Australian Army Journal

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OPINION Army’s Spirit and be held to account for negligence. When a unit has an effective and clearly understood learning mechanism, where a lesson for one becomes a lesson for all, an environment of trust is built and maintained. People can see that action emanating from lessons learned leads to superior outcomes and a feeling of confidence that the two-way trust mechanism is working and supported by all. If this approach is taken across our units then our performance will simply get better and better and our people will simply get better and better. This is faith in action. Another important aspect of faith is care and concern for people within a unit. All officers and soldiers need their superiors to give consideration to their needs, real or perceived. This includes appropriate recognition of those who have contributed to instilling and maintaining pride. No unit is more than the collective spirit and human talent of its people. Equipment without people is not capability, it is just equipment. No leader is more than the collective spirit and talents of his or her soldiers. In my experience leaders fail when they cannot comprehend this fact. Mutual faith, through validated trust, lifts the spirit of our people, our leaders and our Army. Collective faith contributes to collective spirit. Mateship This may be a fundamentally unique term for Australians, but is not unique to militaries. In other armies ‘mates’ may be termed ‘buddies’ or ‘comrades’. In our context, mateship is not just about being personal friends or even members of the same team or unit. Mateship is about the bond that is made when we earn the right to wear Army’s uniform and the Rising Sun badge — our common thread. I am proud to have earned the right to wear my uniform and proud to have served our nation through the Rising Sun badge for the last 35 years. I am proud to call those soldiers who have also earned the right to wear our uniform my mate whether they are my superior or subordinate, male or female. When the some who wear our uniform let our team down by unacceptable behaviour or bad personal performance, I feel smaller regardless of my own personal standards. This is because I am just a member of our Army team, equal to all, no better or less than anyone else on our team. A mate who lets the Army team down diminishes us all. This is why mateship is so important to our collective spirit. It is this shortfall by the some that is a major problem within Army. When the shortfall is ignored this becomes a fault of our organisational culture. Australian Army Journal Culture edition 2013, Volume X, Number 3 Page 206
OPINION Army’s Spirit Mateship can sometimes be misunderstood and give oxygen to unacceptable behaviour. It may be misunderstood because the some consider a mate as just a personal friend or immediate colleague. The some have lost sight, if they had sight in the first place. A mate includes everyone who has earned the right to proudly wear the Rising Sun badge. The attitude of a few to ‘never dob in a mate at any cost’ betrays the collective mateship and spirit our Army needs to support a healthy culture. Walking past or ignoring unacceptable behaviour or low personal standards is not courageous, it is cowardice. I can provide many examples of positive mateship. Today we have an increased focus on psychological wounds and injuries, and for good reason. Often a mate is the first responder, able to lend a heartfelt hand and give support immediately and then to follow through by being there and available. This is real mateship and is just one example of mateship in action. Never misunderstand what mateship really means. Opportunity Opportunity is one of the most practical elements of Army’s spirit and is readily available. I believe that I am a much better person and a soldier because I have been the recipient of significant opportunity over my long Army career. I am fortunate to be present when the Chief of Army presents Federation Stars to officers and soldiers who have completed 40 years of service. These impressive officers and soldiers serve as examples of access to opportunity which has contributed to their longevity in Army. As their records of service are read to the audience it is clear that most have served in multiple trades and corps and accessed commissioning or other opportunities. Yet too many leaders focus on the short-term and short-sighted needs of their units and teams. Too many decision-makers and those who make recommendations focus on policy without due consideration of the human dimension of the soldiers’ aspirations. This is detrimental to the longer term interests and health of Army. People feel let down when they believe they haven’t been heard or their needs have been ignored. The two-way trust is broken. Allowing officers and soldiers reasonable and considered access to achieve their aspirations directly contributes to a better sense of wellbeing and to Army’s spirit. To quote a peer of mine, ‘trust is a function of character and competence’. Australian Army Journal Culture edition 2013, Volume X, Number 3 Page 207
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Australian Army Culture edition 201
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CONTENTS CHIEF OF ARMY FOREWORD....
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CHIEF OF ARMY FOREWORD When I assum
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CHIEF OF ARMY FOREWORD her gender,
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EDITORIAL the way in which it deals
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HISTORY Serving Their Country: A Sh
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HISTORY ‘A Homosexual Institution
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GENDER AND SEXUALITY Steyrs and She
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GENDER AND SEXUALITY Sexuality, Coh
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RELIGION Religious Diversity in the
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IDENTITY Military Retirement: Refle
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DISCIPLINE Hazing in the ADF: A Cul
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OPERATIONAL CULTURE The Myths of Cu
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ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE Securing Arm
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Page 155 and 156: ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE Securing Arm
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Page 159 and 160: ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE Learning to
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Page 187 and 188: ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE From Institu
Page 203 and 204: OPINION Army’s Spirit Warrant Off
Page 205: OPINION Army’s Spirit Pride As RS
Page 209 and 210: OPINION Army’s Spirit Our people
Page 211 and 212: OPINION Army’s Spirit I think it
Page 213 and 214: OPINION Brothers and Sisters in Arm
Page 227 and 228: OPINION On the Culture of the Austr
Page 245 and 246: OPINION Fifty Shades of Grey: Offic
Page 255 and 256: CREATIVE WRITING Lost in Translatio
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CREATIVE WRITING Lost in Translatio
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NOTES FOR CONTRIBUTORS NOTES FOR CO
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