If even two persons are going to work together for a common purpose, they will do better if they "organize" for it. The more clearly they define their purpose, their policy and methods, and the responsibilities and functions each is to assume;—the more they will gain in efficiency by avoiding friction, lost motion, and the deadening mental effect of misunderstandings and questionings. As the number engaged increases, the advantages of organization increase, until when many are engaged organization becomes a necessity. And no matter what the purpose, from building a cathedral to robbing a bank—in conducting a school, office, hospital, or factory—the success of the affair will depend largely on the efficiency of its organization and the extent to which all concerned understand its purpose, its policy and methods, and the responsibilities and functions of all engaged.

Organization is of course the responsibility of the governing head. The more attention and skill he shows here, the less he will need give to all the varied requirements of his position. Our present interest in organization lies in such a sketch as will show its framework, and thus enable us to analyze such of its psychological elements as affect the question of handling the men who compose it.

The Framework.—No matter how large the number of men brought together for any purpose, proper organization groups them into divisions and subdivisions in accordance with the nature of their work. This grouping is continued until in each case the smallest subdivision contains no more individuals than one man can control in that particular work through direct personal contact and supervision. A chief, or leader, is put in charge of each division and subdivision. He transmits instructions from higher authority, and is held personally responsible for the control, work, discipline and efficiency of everyone under him. Thus organization lines everyone up in his own place, gives him a definite part to play under a prescribed chief, and thus enables the whole body to function smoothly like a machine in exact response to the policies and control of the governing head.

In military organization, no matter how large the army, the will of its high command quickly passes from superior to subordinate until in the end it has reached the squad leaders and they have transmitted it to the men in ranks. The whole vast machine may thus move uniformly, accurately responsive to the master mind. So in any large business; department heads, superintendents, foremen and subforemen furnish the line of control from the head to all his men no matter how numerous or how far removed. These subordinates represent his policies, his will, and his spirit. How important that they understand them clearly and execute them fairly and efficiently.

It is impossible for one mind to encompass all the details of a large undertaking, and furthermore too much attention to detail crowds out the possibility of vision and future planning. Hence the necessity for organization and for delegating to subordinate leaders the authority and initiative of the chief. For this reason we say that the big man as an executive is he who picks good subordinates, develops them into his responsible and responsive agents, and then gives them wide initiative. And as army officers must be trained for their positions and particularly in the art of handling men, so these subordinate leaders must be so schooled as to assure to the chief that policies and instructions are being carried out properly, and that the men are being handled to the best advantage.

Psychological Elements.—The chief thus finds in the organization of his undertaking a machine with which he is to work out his purpose. And this machine, in all its component parts, is built up of live sentient human beings, capable of splendid work if properly handled. Maximum results depend therefore on the chief's understanding of human nature, and on his applying this understanding to the practical management of the undertaking. Thus the psychological elements assume importance. The wise chief therefore clearly defines his purpose, and his policies and methods for accomplishing it. He provides regulations which define the responsibilities and functions of the various members of the organization, and sees to it that all understand and observe them. As the affair progresses he keeps the requirements of organization ever in mind, makes frequent changes in personnel and methods as developments require, and continually watches the working of the psychological elements which make his organization a going concern. This means to see that all are observing the requirements of subordination and command; that there is intelligent teamwork; and above all that there exists throughout the whole organization a fine spirit of discipline and morale. All these important elements lie directly in the hands of his subordinate leaders, who are responsible under him for their existence and proper use throughout the organization. These leaders must therefore know how to handle their positions so as to develop and maintain these important elements in their subordinates. This introduces the last and most important of the elements, leadership, which must be understood by all subordinate leaders. The importance of maintaining all these elements so vital to the success of an organization explains why his qualifications for leadership are so carefully considered in determining a subordinate's fitness for his position, and why his training in leadership may be necessary.

Subordination means that everyone shall continually recognize the fact that each individual in his own office has his own particular responsibilities and privileges, and that these must be observed by all both above and below him. Particularly must each superior take pains always to recognize the rights and responsibilities of his subordinates and to give full play to their powers in the proper exercise of the functions of their grades. If the superintendent saw a man going wrong he would properly correct the foreman, not the man himself; if he was so fortunate as to see something praiseworthy he would commend the foreman, or at least be sure that the foreman was present and shared the praise. This makes the men realize that the foreman is held responsible for their work, good or bad, that he is really their leader, thus strengthening his authority over them. It also shows the foreman that superior authority recognized him as the boss and holds him responsible for results, thus developing his initiative, his legitimate pride of office, and his keen interest in the performance of his men.

