Learn From the Old Soldiers.

• The Barracuda

  28 Sep 04, 11:17

  Their experience is an asset to us.
  
  Old soldiers still have something to teach
  By David Boey
  
  AS SINGAPORE Armed Forces (SAF) planners look to the future, they may want to take a look at the blasts from the past that can be provided by old soldiers.
  
  Retired SAF personnel, military men who left the service for the public sector and former war fighters who now fight their battles in the corporate world are a rich resource of knowledge for defence planners tasked to transform the SAF into a third-generation fighting force.
  
  The lessons these people can provide can help the SAF steer clear of what Deputy Prime Minister Tony Tan once called 'blind alleys' - a term he used in April 1996, when, as Defence Minister, he spoke about how 'it was inevitable that from time to time we made some mistakes and went down blind alleys'.
  
  The large number of SAF personnel who retire and soldiers who complete their national service obligations every year gives Singapore a steadily expanding pool of former military personnel.
  
  Indeed, the number of former military personnel Singapore produces each year outstrips those in neighbouring countries, which, unlike Singapore, rely mainly on regulars to man their guns.
  
  Knowledge is a force multiplier. Singapore should thus capitalise on the knowledge gained by successive cohorts of military men.
  
  In addition, SAF personnel who enter the corporate sector, especially those who join multinationals, learn best practices from the profit-oriented commercial world. Senior officers who can be persuaded to blend ideas on economic efficiency with those on military effectiveness, can help place younger officers higher on the learning curve.
  
  Oversight committees should tap these officers as devil's advocates and sounding boards to help weed out unsound or impractical ideas. Young officers will also learn quickly how to defend their good ideas against probes from seasoned players. The institutional wisdom of older officers can also be passed on through oversight committees, so young ones need not relearn past mistakes.
  
  Urgency is needed to tap the wisdom of older SAF officers because some have already died and others are in the twilight of their lives.
  
  The SAF can also do more to ensure that institutional knowledge is safeguarded. The professional reading list used by the Safti Military Institute has only one book on the SAF and that - Defending The Lion City - is written by a foreigner, Dr Tim Huxley.
  
  Books published by the SAF have so far been of the coffee-table genre. Most were written to commemorate various anniversaries.
  
  One observer says the time is right for a book on the SAF, one that contains 'real stories and adventures and misadventures of the early days'. This can also document 'near misses', such as in the various weapon development projects the SAF has undertaken, as lessons for future military men.
  
  To be sure, the Ministry of Defence does invite former SAF personnel for occasional talks at the Officer Cadet School, where future officers are trained, and the Singapore Command and Staff College, where officers groomed as future SAF leaders are taught.
  
  Former military personnel have a vital role in imparting lessons to younger officers because they are able to speak with authority when they describe tense moments in Singapore's history - such as the hijacking of Singapore Airlines Flight SQ 117 in March 1991.
  
  Many SAF officers who are now retired were also, at one time or another, in the thick of the action in bilateral disputes with neighbouring countries, say, over Pedra Branca or air space. They are in a unique position to give young soldiers insight into the background of ties with Singapore's neighbours.
  
  Securing its institutional wisdom by actively engaging former military men also fortifies the SAF's deterrent stance: Hostile forces which engage the SAF risk facing not only the current generation of SAF leaders but also former soldiers with more experience who can mentor the younger ones.
  
  Old soldiers may fade, but there is wisdom in that fading light.
  
• Moxie

  28 Sep 04, 15:27

  IMO David Boey's in a sentimental mood. I'm all for private memoirs, but how sellable are they to publishers if their actual experiences don't precisely fit the commercial "military combat" market? It's also difficult to see university houses taking them on, if they don't comply to rigorous academic standards.
  
  Has the SAF even declassified the available documents for obsolete systems & policies, in order to faciliate present & future researchers? Tim Huxley mentioned he had to hang out on online message boards to collect certain info!
  
  I recall vaguely discussing with my reservist kakis before. Our version was that each (combat) outfit should internally appoint a unit historian, so that everything that happened - both good & bad - got written down for prosperity. Never mind if the writing standard wasn't greatly better than a BMT recruit dictating into the daily I/C report book. I voted for a NSF to do this, but one of my friends persuaded forcefully that a seasoned RSM would be better-placed to do the job (language fluency aside).
• specfore

  28 Sep 04, 18:17

  I think the government is looking to more than just unit history. I am in support of unit history (which I will address later).
  
  The government is talking about the experience that senior officers had in dealing with situations/ scenarios. I personally have met and worked with a former CDF and a former service chief, outside of their military lives. Their insight on how they dealt with our neighbours is important and good. Also the handling of the SQ 117 hostage crisis was under one of these gentlemen. I heard his direct account of the tension and dilemmas he faced. (Coupled with what I hear from my ex -SOF friends during reservist, I think I had a rather complete picture of the SQ 117 from top down to the lead operator level.) The government is concerned that as we are moving into 3G, our focus will be on human resource planning and technology... geo-political and man management-leadership issues may be forgotten.
  
  As for unit history, I am all for it. Not much is done, except in the elite units (e.g. Hendon Camp). I was in Nee Soon for the last part of my NS... and I regret that no one ever did a proper history of Nee Soon camp and the SAF units that used it. I know that there are a few British websites dealing with Nee Soon/ Sembawang camps... but these are WW2 veterans talking about the history. Unit history is likely to be "anecdotal" in nature. Therefore, there may be very little stategic value to what the government is saying regarding the experience of senior officers. However, it will be amusing and of some learning experience to junior officers, NCOs and men. It will also contribute highly to unit morale.
• wuming78

  28 Sep 04, 22:30

  his article underscores the importance and need for a strong Knowledge Management culture and system in the SAF especially as an organisation where intangible knowledge are just as important as tangible ones.
• specfore

  28 Sep 04, 23:08

  Originally posted by wuming78:

  his article underscores the importance and need for a strong Knowledge Management culture and system in the SAF especially as an organisation where intangible knowledge are just as important as tangible ones.

  Actually, the same problem exists in corporate life. People come and go. Their experience is lost sometimes. To some extent, corporations embark on "codification" programmes, to record and dissimilate such experiential knowledge. I guess the SAF is slow to pick this up... as "codification" was a hot topic some 5 years ago in corporate culture.
• LazerLordz

  29 Sep 04, 00:14

  Knowledge Management is something which has come too late for many organisations.Info gathering and the archival/sharing of recollections and memories is very important if you need to do effective AARs and Lessons Learnt programs.For KM to work, the whole organisation has to undergo a paradigm shift in terms of thinking and learning.Managers and employees can learn from each other and they can contribute different viewpoints on a single idea because they work from a different angle.We should encourage sharing of ideas and encourage people to experiment, and note down whether it went well or it did not.Safekeep these experiences so that they can be applied in future similar situations.