The NJ Police Chief Magazine Volume 25, Number 1 | Page 30
The battle of the
Bulge to the
crossing of the rhine
Leadership EXPERIENCE
14-20 MAY 2019
The Staff Ride: A Proven Tool for Continuing Professional Development
In-depth study of leadership lessons from history – in the authentic landscape and context - provides a dynamic
platform from which to explore, discuss and highlight contemporary leadership topics and issues. The course is
structured using the “Staff Ride” model which has been used for over a century by, among others, the United States
Military Academy at West Point, the Army War College, the Marine Corps University, and the U.S. Naval War College. A
staff ride is a case study, typically of a military battle or campaign, conducted on the ground where the event
happened. It is considered an essential instructional technique in advanced military schools and in field units.
Experiential learning is not new, and in fact it has been enthusiastically accepted and adopted by the private sector. The
NJSACOP has pioneered the adoption of this concept for contemporary law enforcement management and leadership
development programs. Police Executives who participate in Law Enforcement Staff Rides visit and study a select battle-
field for the purpose of drawing parallels between that military campaign and their own issues/challenges, including
leader training, supply chain management, timely decision-making, effective communications, and resource
deployment.
A significant component of this detailed study is the analysis of the terrain over which the action took place and the
effect of that terrain upon the decisions and decision-making process of the leaders to be studied. It is this three
dimensional visualization of the battlefield that separates a staff ride from a more traditional classroom experience.
Another important aspect of the staff ride model is that participants are taken completely out of their “normal”
context, freeing them to challenge their perceptions and assumptions, and be more open to take in lessons.
Ossad, Steven L. Wharton Leadership Digest January, 2006, Volume 10, Number 4
Premier academic institutions have also taken note of the utility of the staff ride in other contexts as well. “The staff ride is
no longer for military personnel alone. Over the past decade, the Wharton School and a number of other universities and
commercial organizations have adapted the practice for executive management and leadership development
training. Aimed primarily at business students and other professionals, the corporate staff ride draws on the popularity of
experiential learning while exploiting the intensity of combat to dramatize decision-making under the most extreme
circumstances…. Studying the life and death decisions of military leaders on the very ground where the consequences of
those decisions played out is a powerful experience. When it comes to executive training, corporate staff rides offer an
unforgettable set of lessons.”
US Office of Personnel Management: Executive Development Best Practices Guide (November 2012)
In this extensive review of executive development efforts across a multitude of private and public sector organizations, the
OPM found that, in contrast to much of the public sector, the private sector “adopts a holistic approach to the continued
development of executives by offering a wide range of developmental activities.” Moreover, in the top performing private
sector organizations, chief executives often serve as sponsors of such executive development efforts, which “cascades down
and engages the rest of the organization in creating a culture that values learning and development.” As a result of this
extensive literature review and benchmarking interviews that comprised the OPM study, several key themes and trends
consistently emerged, including:
Experiential Learning is Key
Linking learning and development opportunities to the organization’s mission and strategic goals
Executive sponsorship is vital
A blended approach is helpful
The NJSACOP has put these pedagogic recommendations to full use in constructing the “NJSACOP Battle of the
Bulge Leadership Experience.”
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