The Why Behind the Woke – Leadership in Today’s Army
April 18, 2023 by Special Guest
by MSG Carson Morris
An era of unparalleled access to information and technology has led to a generation that is highly cognizant of political and societal issues. With unlimited access to information through the internet and smartphones, Generation Z is knowledgeable and holds strong opinions on various sensitive topics (Myers, 2018). These opinions and breadth of knowledge on political and societal issues epitomize the term woke, which makes two-way communication vital when building mutual trust with Generation Z. Generation Z makes up over eighty percent of the qualified military applicants that the military looks to recruit (Colwell, 2020).
This generation’s loss of trust and negative perception of the military has significantly impacted the accession mission (Shane, 2021). Engaged leadership is a requirement to ensure an organizational change in culture focusing on inclusion and diversity. All military leaders must adapt their leadership styles to accommodate discussions on political, social, and racial issues that emotionally burden their subordinates to ensure they bridge the gap between generations while fostering inclusion and diversity within their units.
Understanding Generation Why
Understanding the defining characteristics of Generation Z is vital in bridging the gap between generations. Generation Z is the demographic cohort born between 1997 and 2012 (Colwell, 2020). This generation has grown up entirely in the digital age with unprecedented access to information, technology, and social media. As a result, they have a unique perspective on the world (Myers, 2018). One of the defining characteristics of Generation Z is their desire to question and understand the world around them (Perna, 2019). There are several factors that drive the desire to understand the world around them, including their access to information, their experiences growing up in a rapidly changing world, and their exposure to diverse cultures and perspectives (Perna, 2019). Leaders take this desire to understand as a lack of respect when the reality is that this generation is simply curious to understand that which they do not understand.
https://havokjournal.com/culture/military/the-why-behind-the-woke-leadership-in-todays-army/
