"The challenge for any secretary, especially in wartime, is to strike the right balance between building team spirit and maintaining an open, close working relationship with the senior military while not getting too 'buddy-buddy.' He must instill a culture of accountability. An effective secretary is not a congenial chairman of the board but rather a demanding, tough chief executive whose daily life is often filled with life-and-death decisions." p.576
"I always treated senior officers respectfully. I had ways of making my displeasure known --usually a deepening silence and grim expression--but I never shouted. I never belittled. I never intentionally embarrassed anyone. I always listened and often adjusted my opinions and decisions in response to the advice and counsel of senior officers. I valued the opinions and experience of the chiefs and the combatant commanders." p.576
"In wartime, I believe the routine peace-time officer assignment process should be set aside and senior field commanders should be empowered to choose their subordinate commanders." p. 577
"In implementing an agenda for change, the secretary cannot delegate the hard work to the deputy secretary, who simply doesn't have the clout in the building, at the White House, or in the Congress, to push through changes on big issues. The secretary has to master the details and fully understand the issues and problems. The challenge is to maintain a high-level, broad perspective, understand enough details to make sensible and executable decisions, and then delegate responsibility for implementation. 'Microknowledge' must not become micromanagement, but it sure helps keep people on their toes when they know that the secretary knows what the hell he's talking about. If the secretary of defense doesn't do all of this, he becomes a 'kept' man at the Pentagon, enjopying all the accouterments of position and authority--the big plane, massive entourages, lots of ceremonies and speeches--but held hostage by the military services, the Pentagon beaureaucracy, and his own staff, without the knowledge or influence to effectively lead the department in new directions, much less put the place on a war footing." p. 578
Source:
Robert M. Gates. (2014) Duty: Memoirs of a Secretary at War (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Borzoi Books, a division of Random House LLC). ISBN 978-0-307-95947-8 (hard cover). ISBN 978-0-307-95948-5 (eBook).
