LEADERSHIP BLOG

Recent Posts

On Veterans Day, Prioritize Supporting and Hiring Gold Star Children

In 2008 during the Great Recession, military veterans’ unemployment was a significant national problem and soared to more than twice the national average according to RAND Corporation. Servicemembers departing the military entered a challenging job market with an 8% civilian unemployment rate. Veterans’ unemployment skyrocketed to 29% for 18–24-year-olds according to RAND Corporation. In 2011, under the personal direction of CEO and President Jamie Dimon, JP Morgan Chase & Co. led the corporate effort to solve the problem and started the “100,000 Jobs Mission“ to promote veteran employment, with a goal of hiring 100,000 veterans by 2020. Many companies took up the challenge, creating military networking groups within their organizations and recruiting veterans to lead their recruiting and retention practices. Read More +

Leading in Leadership Development

It’s often said that the toughest test of leadership is managing through a crisis. Founded on the concept of translating military leadership principles to educate executives in the private and public sectors, Thayer Leadership has been readying corporate leaders to ace that challenge since its inception a little over a decade ago. Then came March of 2020, when Thayer faced its own leadership litmus test. First, Covid-19 derailed a business model largely dependent on gathering corporate groups for a blend of custom in-person applied academic and experiential sessions set against the iconic backdrop of The Historic Thayer Hotel, located on the grounds of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Second, the company’s executive director and one of Thayer’s founding partners, Karen Kuhla McClone, Ph.D., who designed its curriculum and ran its programs, was sidelined by a cardiac arrest. Read More +

Trust: Three Key Lessons from General George Washington and Benedict Arnold

As an unparalleled classroom for leadership, few locations rival the grounds of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. The famous promontory jutting into the west bank of the Hudson River is rich in history and drama starring America’s most beloved and most reviled military leaders. Reminders of the Academy’s strong leadership culture are everywhere. “Duty, Honor, Country,” the values on which the culture rests are etched on the walls of the stately Cadet Chapel. Inscribed granite benches with words representing a key leadership virtue like “Courage” and “Integrity” dot the landscape. Adding their quiet presence to the echoes of the architecture, larger than life statues of prominent graduates such as Eisenhower, Patton, MacArthur, and Grant stand guard on the expansive green parade field simply called the Plain. In the center, George Washington, the epitome of “Duty, Honor, Country,” sits astride a noble steed silently gazing up the Hudson River. Almost hidden from view is the former Arnold Redoubt, a fortification during the American Revolution, hastily renamed the Clinton Redoubt after Benedict Arnold’s traitorous attempt to surrender the West Point Defenses to the British. Read More +

Additional Posts

The Power of Women's Leadership Development

Leadership Traits of Ulysses S. Grant

Independence Day 2021

Overcoming In-Person Training Capacity Constraints in 2021

Creating, Sharing, and Living A Leadership Philosophy

Reflection: Black History Month

Lessons Learned Leading Through Pandemics

Leading Through VUCA: CEO Focus on Culture

VUCA Leadership: A Guide to Surviving and Thriving in Chaotic Times