, will use the common denominator of your performance in operational assignments to judge your potential for success at the next higher paygrades.

I suspect you’re thinking “This is great philosophy, but what do I need to do to achieve professional competence?” The simple answer, of course, is to learn your job, become proficient in it, and then be viewed as the expert in each and every assignment. The longer answer includes the following additional thoughts:

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence 4

Relevance

“The chief role of the intelligence officer is to put people in the know.”

- Captain Frank P. Notz Mentor to a Generation of Naval Officers

Intelligence has to be relevant on two different levels. First, it must be relevant to the customer.

Possessing detailed information about an event or capability is only relevant if you have a commander or national policy maker who needs that information. In an age of ubiquitous access to information, we can no longer presuppose that intelligence professionals will be a step-ahead of our customers. Therefore, we need to provide the value-added “so what?” assessment. If we’re not relevant to decision makers and the information they need, we become an academic pursuit. And if we’re not relevant, then we’re not valued. And if we’re not valued, we won’t be resourced, and eventually we’ll all be out of business.

Analysis is our core competency…and is at the heart of our relevance. More so than any other trait, we are judged on our ability to synthesize information and then present concise reports (written, verbal, and graphical) to customers. Learning how to briefly report the key facts and convey a timely assessment makes one relevant. To paraphrase a former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Secretary of State (Colin Powell), you need to tell your audience “what you know, what you don’t know, and what you think.”

Relevance is also important from the perspective that we must constantly be evolving our organizations and processes or risk extinction. Vice Admiral Jacoby, former Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, often tells the story of the buggy whip industry. Buggy whips were a vital component of the late-19th century transportation industry. When the automobile industry emerged in the early 20th century, those folks in the buggy whip business who didn’t recognize that a new paradigm was emerging soon went out of business. Others, however, recognized that they were in the transportation industry and they needed to change to remain relevant. They transitioned from making buggy whips to making components for automobiles. The point is that we need to constantly seek opportunities to evolve and transform our business. It’s easy to see the need to add new hardware and software to improve our ability to manage information, but we also must be looking for opportunities to transform what (and how) we train our people, and the processes we use in our intelligence profession.

Today’s CNO, Admiral Gary Roughead, assesses that it is quite possible that “the opening battles of the next war will be fought in cyber space.” In this age, intelligence and information-intensive functions will become a “main battery” of the U.S. Navy’s arsenal. We are being asked to be at the vanguard in this revolution in military affairs…as warfighters, not as “providers” or “supporters.”

Commanders, our URL counterparts, and senior civilians are also now beginning to view Intelligence and Information Warfare Professionals as a vital element of the warfighting continuum.

Take, for example, the words of an up-and-coming URL two-star in 2003. That rear admiral (who is now an Admiral … name withheld due to non-attribution guidance) remarked that “the Intelli-

5

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

26 March 2008 - Vice Adm. John Morgan, right, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Information, Plans and Strategy and Navy, Coast Guard and Marine Corps leadership discuss Maritime Strategy with the faculty and students of the University of Denver’s Graduate School of International Studies.

gence Community needs to think of itself as warfighters. You’re not a support community. You’re a warfighting community. When you get to the operational level, or the tactical level, it’s you and the Commander, and that has to be an indivisible warfighting unit.”

Dedication

Dedication to the mission, to the people, and long hours at work form the foundation of a successful intelligence professional. I remember one of my seniors telling me that “they call work ‘work’ for a reason…if it was meant to be fun, they would have called it ‘fun’.” While I don’t quite agree with that line, it does support my belief that putting in extra hours is a normal part of being successful in this business. If you truly desire success, it’s not good enough to simply say you want the most challenging job – most of us fit into that category. What differentiates the truly successful is that they excel in the tough assignment, and are then “rewarded” with another challenging job. Many of these demanding jobs require putting in a bit of overtime. Seniors recognize those who put in the extra time; but, they also recognize whether there is productivity associated with folks who are staying late, or whether folks are just putting in long hours but not achieving much for the time expended.

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence 6

I’d much rather see someone work a “normal” work week and get all her or his tasks completed on time. Few seniors like people to stay around just to stay around and be seen. That doesn’t impress very many people, and certainly doesn’t impress one’s family. Dedication to our profession comes

“I wish to preach, not the doctrine of ignoble ease, but the doctrine of the strenuous life.”

