Trust in Commanding Officers Is Not in Freefall
By Captain James L. Storm, U.S.
Navy
In his November 2018 Proceedings article “ Charting a Course: Stop the Erosion of Command ,†retired Captain Kevin Eyer asserts that trust in today’s Commanding Officers (CO) is in a state of near “freefall†and accountability has approached unheard of levels, to the point COs are “sacrificial lambs†to protect senior officer upward mobility. This narrative is fueled by changes within the surface warfare community as a result of the Comprehensive Review (CR).
In my experience as a cruiser CO, currently deployed to 7 th and 5 th Fleet, nothing could be further from the truth. Today’s COs are as empowered and trusted by senior officers as they were when Admirals Nimitz and Spruance issued mission orders for Pacific Fleet action.
https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2018-11/trust-commanding-officers-not-freefall
