"Turn the Ship Around" is the collected wisdom of a nuclear submarine captain who took over the worst performing sub in the fleet and turned it into one of the best. I picked this book up because someone sent me this YouTube video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqmdLcyES_Q) by the author and I thought he was a total badass. The nuclear navy fascinates me because it's an organization that operates nuclear reactors in sealed metal tubes a mile underwater... and has managed to avoid catastrophe for more than 70 years. Next up on my list are books about Admiral Rickover - the guy who created the whole nuclear navy system (and the father of the RSI nerd camp at MIT!)

The key takeaway from this book is that "leader-leader" systems are significantly more resilient and performant than "leader-follower" systems. By diffusing authority down to where the information is (rather than a centralized command-and-control system), a captain can increase the speed and quality of decision-making and ensure that his ship will continue to function even in his absence. There are plenty of obstacles on the way to getting there and Marquet covers many of them in this book.

The book is short. The style is direct. The message makes sense.

Some key quotes below:

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Leadership is communicating to people their worth and potential so clearly that they are inspired to see it in themselves.

Control, we discovered, only works with a competent workforce that understands the organization’s purpose. Hence, as control is divested, both technical competence and organizational clarity need to be strengthened.

One of the things that limits our learning is our belief that we already know something.

What are the things you are hoping I don’t change? What are the things you secretly hope I do change? What are the good things about Santa Fe we should build on? If you were me what would you do first? Why isn’t the ship doing better?

What are your personal goals for your tour here on Santa Fe? What impediments do you have to doing your job? What will be our biggest challenge to getting Santa Fe ready for deployment? What are your biggest frustrations about how Santa Fe is currently run? What is the best thing I can do for you?

“Don’t move information to authority, move authority to the information.”

Admiral Hyman Rickover and the nuclear-powered Navy implemented a highly successful program with an unparalleled safety record. From an organizational perspective, the accountability of the commanding officers was heavily stressed. Their selection and training were incredibly important. The department heads approved operations, and the department head or captain authorized maintenance. A long list of activities and evolutions could be performed only with the specific permission of the CO, and so on. These practices reinforced leader-follower in the submarine force. As a result, the performance of the submarines was directly coupled with the technical ability of the CO. As I’ve already mentioned, some ships would do well under one CO and then poorly under the next. At the same time, the naval nuclear propulsion program has succeeded in developing an alternative to the personality-centered leadership approach: a procedurally centered leadership structure in which the procedure reigns supreme. This structure is effective when it comes to operating a nuclear reactor.

When you’re trying to change employees’ behaviors, you have basically two approaches to choose from: change your own thinking and hope this leads to new behavior, or change your behavior and hope this leads to new thinking.

Some observers attributed the low morale on Santa Fe to the long hours. I didn’t think so. I felt it had more to do with focusing on reducing errors instead of accomplishing something great and the resultant feeling of ineffectiveness that had permeated the ship.

“I INTEND TO . . .” was an incredibly powerful mechanism for CONTROL. Although it may seem like a minor trick of language, we found that it profoundly shifted ownership of the plan to the officers. “I intend to . . .” didn’t take long to catch on. The officers and crew loved it. I was the one who had a problem with it, ironically. I was worried that someone would say “I intend to . . .” when I was sleeping, and I would not be fully informed or understand what was happening. So, we made a rule that “I intend to . . .” only applied when I was awake. Other than that, it applied to everything.

Emergency situations required snap decision making and clear orders. There’s no time for a big discussion. Yet, the vast majority of situations do not require immediate decisions. You have time to let the team chew on it, but we still apply the crisis model of issuing rapid-fire orders. RESIST THE URGE TO PROVIDE SOLUTIONS is a mechanism for CONTROL. When you follow the leader-leader model, you must take time to let others react to the situation as well. You have to create a space for open decision by the entire team, even if that space is only a few minutes, or a few seconds, long. This is harder than in the leader-follower approach because it requires you to anticipate decisions and alert your team to the need for an upcoming one. In a top-down hierarchy, subordinates don’t need to be thinking ahead because the boss will make a decision when needed.

THINK OUT LOUD is a mechanism for CONTROL because when I heard what my watch officers were thinking, it made it much easier for me to keep my mouth shut and let them execute their plans. It was generally when they were quiet and I didn’t know what they would do next that I was tempted to step in. Thinking out loud is essential for making the leap from leader-follower to leader-leader.

I was also accountable to Naval Reactors for the safe operation of the reactor plant. Naval Reactors is the organization set up by Admiral Hyman Rickover to build, maintain, manage, man, and certify naval nuclear power operations. It has an incredible record of success as a result of well-thought-out management processes.

What I realized, however, is the need for a relentless, consistent repetition of the message. CONTINUALLY AND CONSISTENTLY REPEAT THE MESSAGE is a mechanism for COMPETENCE.

As more decision-making authority is pushed down the chain of command, it becomes increasingly important that everyone throughout the organization understands what the organization is about. This is called clarity, and it is the second supporting leg—along with competence—that is needed in order to distribute control.

Initiative has been a hallmark of the American fighting man and a key reason for our success.

Look at your structures for awards. Are they limited? Do they pit some of your employees against others? That structure will result in competition at the lowest level. If what you want is collaboration, then you are destroying it. Instead, have awards that are abundant, with no limit. They pit your team against the world—either external competitors or nature. I like to call these man-versus-nature as opposed to man-versus-man awards. Every team that can get a fire hose to the scene of the fire within two minutes gets an award

With your leadership team, develop longer-term organizational goals for three to five years out. Go through the evaluations and look for statements that express achievement. In every case, ask “How would we know?” and ensure that you have measuring systems in place. Then have employees write their own evaluations one year, two years, or three years hence. The goals in the employees’ evaluations should cascade down from the organization’s goals; they needn’t necessarily be identical but they should be appropriate at an individual level.

Turn the Ship Around! - Likewise Book Reviews

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