While for the sake of this psychological effect these minor corrections and commendations are thus made in the presence of the men involved, if the foreman needs serious correction for mistaken policy, slackness, poor judgment, anything which corrected in the hearing of his men would necessarily lower their respect for him, he should be corrected in private and given the opportunity to win the added respect of his men by appearing to make the correction on his own initiative. Where the subordinate does not respond to these methods, he is lacking in the essentials of teamwork and leadership and not up to his job.

To prevent friction, the function of each of these steps in subordination from the chief down to his men in the ranks should be well defined, and thoroughly understood by all members of the entire force. And as these steps form the quick, sure means of transmitting the will of the chief to his men, so in the ideal case they would be the equally sure means of transmitting to the chief the sentiment, opinions, and suggestions of his men. In any case these steps form the rungs of the ladder by which any man may aspire to climb to advancement in the organization, and there should be an ever present atmosphere of encouragement for every man who will strive to fit himself to do the work of the man next above him. Such an atmosphere frees in the man the instincts of ambition and construction and thus promotes interest, inventiveness and constructive criticism and suggestion.

Teamwork.—The meaning of teamwork and its importance to the success of an undertaking are easily understood, but its practical application to our daily affairs is not always so easily brought about. Too often selfish interests seem to stand in the way, and it is necessary in some way to make the interests of the team appear of greater importance to the individual than his own. It can generally be shown that the greater success of each is dependent on the success of the whole, and if the leader always gives merit where it is due, he should be able to establish this understanding. It should help the leader, particularly in getting this spirit of co-operation into his men, if he realizes how this too is one of the great laws of nature. Bishop Brent says "Bible history—and for that matter all history—begins with a garden and closes with a city." This is because the developments of progress necessarily depend on the co-operative efforts of mankind, and thus force men to live and work together. It is true that progress results from the development of the individual; but not in isolation. He must work in close relations with his fellows. A man can do little alone, but in combination men perform miracles of achievement. So they have got to work together, have got to practice the give and take of common membership in community living, and of common responsibility for accomplishing the progress of the race. This means fellowship and teamwork all along the line. It means that each man has a part to play and is entitled to respect and consideration in accordance with how he plays it rather than what it is; and it means that no man is entitled to consider solely his own selfish interests, but must faithfully play his part in the team with his fellows. Our ideals of fairness and decency in work and play are built on this foundation.

Good teamwork assures two states of mind in the individual which are most helpful for efficient work. No matter in what isolation or obscurity the individual has to work he feels sure that his work is a necessary and important part of the whole and that it will receive due appreciation; and he is also borne up by feeling sure that each of his fellows is doing his own part with equal faithfulness and likewise counting on him to do his. In many phases of work as well as in sport this latter feeling is a great incentive to doing one's best. Teamwork is of course intimately connected with leadership; and will be frequently mentioned in discussing the latter.

Command.—It is very important to get a clear conception of the modern theory of command, or way of directing what subordinates shall do. It is important because rather new and not always understood, and particularly because it is the one guiding principle for the leader in all his conduct of office. Command no longer depends solely on the implicit obedience of subordinates, but gets its best results from developing in them the two essential qualities of loyalty and intelligent initiative, and then trusting them to play their part in the proposed work. This is a development of the last half century, an intelligent response to changed conditions. It is based on the modern development of the individual as a responsible unit in the social and political community, and more particularly on the fact that the bigness of modern-time enterprises makes impracticable the older-time dictatorial control by a single head. Implicit obedience to exact orders can be successful only when the man who gives the order is on the spot and fully acquainted with the existing conditions at the time, and this is impossible for all the details of large enterprises. The "I order, you obey" and the "you're not paid to think" stuff is entirely inadequate for big affairs, where opportunities for subordinates to do good work must constantly occur beyond the vision of the big chief and go unimproved if the subordinate has to wait for the chief's instructions before acting, and where circumstances will often have arisen without the chief's knowledge which would make it disadvantageous to carry out certain instructions which he had given.