- Theodore Roosevelt at a price…the cost for this level of success is frequently measured by less time at home, with your family, or with your hobbies. You need to figure out how much you intend to invest at work and with your family. You need to achieve an optimal balance...to paraphrase a former boss “When your Navy career is over, your shipmates will all be miles away involved in their own lives, all you will have left is your family…so you better take care of them!”

Sense of Urgency

“What is not started today is never finished tomorrow.”

- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Maintain a sense of urgency in every thing you do. A hallmark of our community is our ability to complete tasks rapidly and with precision. Complete each assignment as soon as possible. Do not wait until the deadline. Never bust a deadline unless you’ve explained why you need more time, and

7

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

have received the “ok” from your customer. Busting deadlines impresses no one. I’m reminded of a comment Admiral Bull Halsey once made…to paraphrase…he said the difference between a good naval officer and an outstanding naval officer was about 10 minutes. The outstanding officer got going earlier, steamed faster, and arrived ahead of schedule (and ahead of his peers). Seniors remember who gets quality work done ahead of time—they also remember who fails to meet deadlines.

“Now” is the key to the information business—keeping up with it and not just providing yesterday’s news or old inconsequential assessments and thoughts. This is not about immediate reporting and analysis, but keeping pace with technology and being ahead of our adversaries. Don’t let your people wait for that perfect opportunity to develop themselves through training or special programs.

Enforce upon them that everything they do now to become a better person or better in their profession will have a greater impact through their contributions to the future.

Leadership

“The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it.”

- Theodore Roosevelt Leadership—first, and foremost, take care of your people. Put the well-being of your people, and their families, first. I grew up in an era when mission always came first…yes, in combat it certainly does…but in virtually all other circumstances, the good leader focuses her or his attention on taking care of the work force first. If you do that, most things fall into place, and it makes it easier to accomplish the mission.Always assume that your people are good, solid citizens. You will rarely be disappointed if you treat your folks well. During my tour at Navy Central Command (NAVCENT), the Commander, VADM Moore, always took the position that the Sailor deserved a chance and should always be given the benefit of the doubt. When he treated Sailors responsibly and respectfully, they responded positively. Those who had previously skirted the rules turned around. There was only one case where one Sailor let the Admiral down. In that circumstance, the Admiral applied fairly severe punishment…but only after he had given the individual every chance to correct his problems.

I applied this leadership philosophy when I subsequently commanded Joint Intelligence Center, U.S. Central Command. My results were remarkably similar. In over 18 months of command, I had only one bad apple that deserved, and was punished using Non-Judicial Punishment. My bottom lines: Most people in this volunteer organization want to do good. Occasionally they make mistakes.

When they stumble, they deserve good leaders who give them second chances. They are looking for your positive leadership to help them succeed.

Leaders also look for, and provide opportunities for their people to succeed. The most professional organizations I’ve been associated with were the ones where employees had the most meaningful work.

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence 8

5 May 2008 - Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead speaks to nearly 3000 Sailors during an allhands call at Naval Air Station Pensacola.

They need a vision of where the organization is headed. They need to have a sense of achievement at the end of nearly every day. Show me an employee who goes more than a couple days without achieving at least a small victory, or accomplishing something of utility, and I will show you a person whose morale is down and who will likely contribute less in the future. A common theme among our most dynamic superstars is that you can be sure that they are accomplishing something nearly every day…and finding useful tasks for their team.

Finally, and perhaps most important, leaders must take time to mentor their people. While it is not easy in our busy schedules to find sufficient time to mentor large groups of people, good leaders do take time to mentor at least the senior members of their team. The best leaders, and most successful naval officers that I’ve known take time to also mentor more junior personnel. As leaders, our task is to prepare the next generation for their future. What a wonderful Navy we have, in that we’ve been doing this for generations and, as a result, our future has never been brighter. How do you judge whether you’ve been a successful mentor? I use the “sparkle in the eye” metric. If, when a junior member of my team transfers from my command, and I have given them a few more professional skills than when they reported, and they possess enthusiasm for the future (you can always tell by looking into their eyes), then I know I’ve succeeded as a mentor.

