Ex-military personnel are popular hires for big corporations because of their leadership skills. In 2011, 25% of new employees hired by Amazon.com and T-Mobile were ex-military, making the two companies some of the most military friendly employers in the United States. However, a lot of these vets are finding that they are attracted to companies that have thrown out hierarchical command systems of the past.
Leadership through command-and-control, where every decision needs to involve someone of a higher rank, has been replaced by a new model. Progressively more modern armies now use a mission command process which gives the ‘what’ and ‘why’ of the mission, but leaves it up to subordinates to use their initiative on how they go about it.
This type of decentralized management model has been transferred to the business world and is commonly referred to as ‘workplace empowerment’. This model helps to motivate staff to make their own decisions, form effective teams and take responsibility for their decisions and actions.