Leader Business: Battle-Tested Leadership Strategies For Any Organization
Tom Magness is a 26+ year career U.S. Army officer. He is a graduate of the Military Academy at West Point, has a Masters Degree from the University of Texas, and is an Army War College fellow. His portfolio also includes a variety of military schools, including Airborne training and the Army Ranger school, and professional certifications, including a Professional Engineer license and accreditation in LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design). A student of “leader business” since entering the Military Academy at West Point in 1981, the author has led organizations from platoon to brigade in assignments that spanned the world, to include combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. In each position he has consistently been recognized as the top leader among a very competitive and capable group of equally distinguished officers. He has taught emerging leaders as a faculty member at West Point for two years. He has served as a coach/teacher/mentor/consultant at the U.S. Army’s National Training Center for four years, preparing soldiers and leaders for combat. His observations on leadership have been validated during tours of duty as Commanding Officer/CEO for Army Corps of Engineers districts in Detroit, Michigan; Los Angeles, California; and Kabul, Afghanistan. These high level leadership positions with up to 1500 civilians and annual budgets in excess of $3B have demonstrated the validity of his military leadership lessons and their applicability to the “real world.” A career as an officer in the United States Army, and a continual quest to understand the relationship between business and the military, has convinced him of one thing: business is nothing like combat, nothing like Ranger training (thankfully), and nothing like preparing soldiers for battle. He has confirmed, however, that leadership is leadership. An accomplished writer, energetic speaker, and personal coach, the author has completed several dozen articles in a variety of publications on topics ranging from engineering to wetland preservation to leadership. His “Leader Business” blog has helped shape a growing list of clients and emerging leaders in a diversity of fields and professions.