All naval intelligence professionals must read Rear Admiral Edwin T. Layton’s And I Was There…

Pearl Harbor and Midway—Breaking the Secrets. Rear Admiral Layton conveys what it means to be a naval intelligence professional, and what is required of leaders in our community. Edmund Morris’ two biographies on Theodore Roosevelt, The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt, and Theodore Rex, provide com-

9

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

pelling reading regarding one of the truly remarkable American leaders of the 20th Century. I own two copies of Peter Drucker’s The Effective Executive. Both are dog-eared, highlighted extensively, and well-worn. I have two, because I absent-mindedly put one in storage. Not being able to go three years without Drucker’s thoughts, I went out and bought the second copy. This book is almost the size of a pamphlet you could carry in your back pocket. A great read for a TAD trip.

Admiral Vern Clark, a former Chief of Naval Operations, is fond of Leading Change by John P. Kotter. I am too. Kotter discusses the eight-stage process for creating major change. He is on the mark. His process includes: establishing a sense of urgency; creating a guiding coalition; developing a vision and strategy; communicating the change vision; empowering broad-based action; generating short-term wins; consolidating gains and producing more change; and, anchoring new approaches in the culture.

“Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.”

- John F. Kennedy

Finally, perhaps my favorite book dealing with leadership issues is In Search of Excellence by Thomas Peters and Robert Waterman. This early 1980s classic describes lessons from America’s bestrun companies. Although its examples are a bit dated, the lessons on managing and leading organizations are well worth your time.

Vision Think about the future—frequently.

Constant change is a characteristic of the modern era, and constant change requires people of vision who can look beyond the current paradigm in order to chart our future. Develop ideas that guide your career, the Naval Intelligence community, and the Navy. Seniors are looking for bold officers with good ideas. Although not all people possess equal capabilities to look to the future, all of us have the capability to try. Look for opportunities to contribute your ideas. If opportunities don’t present themselves, look for ways to create the right opportunity.

In the quotation below, General William C. Westmoreland, then U.S. Army Chief of Staff, spoke of his future vision of the battlefield. His statement was made in October 1969 and, amazingly, is quite accurate regarding the battlefield of today. His statement should provide an example to us all regarding the need for visionaries to see the future and then help develop our future capabilities:

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence 10

On the battlefield of the future, enemy forces will be located, tracked and targeted almost instantaneously through the use of data-links, computer-assisted intelligence evaluation and automated fire control. With first-round kill probabilities approaching certainty, and with surveillance devices that can continuously track the enemy, the need for large forces to fix the opposition physically will be less important. I see battlefields that are under 24-hour real or nearreal time surveillance of all types. I see battlefields on which we can destroy anything we can locate through instant communications and almost instantaneous application of highly lethal firepower.

Wow! Talk about someone who clearly depicted “Joint Vision 2010” about three decades before that document was published. Of course, I should note that while General Westmoreland’s vision of the future battlefield was pretty accurate, there are many who would criticize his (then current) vision for the battlefield of Vietnam…I guess even the visionary is going to be wrong sometimes.

Ethical Standards VADM Jacoby talks frequently about the need to maintain integrity and credibility. He believes these two characteristics, while important to all naval officers, are vitally important to the intelligence professional. His philosophy is worth commenting on. He believes that you come into the Navy with integrity and credibility, and you should want to leave (at the end of your career) with these two characteristics entirely intact. To be credible you have to protect your personal integrity every day. Once credibility is lost, you cease to be an effective naval intelligence officer. If people don’t trust you, they won’t act upon your input and you’ll fast become irrelevant. If you make a mistake—

“Accountability and Integrity. Wherever we go, whatever we do, we represent the ideals of people of this nation. We must hold ourselves accountable to high standards and comport ourselves with the integrity and honor befitting the service.”

- Admiral Mike Mullen, USN

Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff

11

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

admit it—even if you’re the only one who realizes you made the error. At worst lives could be at risk. At the very least, you risk your credibility far more by covering your tracks than with an honest admission of a mistake.

If you find yourself in an ethical dilemma, if you have an inkling that what you are about to do is unethical, don’t do it. If you are in this profession in the first place, you’ve obviously made good enough choices and followed your instincts in the past to be working in a field of national security with a security clearance. Consider what some of your mentors would do in a similar situation to help guide you. Seek advice from those more experienced than you—inform yourself. In the case that someone has asked you to do something unethical, and it is your informed decision that it is unethical, bring it to the attention of your immediate supervisor, even if that is who asked you to do it. Never sacrifice your personal or professional integrity for fear of retribution.

