In Episode 11, “Instinct – The Difference Between a Leader and a Follower”, Gregory Robinson is delighted to talk to Major General Fergus McLachlan, AO of the Australian Army.
Gus shares his thoughts on modern leadership in complex disrupted organisations through his lens as Commander of Forces Command, with responsibility for 36,000 personnel which equates to 85% of the Australian Army. Especially interesting are his insights into similarities and differences in leadership between business and the military, and the learnings that each can gain from the other.
In his role as Commander of Forces Command, Gus has a diverse set of responsibilities, comparable to many Chief Executives, but operating in a different context. Gus presents his insights as previous Head of Modernisation and Strategic Planning, where he had responsibility for developing the future operating concepts that are keeping Australia ahead of potential threat organisations. These initiatives can lead to $20-30bn investments over the life of major capabilities and may include the creation of a digital “internet of things” linking all elements of the organisation, a redesign of the Army structure to accommodate the growth of cyber and electronic warfare capabilities and the creation of an Army innovation system.
As Senior Campaign Planner Coalition Forces Afghanistan 2013, he had a key role for the multi-national coalition involved in the stabilisation of Afghanistan following the removal of the Taliban regime. The role spanned strategy development to provide force drawdown and force structure options to the President of the United States of America to the apportionment of development resources and mentoring of Afghan partner forces. The coalition comprised over 30 nations, each with different national objectives and planning was done in a dynamic and often lethal environment.
listen also on
