ERWIN ROMMEL – LESSONS FOR LEADERSHIP AND
MANAGEMENT IN THE 21st CENTURY
Erwin Rommel was one of the most widely-recognised exemplars of military
leadership of the 21st
century. His visual image is compelling; the purposeful
steely-eyed stare, the classic leather or desert khaki coat, the scarf, the peaked
cap adorned with armoured corps goggles.
Stories of his personal bravery are legend. Before World War 1 he eschewed the
opportunity for membership of the German General Staff to remain with his
infantry unit.
During action in the mountains of Italy during World War 1 he personally led a
machine gun battalion mounted on a bicycle! Dramatic progress over
horrendous terrain followed. His progress was only halted by the lack of facilities
to house the thousands of Italian POW’s who were taken as a result of his antics.
The treaty of Versailles after World War 1 attempted to limit post war German
military expansion, but the key element of army administration (the General Staff)
formed again in secret. Plans for the resurrection of the German Army machine
were hatched. Once again,
Rommel stayed in an operational and training role
during this time.
Since 1809, Germany had stolen the march on the rest of the world in terms of
military “management”. General Helmuth von Moltke developed a new approach
to the way that the army was organised. This was prompted by his review of the
way the Prussian Army had performed in previous campaigns.
In previous centuries the Commander-in-Chief of the military was the emperor or
king of the particular state. Senior commanders were chosen as a function of
their membership of the ruling families. This was effective only where these
people had some military nous,
a random process at best. Bravery in combat
was another valued attribute.
General von Moltke saw other possibilities. His plan was centered on a group of
professional military officers (who had full time careers in the military) –
the so-
called General Staff. Selection was based on personal as well as academic
criteria. Those selected were trained in military academies, and there was a new
approach. These people were schooled in the “big picture” of military operations.
They were made aware of the vast administrative tasks necessary to put an army
quickly and effectively into the field. An army has to be trained, transported, fed,
watered, treated for injuries and there needs to be effective communication
between various elements. For all this to happen there needs to be an
appreciation of the interface between the civilian world and the military eg. the
Prussian
railway system was designed so that
troops
could be transferred to
various likely areas of conflict, as well as being an effective means of civilian
transport.
Those working in general staff roles also spent large amounts of time working on
so-called “scenarios”. This involved assessing likely areas of future conflict and
planning in detail for them. Logistic and operational solutions were developed.
These were then documented in fine-grained detail. If such a scenario arose,
these documents then became “orders”. They merely needed to be dated and
signed.
Young officers trained in this system spent time in general staff duties as well as
serving with operational units. The spin-off was that von Moltke had confidence
in officers in operational areas to take advantage of opportunities, without prior
approval of HQ (in those days a time consuming process). These men were also
put in key advisory roles with local commanders, who were sometimes the last
remnants of the old hereditary system of command.
Fast forward to World War 11. Rommel’s World War 1 record of bravery and
audacity had served him well. He was put in command of Hitler’s personal
protection unit and as such became a favourite of the “Fuhrer”. He asked for,
and was given, command of an armoured (tank) division. It took him only months
to develop an appreciation of armoured tactics. The fast-paced
action of this
warfare matched his style perfectly. His personal presence at key points of
action was his trademark. He was very visible, dressed in his own rakish style.
Possessing what his men saw as a “6th sense” about warfare, he would arrive at
a problem scene and personally supervise the solution.
He drove daringly across France in a matter of weeks, with no regard for his
flanks, using surprise and speed to overwhelm an unsuspecting enemy. This
was done despite his tanks being heavily outgunned and outnumbered by the
French tanks.
His deeds in North Africa, in charge of the
Afrika Corps were
similar in their
audacity. However, when he was criticized it was for his tendency to move faster
than the backup required from the basic logistics. He often defied orders from
above if he sensed an opportunity for rapid success. So much so that the
German High Command on occasion sent more senior officers to “rein him in”.
That said, his reputation for humanity to POW’s and fairness was a constant.
Later in the war he was involved in a conspiracy to remove Hitler, further
evidence of his moral fortitude. As a result of this he was offered two options by
the German authorities. The first was to go through a formal trial procedure
which would have had negative repercussions
for his family. The second option
was for him to suicide and then be buried with full military honours, with
appropriate compensation for his family. He chose the latter.
Rommel’s early successes in Africa were eventually thwarted by the length of the
supply lines needed to support his military ability. When this reality struck, he
supervised one of the most effective withdrawal actions in military history. In
Montgomery he had a foe whose appreciation of the importance of logistic
support and careful preparation eventually won the day.
Rommel typifies the image we have of a brave, audacious leader capable of
incisive (and often successful) decision making. However, he was never part of
the general staff in his earlier years. His focus was the operational aspects of
warfare and it seems he was as good as anybody before or since at these.
One of the major factors in Germany’s dramatic earlier successes in World War
11 was their innovative management of warfare. Without the strategic detail and
backup the bravery of a leader is stymied.
In business it is the same. The major long-term success stories in business are
usually based on innovations in management. The successful companies in the
current climate will be those which rely less on charismatic leaders and more on
tapping into the intellectual potential
of all of their people. They are the human
equivalent of the wartime supply lines. What they supply is ideas. These are the
munitions, food and water necessary for success in an increasingly changing and
competitive business world.
NEWS 