Master-At-Arms 2nd Class (SEAL) Michael A. Monsoor during Operation Enduring Freedom.

Monsoor has been awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously for diving onto a grenade to save his teammates in Ar Ramadi, Iraq, on Sept. 29, 2006.

Monsoor also received the Silver Star for his actions in May during the same deployment in 2006 when he exposed himself to heavy enemy fire to rescue and treat an injured teammate.

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence 12

Additional Characteristics of the Highly Successful Naval Intelligence and Information Warfare Professional

The previous section discussed the most important principles associated with success in the Intelligence and Information Warfare Professions. This section adds several additional characteristics that, while not as central as the “seven principles,” are still quite important to achieving success.

Teamwork

This is such an important element of success in today’s Navy that I debated whether it belongs as one of my “principles.” I chose to keep it in this “characteristics of success” section because, to be honest, we all know that some folks can still be successful by operating independently. I’m happy to say, though, that these folks are few and far between. The truly successful in our business work as a team. Yes, we may have different perspectives, but on the key points we are one team.

Coordinate with others. We’re all in this together, despite often competing agendas. Build consensus on issues. Honestly debate critical issues. Don’t compromise on integrity, ethical issues, or issues involving life/death. For all other issues, find the optimum solution for all involved. That generally means “compromise.” My experience tells me that compromising doesn’t always result in the best solution, but it generally does…and it is a heck of a lot easier to work together and find an optimal solution than to degenerate into mudslinging…that takes a lot more energy and isn’t a great deal of fun.

Don’t blind-side your buddies or your boss…your reputation depends on playing well in the sandbox. Even the perception of lack of teamwork can hamper the perception that you’re a team player. Avoid treading on someone else’s turf. If you need to work on an issue that falls in the seams with another person (particularly important for analytical topics) then work with the other person.

Seek common ground.

“That old law about ‘an eye for an eye’ leaves everybody blind. The time is always right to do the right thing.”

- Dr. Martin Luther King

Network with your peers. One of the best ways to be successful is to have a large number of peers who you can trust, and who trust you. You’ll have an opportunity to be much more successful by working together than working in opposition.

Take a “corporate perspective.” Avoid sub-optimizing the department, command, or community by building up one area at the expense of another equally important area. I learned this extremely valuable lesson from one of my mentors, CAPT Dan Muccia, while assigned to JICPAC. As a new Operational Intelligence Department Head, I was charged up and worked hard to improve my

13

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

organization. CAPT Muccia had to take me aside, on several occasions, and explain to me why I wasn’t going to get the best Army Captain to stand watch, or why I needed to reduce the end strength of my organization to build-up the analytic capabilities in the North Korean and China shops. It didn’t make sense to me, at first, to potentially decrease the quality and capability of my department just to make modest improvements elsewhere in the command. Over time I realized that the good Captain was giving me my first real experience in making hard corporate decisions.

Innovate while collaborating. In The Medici Effect, author Frans Johansson, states: “When you step into the intersection of fields, disciplines, or cultures, you can combine existing concepts into a larger number of extraordinary new ideas.” This point is extremely relevant to our own current environment and transformation of intelligence and information warfare.

Take Care of Yourself and Your Family Take time to regularly work out. Eat properly. Maintain stability in your professional and personal life. When you’re younger, you think you can afford to work hard and play hard.

It takes its toll. You need to find the right balance.

I worked out 2–4 times a week for the first half of my career. For the past ten years, I’ve religiously scheduled Physical Training time five days a week. The older you become, the more important it is for you to take time out of your schedule to maintain cardio-vascular fitness. This is as important to our civilians as to our service members. If the President and the Secretary of State can take the time to make this a priority, so, too, can our civilians.

Take leave. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, ADM Mike Mullen, schedules a full week of leave every quarter. He is one of the busiest men I know. Yet, he takes time to get a break from work; spend time with family; and, rejuvenate. Your job isn’t so important that you cannot take leave during the year. I wish I had followed this advice when I was younger…I’ve lost far too much leave over my career. You shouldn’t.

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence 14

Attention to Detail

Pay attention to what you’re doing. Typos and spelling errors are unacceptable, especially in the era of the auto-spellcheck. Proofread, proofread, proofread! The auto-spellcheck does not catch grammatical errors and poorly prepared statements. Don’t expect your boss to proof your papers.

