BECOME A BETTER VIRTUAL LEADER 

Contents
1. HOW TO LEAD PEOPLE WITHOUT SEEING THEM
2. VIRTUAL GUIDANCE ALSO WORKS ON ACTIVE DUTY

Neither the Chief of Naval Operations' professional reading list nor retired Admiral James Stavridis's The Leader's
Bookshelf includes specific guidance to help naval officers navigate the challenges of leading and managing a
geographically dispersed team. Yet this is becoming increasingly necessary, especially for Navy Reserve officers.
Unlike their active-duty counterparts who hold daily quarters on a ship's fantail, for example, reserve officers mostly
lead and manage virtually through email, document-sharing services, and other flexible communication methods
more commonly employed in civilian life. Ensuring Navy reservists stay "mobilization ready" is a daunting
challenge that tests the limits of remote leadership skills.
The Navy Reserve does little to formally develop leaders to succeed at virtual leadership. Instead, officers are
expected to figure it out themselves, using technology such as flashy web applications and collaboration software, or
just Excel and email. Even though access to technology that helps leaders stay connected and collaborate is useful,
the Navy Reserve must equip its officers and senior enlisted personnel with effective virtual leadership and
management techniques that enable a more lethal reserve force. This will keep pace with the "fight tonight" mind-set
of its active-duty counterparts.
One of the Navy Reserve's biggest selling points is geographic stability. Coupled with mobilization deferments for
newly transitioned sailors, it allows for long-term career and family growth. In addition, for more adventurous
sailors, the flexibility of reserve service enables more travel for work, sometimes even globally. Diverse civilian
talent is the strength of the Navy Reserve, because leaders can draw on qualifications and experience not easily
found within narrow active-duty military career fields. For example, active-duty commanders often do not have
access to the same financial expertise as do their part-time counterparts, who can consult actual practicing financial
consultants serving in their reserve commands.
HOW TO LEAD PEOPLE WITHOUT SEEING THEM
Communicating effectively with a talented but dispersed force is challenging. Many reserve augment units,
especially those supporting distant commands, have a larger percentage of their personnel "cross-assigned" instead
of locally attached. Cross-assignment is a reserve-specific detailing function that fills billets across the globe by
having sailors drill locally at a naval operational support command (NOSC) twice a quarter, and then once a quarter
at an operational unit more than 50 miles from their home. For example, a Washington, D.C., sailor might conduct
weekend drill for two months at the local NOSC to complete administrative requirements, then fly to support a
Hawaii-based cross-assigned unit once a quarter, focusing on operational training and in-rate qualifications.
Replicate this model for 30 to 50 sailors, and it is easy to see how scheduling and communication become complex
and difficult. To meet this challenge, effective virtual leadership and management skills are indispensable for
reserve officers.
Most reserve officers are former active-duty junior officers who served on board ships and submarines. The
wardroom could be called together within seconds, and the entire crew could be recalled from liberty within hours.
In reserve commands, these officers find that managing part-time employees remotely is a completely different
experience. For many, the ubiquitous digital tools in today's civilian sector provide some hands-on background in
how to manage people virtually. But not everyone knows how to find guidance in this domain.
Most information on how to develop virtual leadership is found in online peer-edited articles, business school blogs,
and YouTube videos. There are also some hard-copy sources that could and should grace NOSC bookshelves and
shipboard libraries, as well as being available digitally. Hassan Osman's Influencing Virtual Teams: 17 Tactics that
Get Things Done with Your Remote Employees (Amazon Digital Services, 2014) offers practical guidelines from a
senior Cisco Systems program manager on how to lead a dispersed team.
In the virtual world, there are no physical "water-cooler" moments where teammates get to know one other through
informal conversations about sports, family, or music. Instead, leaders need to make some email exchanges more
casual by striking a more conversational tone and including dialogue unrelated to work. For example, if an officer
knows a sailor lives in Atlanta, asking about the recent Falcons' game might lead to more personal conversations,
resulting in a digital water-cooler moment.
Exercising intrusive leadership does not end on active duty, but carrying it into the reserves requires creativity.
Osman identifies video-chat services as one useful tool for establishing a relaxed atmosphere resembling that around
the office water cooler. If reserve leaders must coordinate on complex projects at times other than on drill weekends,
video-chat could be extremely helpful, in lieu of lengthy and often confusing email chains.
Unlike at active-duty commands, reserve leaders usually cannot follow up email tasking in person. Osman notes that
virtual leaders should include the word because to ensure subordinates understand the why: "1 need you to create a
list of everyone's contact information because of a possible recall." Language should be clear and concise, with
bullet points or bold words. An inverted pyramid structure, starting with the conclusion and then supporting details,
allows for quicker and more complete comprehension. By including the why through concise language, leaders
encourage subordinates to execute the mission efficiently, with no need for multiple "reply all" email responses that
frequently include basic and sometimes imprudent questions.
VIRTUAL GUIDANCE ALSO WORKS ON ACTIVE DUTY
While the reserve force primarily manages virtually, these same skills apply to the active-duty force, especially
those who operate in detachments, such as helicopter or riverine squadrons. Like parents sending their kids away to
college, these commanding officers must trust their detachment commanders and provide guidance virtually. While
there are formal methods of tasking, mastering informal email communications could help in situations with limited
video-teleconference capabilities. For example, if a ship's new chief engineer checks on board during deployment,
meeting in person with the carrier strike group's assistant chief of staff for maintenance and material (N-4) might not
be possible for some time, because of operational mission requirements. Applying virtual leadership skills, the N-4
could use email to better understand the chief engineer's persona and leadership style. In such a case as this, the N-4
is able to develop trust rapidly, which ensures that communication between the staff and strike group ships is solid.
Officers have an obligation to respect their superiors, but knowing they are valued and trusted pays dividends. For
centuries, trust was symbolized in a solid handshake, but in cyberspace, it must often rest in the written word. As the
Navy becomes more distributed, effective virtual management is critical. Because Navy reservists have extensive
experience managing virtually in both their reserve and civilian careers, they should lead the Navy in demonstrating
these skills throughout the fleet.
Vice Admiral Robin Braun, Commander of Navy Reserve Force and Chief of Navy Reserve, tours an elevated
causeway system at Anzio Beach, Italy, being constructed by reservists from Amphibious Construction Battalions
One and Two. Leading and managing a dispersed force through virtual means requires skills reservists master better
than most of their active-duty counterparts.