Managing Teams
Revitalized Cross-Cultural Military Communications Team in South Korea
Transformed a low-morale, multicultural team—including conscripted Korean soldiers—by aligning skills to meaningful projects, mentoring individuals, and fostering inclusion. Successfully launched a stalled website project, resulting in the Army/Civilian Achievement Medal and a marked boost in team cohesion and productivity.
Korean soldiers, better known as Korean Augmentees to the U.S. Army (KATUSA), were assigned to me to support Headquarters Company, 1st Signal Brigade's field training exercises throughout the peninsula. The KATUSA program was initiated on July 15, 1950, to support the U.S. Army during the Korean War. The primary purpose then was to supplement the shortage of U.S. soldiers in the battlefield. Today, however, the major role of the KATUSA program is to improve the Republic of Korea and U.S. combined force to maintain peace in the peninsula.
In 2004, I took on a leadership position with the Korea Region Office, Area II Support Activity, located in Seoul, South Korea, where I led a diverse team that included four conscripted Korean Soldiers struggling with low morale due to low compensation and limited opportunities for personal and professional growth. Understanding the crucial role of fostering unit cohesion, identified and aligned each team member’s strengths and skills with the directorate's operational goals. One notable initiative involved revitalizing Area II Support Activity's website for the Area II Commander. Despite resource constraints, delegated and empowered the team to redesign the Area II Commander's website. As a result, the team successfully launched the new website and were formally recognized by the Area II Commander.