That is your job. Detail is important…it can truly be a matter of life and death. Our task is to know our adversaries weapons and tactics and operational capabilities. Just knowing what’s on the surface may be good enough in the classroom, but it is not sufficient when we are providing details to our defense industry to develop countermeasures to foreign military capabilities, or when we are providing an assessment of an enemy’s location, strength and intention. Details count.

Related…it’s critical that we focus on what’s important. Know the difference between what’s important and what’s not. Do not linger on the unimportant or inconsequential. Know what level of detail is required for your customer. To use a nautical analogy, seaman’s eye may be good enough when just two or three ships are maneuvering in formation, but a detailed maneuvering board plot might be more appropriate when involved in intricate task force maneuvers. In intelligence, it might be okay to tell an operational commander the rough locations of enemy divisions or brigades during a planning session, but you better be able to provide precise coordinates of Surface to Air Missile batteries to the operational forces when we send aircrew in harms way during combat sorties.

15

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

Never Let an Opportunity Pass

Successful people see opportunities where others see no opportunity at all. Let me provide two anecdotes from my own experience – in my first “intel tour” when I was a Lieutenant at Fleet Ocean Surveillance Intelligence Center (FOSIC), Commander in Chief, U.S. Naval Forces Europe, I was on the “command center watch” and was given an opportunity to move to the FOSIC watch. Most folks turned that opportunity down, because they were holding out for the more prestigious (and less demanding) “geo-political” intelligence “day jobs.” Perhaps I didn’t know better, but it seemed to me that the FOSIC watch would provide me much needed experience. I took the job, and learned a great deal under the tutelage of the Cryptologic Support Group Master Chief and Senior Chief. I could not have received a better education in the fundamentals of our profession than in that job.

While I was on the FOSIC watch—and the most junior of the watchstanders, I was offered an opportunity to “fleet up” and become the Baltic Fleet Analyst. For those of you not familiar with the Baltic Fleet, it was the “tail-end Charlie” of the Soviet Navy’s fleets, and, as an analytical assignment was to be avoided at all costs. In those days, the “successful” FOSIC officers (like Rear Admiral Gilbride) all wanted to be submarine analysts or do something exciting like being the “North Atlantic Treaty Organization support officer.” Heck, I wanted one of those assignments. However, it was clear to me that I would only receive one of those jobs by staying on the watch for a much, much longer period. So…I took the Baltic job…and immediately benefited from the opportunity. I was immediately given a “quality of analysis” trip to Moscow, Leningrad, Helsinki, Stockholm, Kiel, Den Helder, Den Hague, Munich, Stuttgart, and Bonn. Talk about a great deal! It was a once-in-a-career opportunity. I also was subsequently selected to be the Operations Officer for the FOSIC. Why? Perhaps I showed some professional competence, but it was also about timing….I’m convinced my decision to move to the FOSIC watch, and then to the “backwater Baltic” job created follow-on opportunities.

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence 16

Set Clear Standards

Establishing and adhering to standards is an essential element of success. Standards are especially important when dealing with fitness reports, evaluations, and the awards system. Consistent application of standards is respected by your folks. It often doesn’t matter whether you apply conservative or liberal standards…the important thing is that you set them and keep them. Problems arise when you deviate from the standards…you send mixed signals to your people. Confusing the work force leads to morale problems.

“A person with a clear purpose will make progress even on the toughest road.

A person with no purpose will make no progress even on the smoothest road.”

- Thomas Carlyle

Diversity

Appreciate what each member brings to the team, and encourage thinking which will provide alternative points of view. Where possible, when pulling together a working group or team, avoid pulling together a group that will end up offering a group think solution. Naval intelligence and information warfare communities of the future must be more diverse to achieve greatest success. This won’t happen unless those in the community NOW make the commitment to use, develop, grow, and attract the talents of individuals more reflective of society today and in the future.