So modern command recognizes that the man who is on the spot is in the best position to judge what to do, and that if he has been properly instructed, we will get better results from his acting on his own judgment than from his blindly obeying orders. Sad as it is for romance the man who to-day led a "Charge of the Light Brigade" would be considered stupid, and probably relieved as unfit for command. Subordinates are now required to know what is going on about them, and to use intelligent judgment. Positive orders are of course as rigidly obeyed as ever, but they are not given unless the superior is on the spot in person and knows all the conditions. In the general case the subordinate is instructed as to the plan of action and the part he is to play in it, and then expected to carry on to the best advantage. For this purpose army training is now designed, not only to cultivate the man's exact obedience to positive orders, but even more to develop his powers of observation and analysis so he may sense conditions; his powers of reason so he may arrive at a logical decision as to what should be done; and his strength of character so he may willingly accept and cheerfully bear the full responsibility of acting on his own initiative. Can anyone find a better formula for training to play one's part in any of life's activities!

This system of command is thoroughly in keeping with the democratic character, and is eminently adapted for use in civil undertakings. The keynote for any successful management is the development and use of loyalty and intelligent initiative in subordinates. Initiative without loyalty would be dangerous, but from the combination flow the big results.

Discipline.—The discipline of any group is the direct responsibility of its particular leader. Many men shrink from this responsibility through distaste for administering discipline as they understand it. And the old ideas of discipline based on fear and punishments are indeed calculated to be repugnant to any democrat of sensibilities. But let him once understand what discipline really is, and how the highest type of discipline is brought about through employing the better qualities of mankind, and his responsibility for it may then become a matter of keen interest and satisfaction.

It will make an understanding of discipline much easier to realize how common a thing it is in everyday life. It is perhaps the most common, for it controls us in practically all our personal affairs. Even the cave man has to observe the discipline imposed by the laws of nature; while civilized man must bow more or less cheerfully to social and community regulations ranging in seriousness from some convention as to wearing his hat up to the Eighteenth Constitutional Amendment. We are always the objects of some discipline; that of the home, of school, church, office, the hotel or the street car. The decent man and the happy one is he who accepts this discipline cheerfully—or else flees from the strictures of community living. How absurd therefore is the common conception that army discipline is such a unique affair, and that to be a disciplinarian is necessarily so difficult. In fact the most perfect example of real efficient discipline, and the example most worthy our emulation, is the discipline which a wise father inspires in his son. Here we see the unswerving loyalty, quick, cheerful obedience, and readiness to fight for the honor of his chief that are the characteristics of good discipline and the sure rewards of good leadership.

Group discipline may be defined as the spirit which pervades the members of a group—the controlling spirit which governs the impulses of the individuals and makes them try to do right and give their best in the common cause. It is as essential to the successful working of an organized machine of humans as is live steam to the working of a cold engine. Its existence in any group is recognized by a ready, cheerful obedience to instructions, by respect for those in authority, by keenness for the common success, and by a high sense of individual duty. It has been well called the "soul" of armies. This means that it is the responsive animating spirit which leads men to splendid deeds of heroism, gives them heart for cheerful endurance of untold hardships, makes them freely surrender individual wills to the will of the leader, and binds them into a loyal fellowship, aspiring, sacrificing, working together for a common cause.

Given a policy of unfailing justice, and no matter for what purpose men are brought together, this spirit of discipline may be made to pervade the whole group. It is the direct result of good leadership, and comes naturally from knowing how to handle men. It cannot exist under poor leadership. Its relative value for attaining results has been measured by Napoleon as seventy-five per cent of all the elements that go to make success in battle. In any undertaking demanding the continued application of the powers of man, its value must be rated very high. An organization that lacks discipline may not hope for efficiency. And as poor leadership thus denies efficiency to an organization, so may its efficiency be increased in direct proportion to the quality of leadership shown by those in control, especially by those in direct contact with the men.

The object of discipline is therefore seen to be an increase in the total of results. So do not let the mind get fixed on discipline as the end sought by leadership; it is but a means to the attainment of this real object—better results. As in the army many an officer failed of success because he centered his attention on being a disciplinarian and forgot that the object of all training and discipline was success in action, so in any activity, the leader must not let the importance of discipline in itself obscure his judgment when deciding any step toward attaining or maintaining it. It is not the end, but is to be used as a means toward attaining the real end—one hundred per cent results.

