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Management and Leadership Performance in the Defense Department

Evidence from Surveys of Federal Employees

Princeton University, poh{at}princeton.edu

David E. Lewis

Princeton University, delewis{at}princeton.edu

The authors use data from the Federal Human Capital Survey to measure comparative leadership and management performance among executives in the military bureaucracy. The authors evaluate whether differences in executive backgrounds, training, and management environments influence employee evaluations of leadership, management, and work climate. Military service agencies get systematically higher evaluations in leadership and work climate, but not management. Among the services, the Air Force consistently received the highest evaluations. Air Force managers have the highest ranks, the longest military service, and a high level of graduate education when they assume executive positions; these characteristics are positively correlated with performance. Other managerial characteristics associated with high performance were long job tenures and private management experience. The authors conclude that greater attention to graduate training, exploring ways to increase tenure, and the selection of retired officers with private management experience for important executive posts may improve performance.

Key Words: leadership • management • defense • surveys • military

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