17

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

Learn How to Work for Your Boss

Figure out your boss, then work to support her/him. Recognize the differences in personality types. Is the boss a reader or listener? As an intelligence professional, you need to quickly find out what media best supports your boss. Another anecdote from my career involved my time as the NAVCENT/FIFTH Fleet Director for Intelligence. I spent weeks trying to figure out how to provide information to my boss. Initially, I put a great deal of energy into the daily update book. After about two weeks, my boss nearly threw the book at me and said he never wanted to see it again. I subsequently poured energy into perfecting the daily briefing…unfortunately the boss only received the briefing once or twice a week. Finally, I happened to have a conversation with VADM (then CAPT) Murrett, who had previously served for my boss. He told me that the Admiral rarely read intelligence summaries and was only partially amenable to taking information in via formal daily briefings. He suggested I establish a more personal relationship with the flag. I subsequently used the first available opportunity (it was the Admiral’s smoke break) and verbally gave him an intelligence update.

It was an immediate hit. I learned from this experience that some bosses prefer to read the reports themselves, many like to get a daily overview in the form of formal/semi-formal briefings, and some prefer to get their intelligence in an extremely informal, and personal manner.

In addition to learning how to provide intelligence for your boss, it’s critical to learn whether your boss is a detail person or just wants the bottom lines. I have far too many anecdotes to relay my experiences in this document. I’ll just note that before working for a few Army officers, I thought I knew what it meant to provide detail. After working at Central Command, I subsequently changed my definitions and now know to take a large shovel with me when working for Army general officers (to dig for details!).

Learn your boss’ writing style. You’ll often be called upon to write messages, letters, reports or e-mails for your boss. It does you little good if you write it in your style (even if you’re Oxford educated) if your boss’ style is something entirely different. Of course, you can always try to help the boss out by adding a bit of your style, but avoid deviating much from what the bosses want in their

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence 18

correspondence/reports. This guideline also applies to briefing graphics. Much pain and agony can be reduced if you learn early, and then apply the lessons, regarding what your boss thinks is the right style for presentations.

When you’re the boss, let your folks come in and “reclama” your decisions. I like giving my folks the opportunity to re-visit issues with me if they really think I’ve made a bad decision. Once they reclama, if I still want to go with the original decision, I expect that they will get on board with the command decision….but, I must confess, I’ve had them convince me to change my original decision about 50% of the time.

Transparency

“Commitment to change. Success in today’s uncertain security environment demands that we continue to adapt the way we think, operate and fight. It also requires leaders to set the right expectations, eliminating to the maximum extent possible the uncertainty caused by the change through constant dialogue and free flow of information.”

- ADM Mike Mullen, USN Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff

Let others know what you are doing, and when appropriate, invite them to participate in the process. I can’t tell you how many organizations I have been in when the number one complaint from the work force was a lack of communication. Transparency applies to your dealings with your people and your dealings with your profession. When embarking on activities that will affect others and their business processes, ensure you have explained what you are doing.

People may not always agree with you, but chances are better when you have at least provided them an opportunity to be part of the process. Lack of transparency, like lack of communication, often leads people to fill the gaps with bad information.

19

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

Win-Win Solutions

“Joint undertakings stand a better chance when they benefit both sides.”

- Euripides

There doesn’t always have to be a winner and a loser. Although usually more difficult to figure out, the best outcomes to challenges are the win-win solutions. Finding solutions requires putting initial reactions aside and looking at problems from all angles. Particularly in dealing with resource issues, it is best to focus on overall desired results and mission accomplishment vice current ownership and status quo. Compromise and an agreed upon understanding of the consequences for both parties are key to negotiating beneficial solutions.

Deal With Problems … Immediately

Perceptions become reality. If a potential problem exists within your organization, you need to address it honestly and openly. Not all of your folks will like the method you use to deal with a problem, but if you ignore the issue, you’ll have greater problems. When I was in CNO’s Intelligence Plot, I had a petty officer who felt overworked and, as a result, his performance was lagging.

No one in the chain of command actually believed this guy was overworked, but he believed it. I got my team leaders together and examined the situation. We decided to give the young petty officer a very slight amount of additional time off. He responded rapidly and quickly got back up to speed. That minor change had a tremendous impact on this Sailor. I don’t believe, for a second, that he was rejuvenated because of a couple of days off. I believe he responded positively because when we found out about the problem, we took immediate action and showed that we cared. I believe it was the perception that this Sailor had that

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence 20

his chain of command cared and was willing to adjust the work schedule to accommodate him that resulted in the positive impact.

Listen to your people. They will sometimes complain about perceived injustices at work or problems on the home front.

Many of these will appear trivial to you.