Morale is the final development of the highest type of discipline, and is thus the prize reward for good leadership. Based fundamentally on a belief in the cause for which we are working, it can never be inspired in an atmosphere of injustice or suspicion. Having morale means that no matter what obstacle or difficulty we face, we meet it absolutely confident of our ability to overcome it. Confidence—a justified confidence—is therefore the cornerstone of morale. Discipline and experience have made each man confident of his own fitness and ability, confident of the intelligent leadership of his chief, and confident of the ability and loyal co-operation of his fellow-mates in the team. To establish his men's confidence in these three things must therefore be a constant consideration in the mind of the leader. This consideration influences his every decision as to what to do and what to say, and how to do and say it. He uses the words and the method best adapted to work toward these results, well knowing that his men are influenced by his every act toward either confidence in or distrust of his leadership, their own ability, or the worth of their fellows. He thus builds up through honest, intelligent confidence that morale which is going to make his team ready to meet anything.

The manifestations of discipline and morale, and the various appeals to inspire them, differ in accordance with the work to be done by the members of the group and with the personalities of both the leader and his men. But all spring from an application of the same principles—and making this application to the specific case in hand becomes the interesting study and exercise of wit for the leader concerned. It is for him to arouse just the kind of spirit he needs for the special work and with the particular men he has. The spirit which holds the stoker faithful to his task in the bowels of the ship is different in form from that which animates the gun crew on the deck above—yet both spring from the same sources.

Leadership.—The development of man as an individual, his inherent qualities of manliness, high purpose, and a self-respecting individuality which still recognizes its responsibility as a citizen of the community—all these developed qualities make him potentially a splendid tool in the hands of a skillful master, and a dangerous one in the hands of a bungler. To handle these tools skillfully has therefore become a recognized art. It will be only when this art is generally known and practiced by our leaders that the nation may hope to benefit by anything like the full measure of its manpower.

This art of handling men is called leadership; and during the late war was made a study for practical application in all armies. On his excellence in the practice of this art depended every military leader's ability to deliver that superior manpower of his men which made his unit victorious. In the past this used to be the function of the few "born leaders" who seemed to know instinctively how to inspire others to give their uttermost. But these born leaders were too few to meet modern requirements, so we were forced to make their natural art a matter of analysis and instruction.

This art is based on the fact that there is in every man a tremendous latent force which may be aroused and used by a skillful leader who knows how to inspire the man's loyalty, pride, and ambition to do his utmost for the glory of his group and the honor of his cherished leader. The poor leader leaves all this enthusiastic service and devotion dormant in his men, and therefore commands only mediocrity. His men do just well enough to conform to cold requirements. The letter of the law is their sole guide, and they may even seek means to evade that. Such leadership paralyzes efficiency, and does actual harm to the character of the man who must operate under it. Denied the privilege of giving free play to his constructive instincts, he becomes prey to those which breed on discouragement and discontent, and the end of this man is far worse than the beginning.

Not so with good leadership. It wins its efficiency and material reward, not at the expense of manhood, but by appeal to the very instincts whose free play gives pleasure to the inner man and results in the upbuilding of his character and his faculties. The end thus finds him a better man and citizen for the kind of work he has done. It is this dual result which so highly commends the practice of this art. The most mercenary may well adopt it for the material gain it will bring; the altruist may adopt it for the inner joy of seeing the character and manliness of his men growing under his hands. And in the end even the leader who accepted it for material reasons will find self-satisfaction in that he must feel that the community is better for his living in it.

Leadership is an art, not an exact science. Its seat is in a man's soul rather than in his brain. To attempt to teach it we appeal broadly to a man's understanding and appreciation of what the laws of life require. It is a comprehensive subject which may be far from completely covered in one chapter. But fortunately one need not attain anything like perfection in order to be recognized as a good leader and to win a fine response from his men. So much is man a creature of the better instincts, so responsive is he to fair and decent treatment, that if his leader but be genuine in his practice of but a few of these principles of leadership, his men will deny his weaknesses and failures, and give him their loyalty and service without measure.