Courage to Execute: What Elite U.S. Military Units Can Teach Business About Leadership and Team Performance - Hardcover

Murphy, James D.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 111879009X ISBN 13: 9781118790090

Publisher: Wiley, 2014

Synopsis

How to build a culture of high performance within your organization

The U.S. military in general, and its many elite organizations in particular, possesses a culture of high performance. Courage to Execute outlines the six basic principles that operate at the foundation of high performance, which include leadership, organization, communication, knowledge, experience, and discipline, known together as LOCKED. When all are practiced effectively, teamwork emerges. But the most elusive quality that exists at the heart of all elite military teams, the element that organizations and businesses deeply desire to perform more efficiently and effectively, is trust. Trust is easily spent, but hard won. Author James Murphy, an employer of approximately fifty senior military officers that have served in elite units such as the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, U.S. Navy SEALS, and U.S. Army Rangers, shares a multitude of personal leadership stories that illustrates the principles of LOCKED.

• Shares compelling anecdotes from leaders in elite units of the U.S. Military
• Written by James D. Murphy, founder and CEO of Afterburner, Inc., which has trained over 1.5 million executives, sales professionals, and business people from every industry in Afterburner’s Flawless Execution Model, and its unique, high-energy programs

Courage to Execute will help you develop effective leadership skills and build high-performance teams that out-compete your rivals every time.

About this title

From the Inside Flap

How can elite U.S. military units consistently perform at such high levels, even in the midst of combat? What secrets do Navy SEALs, Army Rangers, and Blue Angels hold that give them the skills, ability, and confidence to execute their missions with such success? And what can these military professionals teach American business about teamwork, continuous improvement, and leadership?

Courage to Execute unpacks the lessons of high-performing units and provides organizations of all types with a simple yet effective model distilled from these warriors. Author James D. Murphy, who leads a training and consulting firm of former military aviators and Special Operations officers, shares a multitude of personal leadership stories, along with examples from the battlefield and business. Together, they demonstrate how organizations, teams, and individuals can use a simple process based on military principles and tactics to develop the ability and confidence to achieve their goals.

You'll learn:

• The value of effective execution
• How to develop common values and skills in your people
• How to align your troops with their leader's intent and the organization's goals
• How to move from organizational strategy toward accountable team and individual actions
• How to maintain your team's battle rhythm and your ability to execute, even in rapidly changing environments
• The importance of regular debriefing and continuous improvement
• How to develop teams and leaders from Day One

Through stories of missions and exercises conducted by U.S. military units, Murphy demonstrates why simplicity combats complexity, how mutual accountability yields trust, and how adaptability and continuous improvement are cornerstones of successful battle plans.

Have the courage to dig in and transform your organization into a high-performance unit that has the skills, preparation, mindset, and, ultimately, the courage to execute.

From the Back Cover

Praise for Courage to Execute

"I've worked with Jim; he knows his stuff, and this book is proof of that. Courage to Execute is full of proven tactics and techniques to drive business success by applying military principles, some of which we've deployed at The Home Depot. What I admire most about Jim's work is that he understands that at the heart of every strategy...at the core of every successful campaign...are people."
—Carol Tomé, Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President, Corporate Services, The Home Depot

"Our PepsiCo leadership team has leveraged Jim Murphy's Afterburner frameworks and lessons learned to enhance our executional excellence; from how we plan to our execution at the point of purchase."
—Brian C. Cornell, CEO, PepsiCo Americas Foods

"In Courage to Execute, ex-fighter pilot Jim Murphy explains the proven frameworks and techniques used by our military's highest performing units to drive Flawless Execution while performing at the highest levels. He clearly and simply adapts those tools for business leaders who want to improve their teams' execution at any level. It is a great read full of practical insights and tools to drive executional excellence."
—Mike White, Chairman and CEO, DirecTV

"A true disrupter, Jim Murphy teaches organizations how to accelerate their performance. His work with us and his latest book, Courage to Execute, provides businesses with a framework for success."
—Ryan Kavanaugh, CEO, Relativity Media, LLC

Edition details

• Publisher: Wiley
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 111879009X
• ISBN 13: 9781118790090
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 208