Bo’s Lasting Lessons: The Legendary Coach Teaches the Timeless Fundamentals of Leadership

1. Bo’s Lasting Lessons: The Legendary Coach Teaches the Timeless Fundamentals of Leadership Presented by: Leigh Rowland NavSci 402 4/13/09 “Those who stay will be champions”

2. The Buzz on Bo “That’s pretty much how Schembechler saw himself: Just some old guy who once coached football. We knew better.” *Played Tackle at Miami of Ohio from 1948-51, and earned a master’s degree there while working as a graduate instructor. Head Coach at Miami of Ohio prior to coaching at Michigan *Head coach at university of Michigan 1969-1989 -194-48-5 overall record at U-M, including 17 bowl games and 13 big ten championships -won 2 rose bowls -11-9-1 against OSU -Inducted into coaches hall of fame in 1993 *Served as U-M athletic director from 1988-1990 *After retirement he maintained an active role in the community, raising millions of dollars for the U-M hospital, giving speeches around the country, and performing favors for former assistants and players. *loved to learn and read, with a noted weakness for Tom Clancy books; also loved music, known for humming Tina Turner. *most of all interested in people! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAP2tuY84lI&feature=related

3. Bo’s Basics “Bo didn’t get it. His appeal was not based on his victories, but on his values - which were as simple as they were timeless.” ~you better start with your heart ~set goals that get results ~seek mentors, not money ~don’t sleep on it, and don’t hold ~wait for the right opportunity grudges. ~respect your history ~make adjustments on facts, not ~listen before you lead pride. ~if you must fire, fire fast ~give ‘em a chance ~throw a bucket of cold water ~give everyone a role, and make it ~lay down your laws important ~recruit for character ~know your people ~do the right thing-always ~promote the will to prepare ~break ‘em down and build ‘em up ~emphasize execution, not ~rebuild with the basics innovation ~develop leaders underneath you ~turn mistakes into momentum ~motivate the middle men ~loyalty counts

4. Bo’s Basics (cont.) Followership: Compassion: ~you better start with your heart ~give ‘em a chance ~seek mentors, not money ~give everyone a role, and ~wait for the right opportunity make it important ~respect your history ~know your people ~listen before you lead Decisiveness: Foresight/Flexibility: ~if you must fire, fire fast ~promote the will to prepare ~throw a bucket of cold water ~emphasize execution, not ~lay down your laws innovation Pragmatism/Knowledge: ~turn mistakes into ~set goals that get results momentum ~don’t sleep on it, and don’t hold grudges Loyalty: ~make adjustments on facts, not pride ~develop leaders underneath Character: you ~recruit for character ~motivate the middle men ~do the right thing-always ~loyalty counts ~break ‘em down and build ‘em up ~rebuild with the basics

5. Where have we seen this before? “The fundamental values that worked for me coaching football work everywhere else, too - in business, in medicine, in law, in education. I know this because I’ve seen my players succeed in all those fields, using the same principles they learned playing on our team.” *Lecture on loyalty – we must demonstrate loyalty and dedication to those around us to be effective leaders ex: hierarchy of loyalties/Constitutionalism *Compassion is a necessary condition for the pursuance of the common good and attainment of maximum utility, something which various philosophers, such as Kant, have stressed as the desired outcome of any course of action. *Knowledge, pragmatism, foresight, flexibility, and decisiveness are all intricately intertwined and have all been key components in the Case studies we have discussed throughout the course. *Much of what has been discussed in this course relates to personal character and its interplay with ethics and morality (ex: Aristotle’s Virtue ethics). *Followership is something that Bo stresses equally alongside leadership, something which was similarly stressed in our in-class discussions of leadership and in our review of the NAVREGs.

6. Discussion Questions “My body isn’t worth a damn anymore, and all my records will be broken one day. I know this - but it doesn’t bother me, because these values will outlast everything else I’ve done.” At times, it appears that some of Bo’s lessons contradict what we think of as “good” things; for example, he stresses “execution, not innovation” and admonishes “don’t sleep on it, don’t hold grudges”. What do you think are the benefits or possible pitfalls of these lessons? Are they lessons you, as a naval officer, could live by? 2. Bo often appeared in public as something of a firebrand, or as Bacon describes “...the man on the sidelines berating referees, screaming at players, and smashing his headset against the Astro Turf.” Indeed, at various times throughout the book Bo explains the immense amount of patience necessary to deal with his infamous temper, and the way in which his players and staff had to earn their way toward knowing the “real” Bo. Do you think that it is appropriate, or necessary, to maintain such drastic distance from those you lead? Also, is it appropriate to “lose your cool” in front of subordinates, even if it is effective in teaching them a lesson? What possible negative consequences could this have?