Battlefield Leadership draws on key leadership lessons from the past and connects them directly to what matters most to navigate today’s business challenges. The importance of organizational agility, cascading intent, alignment at all levels, initiative, and cross boundary cooperation – among many others – are made tangible and lasting through the Antietam Leadership Experience.
Widely divergent leadership styles led to drastically different outcomes at a small farming community in central Maryland on September 17, 1862. This key event, the Battle of Antietam, witnessed the single bloodiest day of battle in American history. It was a turning point in American history, and it provides myriad leadership lessons for today’s business leaders. When Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee led his army into Northern territory for the first time, he had great expectations of changing the course of the Civil War. Lee’s opponent, Union commander, Gen. George McClellan, had significant advantages in terms of resources, manpower, and even knowledge of his enemy’s plan. The result was something neither commander anticipated. As is the case in business, leadership at multiple levels was the crucial factor.