Make sure you pay attention to what they are saying. Some apparently minor issues can have major implications. You need to attend to their concerns. When someone walks into your office, space, or cubicle to talk to you about an issue, put down whatever paperwork is in front of you and turn away from your computer screen—give them that time. A little bit of your time and empathy can go a long way towards maintaining a happy crew.

Take Action on Personnel Administrative Issues

Fitness reports, evaluations, awards, chits, etc., should be reviewed and completed the same day they hit your desk (or the next day if they hit the desk late in the day). I like to sign chits as soon as they come into my office and get them back out immediately. You owe it to your people to be expeditious in dealing with issues of importance to them. For fitness reports and evaluations…take a first chop as soon as you have a few minutes of uninterrupted time to review. If you’re not completely satisfied, then let the report sit over night and tackle it again the next morning with a fresh perspective…but be sure to complete the chop ASAP!

Your Goal Should be Top-Quality Products

“Good enough” is not good enough. Naval Intelligence and Information Warfare have been successful because we have not settled for second best. Quality counts. Whether you’re defending a network, performing analysis, producing an assessment, or submitting a personnel action for one of your people, you absolutely must provide the top quality product. Anything less dishonors the many superb Naval Intelligence professionals who paved the way for us…they provided first-rate products.

We must deliver equally impressive products.

Use multiple media to convey your points. Individuals “consume” information in a variety of formats/media. Some people like to look at graphs and data. Others appreciate the use of pictures.

Many like to read…but only a few really like to read into the details. We live in a multi-tasking, multi-media world. Limiting your output to two dimensional power point graphics (black on white, three bullets per slide) will only appeal to a small audience. You will need to understand your customers and how they want to receive information. Then…regardless of how successful you’ve been in the past, you need to be capable of providing information in new formats and media to reach your ever-changing customer base.

21

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

Save Examples

One of my favorite ways to learn is to use examples of those experts who ran down the path ahead of me. In the days when message traffic was king, I kept files of the best messages (summaries, operational intelligence spot reports, Personal For messages). I also kept files of what I thought were the best briefing graphics, and the best administrative materials (e.g., fitness reports, evaluations, award packages). I learned that there is no one “best” writing style…but there are some styles that have considerable commonality. Therefore, I’d gather my examples from a variety of producers, and I willingly shared those with anyone who wanted to improve their writing.

Borrow from the successful. Closely related to the concept of saving examples, is my belief that you can improve yourself if you borrow from those who you view are successful. Yes, borrow writings & graphics, but also borrow their personal characteristics. I’ve mentioned many of those traits that I think are important in other areas of this paper, but I want to stress that you will be the best judge of what traits you see in the successful that are worthy of emulating. Heaven knows that even the most successful leaders have a few blemishes that you don’t want to include in your kit bag.

Maintain Your Humility

Keep your ego in check. I don’t believe there are two communities in the Navy that have greater access to senior flag officers at an earlier point in their career than Naval Intelligence and Information Warfare. I also don’t believe there are communities that have a higher percentage of personnel who receive fellowships, assignments to the White House, Flag aide assignments, or other special one-of-a-kind top assignments at the highest levels of the Navy or the Department of Defense. As a result of all of this early exposure to the “top,” our folks generally receive pretty daggone impressive fitness reports. Therefore, it is easy for our people to develop a sense of superiority. Yet, it’s important to remember that fitness reports are still somewhat inflated, and you can’t afford to believe your own fitness report. You also can’t afford to be viewed as someone who is overly-impressed with oneself. Apply a bit of humility in everything you do, and you’ll be a much more successful professional.

“Nothing gives one person so much advantage over another as to remain always cool and unruffled under all circumstances.”

- Thomas Jefferson

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence 22

Attributes of a “World Class” Intelligence Professional

Finally, let me leave you with a paraphrase from Robert Reich, the former Secretary of Labor and author of The Future of Success: Living and Working in the New Economy. He describes the qualities that individuals must possess to succeed in the information age. His words ring especially true for those of us in the profession of intelligence:

“The intellectual equipment needed for the future is an ability to define problems, quickly assimilate relevant data, conceptualize and reorganize information, make deductive and inductive leaps with it, ask hard questions, discuss findings with colleagues, work collaboratively to find solutions, then convince others.”

- Robert Reich

23

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence

The Art of Success in Naval Intelligence 24