Page 12 - Signal Summer 2019

Officers to measure up to. But they did measure up, and they delivered when it mattered on deployment. In developing that environment, I was quite transactional in how I engaged with them during Phase 1 and Phase 2 training. I observed what they could deliver, I would ask for more and they might make mistakes, but the standard was raised.” Mark is a firm believer in training being the place where mistakes can be made, that training does not need to perfect, but operations do. “I have to say on that deployment, I never had to direct or micro-manage, I communicated my intent, I trusted them, they were empowered, and they got the job done.”
A Changing World
In terms of continuing to develop the next generation of successful Defence Forces leaders, there can be a danger that the system might remain static while those coming into that system are quite different, demographically, to what came before. In Mark’s view, the Officer career development pathway is still conceived and structured primarily with the teenage male in mind, but those being awarded cadetships nowadays are considerably more diverse. Most have third-level degrees and considerable private sector experience, but the career path that they follow as Junior Officers has not developed, he believes, rapidly enough to acknowledge that and benefit from it. There is also the danger that courses can become supplements for leadership experience in terms of developing an Officer. “The Defence Forces invests time training the next generation of leaders and I believe it may be too much time considering the amount of outputs the training generates. There should be a rebalancing in terms of return on investment. We also need to remember that people will likely not serve in the organisation for 20 or 30 years anymore, or even half of that. We know the value of military training to external employers. People are much more agile in their career attitudes and the Defence Forces need to match that. There has been some progress, in areas such as the Corps of Engineers for example, where Officers transition straight to the Corps after commissioning. That could be applied to a cohort of officers to provide a a level of training that supports young leaders but that also delivers for the organisation to maximise what may sometimes be a relatively short career within the organisation,” adds Mark. He also said that this change requires leadership in terms of retention, which is a challenge throughout the economy, and a particularly challenging one for the military. He adds that in order to support Officer’s in terms of gaining meaningful leadership experience, an experienced tier of NCO’s and Captains is required within units, this is vital for the overall cohesiveness of that unit. He believes that retention will improve through creating career paths
| LEADERSHIP: MARK PRENDERGAST |
that are agile, that empower and reward responsibility and offer challenges and support. He doesn’t believe that the retention issue can be remedied by financial measures alone. “Officers want to be leaders, that’s why they are in the organisation, to develop and grow through action-based experiences. They need trust, decision-space and empowerment to develop as leaders. That’s what I needed and it’s what the organisation gave me, and it now allows me to transition to a new phase of my career. If the organisation does that, building on what I believe to be the country’s finest leadership development programme, the Cadet School, the Defence Forces will continue to produce excellent leaders,” he adds.
Lt Col (Ret’d) Prendergast on duty on the Golan Heights with UNDOF.
“Officers want to be leaders, that’s why they are in the organisation, to develop and grow through action- based experiences. They need trust, decision-space and empowerment to develop as leaders.
Biography Mark Prendergast
Commissioned as an Infantry officer, commanded at Pla- toon, Company and Battalion level at home and over- seas. 32 years of experience developing high perform- ing leaders and leading multi-national units to achieve mission success in complex and hostile environments. A total of seven years’ experience in the Officer Cadet School, that included Class Officer of the 74 th Cadet Class and two years as Chief Instructor designing, de- veloping, and delivering an internationally recognized leadership development programme accredited to de- gree level. Served in elite high-performing teams for four years in the Army Ranger Wing.
Worked on the 2015 White Paper as a staff officer in Strategic Planning Branch. Served on overseas opera- tions in UNIFIL, UNTSO, UNDOF, MONUC and KFOR. In 2015 lead the Irish unit deployed as the UNDOF Quick Reaction Force to the UN mission on the Golan in Syria. From a broader education perspective, has
an MSc in Human Resources Leadership from Sheffield Hallam University, an MA in Leadership and Manage- ment from NUI Maynooth and a BA in Economics, Soci- ology & Politics from NUI Galway.
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