ABSTRACT
The military, especially the military of a democracy, can likewise serve as a source of information on leadership. With appropriate adaptations, without having a mission in any way similar to the military, best practices can be introduced into an organization looking for ways to improve. The military has always used what the quality movement calls self-directed work teams. The concept of a “benchmark” in the context of a quality process was introduced to the American business vocabulary by the Xerox company, winner of a Baldrige Award in 1989. Working under broad directives, military units are left to their own devices at every level of the chain of command. To teach leadership skills, the military uses lists to organize information. The military teaches three leadership styles: authoritarian, participative, and delegative. The military is made up of people all busily training in some way to do something that they pray quietly at night never happens.
