Defense Secretary Bob Gates told Council on Foreign Relations members last night that great chief executives welcome diverse points of view. Having served seven U.S. Presidents, Gates believes the best of them are "liberated" by environments in which people are free to speak openly. He told us that the drive toward consensus typically produces mediocre results, especially when that consensus is shaped by what everyone thinks the boss wants. Yes, Gates' assertion is obvious. Varied perspectives generally do produce better-informed decisions. So why are most bosses so terrible at encouraging, sustaining and applying diverse perspectives?
Gates was previously president of Texas A&M. He jokingly told us that the political dimensions of his job there were tougher than at CIA or the Defense Department. He said that each of the three public institutions share many traits, particularly deeply entrenched cultures populated by long-term employees and consultants resistant to change. He offered one case in point of a DOD, now and seemingly forever, sharing with defense contractors, K Street lobbyists and national security interests at our leading universities a selfish institutional bias toward slow, inefficient and vastly inflated big-ticket procurement. He said that "DOD doesn't do speed well," which by its very nature is a profound national security threat.
Gates was previously president of Texas A&M. He jokingly told us that the political dimensions of his job there were tougher than at CIA or the Defense Department. He said that each of the three public institutions share many traits, particularly deeply entrenched cultures populated by long-term employees and consultants resistant to change. He offered one case in point of a DOD, now and seemingly forever, sharing with defense contractors, K Street lobbyists and national security interests at our leading universities a selfish institutional bias toward slow, inefficient and vastly inflated big-ticket procurement. He said that "DOD doesn't do speed well," which by its very nature is a profound national security threat.