Opinion: Want a better Navy? Try Fixing the Little Things
By: Cmdr. Daniel Dolan, USN (Retired)
December 14, 2016 1:49 PM
Air-Traffic Controller 2nd Class Alexes Boutin, assigned to the operations department aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) in 2012. US Navy Photo
Air-Traffic Controller 2nd Class Alexes Boutin, assigned to the operations department aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) in 2012. US Navy Photo
In Malcom Gladwell’s bestselling book, The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference, he provides an example how New York City lowered crime by employing a program based on the “Broken Window theory.” The theory was the brainchild of James Q. Wilson and George Kelling “who argued that crime is the result of disorder. If a window is broken and left unrepaired, people walking by will conclude that no one cares and no one is in charge.” When this theory was put into practice in New York and the little things were taken care of (i.e. cleaning up graffiti) crime went down, and the residents of New York felt more secure and proud of their city.
The Navy’s new leadership team in Washington fortunately are not tasked with solving a crime wave in the fleet, but the concept of the Broken Window theory applies to any organization—fixing the little things can make a big difference.
For example, as a junior enlisted sailor in the early 1980s, I recall the morale boost created by the decision to toss out many of the experimental uniforms of the late 1970s and the return of classic Navy uniforms. The boost in esprit de corps brought on by these minor changes swept through the fleet like a wave. This was seemingly a little thing. But it made a real impact on morale by boosting pride and professionalism in the force.
https://news.usni.org/2016/12/14/opinion-want-a-better-navy-fixing-the-little-things-can-make-a-big-difference
