Business students learn leadership from military

By PAMELA GOULD

Associated Press Newswires, April 11, 2004

QUANTICO, Va. -- They slogged through standing water, slid through gullies beneath barbed wire and crawled commando-style across a rope suspended over a ravine.

Not your typical day for the first- and second-year MBA candidates at Wharton.

But 89 students attending the University of Pennsylvania's graduate school of business eagerly boarded a bus and headed from Philadelphia to Quantico Marine Corps Base this month for a chance to learn about leadership, military style. In 24 hours, the 58 men and 31 women got a dose of Marine Corps doctrine, discipline and dirt.

They arrived at the base's Officer Candidates School in the evening and were quickly introduced to the concept of unquestioned authority. Bonnie Flynn, a second-year student from Arlington, said she knew she'd get hit with barked instructions but didn't fully appreciate what it would be like.

"It was a bit overwhelming even though I expected it," she said. "First I wanted to laugh, and then I wanted to cry."

She and 28 other women slept in one room in two-level beds she learned are called "racks" -- not bunk beds. Their main achievement of the night was seeing that all 29 of them could shower and get into their racks in 10 minutes.

The next morning started early, with the women waking at 4 a.m. and officially getting up and going by 5. The students were divided into five-member teams for the Marines' Leadership Reaction Course -- 20 stations that require problem-solving and teamwork.

The morning's 40-degree temperatures and steady rain added another challenge as the students tackled such tasks as using a ladder, a rope and a pipe to cross a "river" and deliver ammunition to other troops. They were also challenged to get everyone across a wall and to avoid markings that indicated land mines.

In some cases, "deaths" came subtly -- such as when someone hit a wall that was off-limits. In other cases failure was obvious, such as Brazilian Alex Jung's slip into the chilly water.

After watching his classmates in action, Pete Cazamias, a former Marine officer, observed that the students were equal to officer candidates in analytical thinking, but weren't as accustomed to teamwork and quick thinking.

"I think candidates still have the edge physically and on decisiveness," the second-year student said.

The course's goal is to build a sense of teamwork outside people's comfort zone, Cazamias said.

Michael Useem, professor of management and director of Wharton's Center for Leadership and Change Management, said the MBA program requires all of its 2,000 students to take a classroom course in leadership. To enhance that training and to put concepts into practice, students can take part in a range of "leadership ventures," including a weeklong expedition in Antarctica and a climb up Mount Kilimanjaro.

A few years ago, Useem began looking at how the military trains its leaders -- first visiting West Point, then the Naval Academy and then the Officer Candidates School at Quantico. After returning to Philadelphia, his first thought was to see if there was a way to bring the Marine Corps' Leadership Training Course to the City of Brotherly Love.

When he contacted OCS officials, they suggested the students come to Quantico. In 2001, Wharton students got their first taste of OCS training. The program has been so popular that it is now offered in both fall and spring; students bid in an auction system for the chance to take part.

During their first afternoon, students lunched on MREs (Meals Ready to Eat) as Capt. Erik Orient shared the tenets of Marine Corps leadership. He stressed the importance of moral courage -- doing the right thing regardless of personal hardship -- and practicing ethics, not situational ethics.

Afterward, the students headed outdoors, lined up in formation and marched to the OCS Combat Course. The course, which covers 11 1/2 miles through woods, challenges students with such tasks as scaling walls, crossing ravines using a three-rope bridge, trudging through what's called "Smelly Gully," climbing over a stack of logs and scooting on their backs through a muddy trench without getting stuck on the barbed wire above them.

As she saw a group of Marines demonstrate the trench crawl, Jennifer Hsieh of New York decided the course was beginning to stretch her limits.

"This is starting to look like less fun," she said.

The students weren't without a sense of humor as they prepared to tackle the course. One of the men asked about the course record.

Greg Desautels of Buffalo, N.Y., was among those who got the opportunity to learn one of the lessons this training is designed to teach -- handling failure. He tried twice and each time fell as he attempted the "commando crawl" across a wide ravine.

Though disappointed at not coming through for his team, Desautels said he was undaunted. He saw two distinctions between this situation and one in the business world: Here, it was immediately public, but it didn't carry the risk associated with failure in business.

Soaked from the rain and splattered with mud, Tammi Shapiro of Florida said she had learned several practical lessons from her Quantico experience.

"It's definitely a good exercise in teamwork and leadership," she said.

She learned to quickly assess her team members' strengths and to trust in their abilities.

"That," she said, "is an important thing to have in business."