Audiobooks by General Stanley McChrystal

One Mission: How Leaders Build a Team of Teams

How could we be so highly competent at the small team level, yet incapable of moving with the same agility as an enterprise? If we did not align behind one mission, our individual capabilities would prove insufficient. We could all be great and still lose. This problem -- which former Navy SEAL Chris Fussell observed as part of General Stanley McChrystal’s Special Operations Task Force -- doesn’t keep just military commanders up at night. It plagues leaders of countless organizations in today’s complex and fast-moving world. Too often, well-built companies end up with teams stuck in their own silos, pursuing goals and metrics in isolation. Their traditional bureaucratic structures create stability, scalability, and predictability; but in a world that demands constant adaptation, this traditional model fails. In One Mission, Fussell offers powerful practical insights about the changes that took place within the Special Operations community, when previously isolated and distrustful tribes became part of a culture that was bigger than any team. By committing to one, higher mission, the community’s overall capability far exceeded the sum of its parts. McChrystal and Fussell wrote about their experiences on the battlefield in their New York Times bestseller Team of Teams. It has been widely embraced in the business world as a roadmap for combining the agility, adaptability, and cohesion of a small team with the power and resources of a giant organization. Since then, as a Partner at McChrystal Group, Fussell has helped companies in many fields implement the Team of Teams approach to tear down their silos, improve collaboration, and avoid turf wars. Now, he has channeled all his experiences, both military and corporate, into One Mission. This practical guide will help leaders in any field… • Build a single aligning narrative for all of your teams, no matter how complicated your org chart, defining your organization, not just what the organization does. • Eliminate excessive bureaucracy by fostering interconnection outside of normal lines of authority. • Create liaison networks that help people from different silos collaborate quickly and effectively. • Define decision spaces that allow teams to have clear autonomy within the context of the greater mission. Fussell shows how a wide range of companies, from Silicon Valley software giant Intuit to a government agency on the plains of Oklahoma, have used these methods to unite their people around a single compelling vision, resulting in superior performance. Moreover, you’ll see how he partnered with Under Armour to synchronize its expanding supply chain, and a Texan emergency medical service organization navigate a changing regulatory landscape. One Mission will help you follow their example to a more agile and resilient future.

C. W. Goodyear, Chris Fussell, General Stanley McChrystal (Author), Chris Fussell, General Stanley McChrystal (Narrator)

Audiobook

Team of Teams: The Power of Small Groups in a Fragmented World

The retired four-star general and and bestselling author of My Share of the Task shares a powerful new leadership model Former General Stanley McChrystal held a key position for much of the War on Terror, as head of the Joint Special Operations Command. In Iraq, he found that despite the vastly superior resources, manpower, and training of the U.S. military, Al Qaeda had an advantage because of its structure as a loose network of small, independent cells. Those cells wreaked havoc by always staying one step ahead, sharing knowledge with each other via high-tech communications. To defeat such an agile enemy, JSOC had to change its focus from efficiency to adaptability. McChrystal led the transformation of his forces into a network that combined robust centralized communication ("shared consciousness") with decentralized managerial authority ("empowered execution"). Now he shows not only how the military made that transition, but also how similar shifts are possible in all kinds of organizations, from large companies to startups to charities to government agencies. In a world of rapid change, the best organizations think and act like a team of teams, embracing small groups that combine the freedom to experiment with a relentless drive to share what they've learned. McChrystal and his colleagues explain their process for helping organizations embrace this model. They also share fascinating research and examples from settings as diverse as emergency rooms and NASA's mission control center. Read by Paul Michael. Introduction and recaps read by General Stanley McChrystal.

Chris Fussell, David Silverman, General Stanley McChrystal, General Stanley Mcchrystal, Tantum Collins (Author), Paul Michael (Narrator)

Audiobook

My Share of the Task: A Memoir

"Never shall I fail my comrades.... I will shoulder more than my share of the task, whatever it may be, one hundred percent and then some." —from the Ranger Creed In early March 2010, General Stanley McChrystal, the commanding officer of all U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan, walked with President Hamid Karzai through a small rural bazaar. As Afghan townspeople crowded around them, a Taliban rocket loudly thudded into the ground some distance away. Karzai looked to McChrystal, who shrugged. The two leaders continued greeting the townspeople and listening to their views. That trip was typical of McChrystal’s entire career, from his first day as a West Point plebe to his last day as a four-star general. The values he has come to be widely admired for were evident: a hunger to know the truth on the ground, the courage to find it, and the humility to listen to those around him. Even as a senior commander, McChrystal stationed himself forward, and frequently went on patrols with his troops to experience their challenges firsthand. In this illuminating memoir, McChrystal frankly explores the major episodes and controversies of his eventful career. He delves candidly into the intersection of history, leadership, and his own experience to produce a book of enduring value. Joining the troubled post-Vietnam army as a young officer, McChrystal witnessed and participated in some of our military’s most difficult struggles. He describes the many outstanding leaders he served with and the handful of bad leaders he learned not to emulate. He paints a vivid portrait of the traditional military establishment that turned itself, in one generation, into the adaptive, resilient force that would soon be tested in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the wider War on Terror. McChrystal spent much of his early career in the world of special operations, at a time when these elite forces became increasingly effective - and necessary. He writes of a fight waged in the shadows by the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), which he led from 2003 to 2008. JSOC became one of our most effective counterterrorism weapons, facing off against Al Qaeda in Iraq. Over time, JSOC gathered staggering amounts of intelligence in order to find and remove the most influential and dangerous terrorists, including the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. The hunt for Zarqawi drives some of the most gripping scenes in this book, as McChrystal’s team grappled with tricky interrogations, advanced but scarce technology, weeks of unbroken surveillance, and agonizing decisions. McChrystal brought the same energy to the war in Afghanistan, where the challenges loomed even larger. His revealing account draws on his close relationships with Afghan leaders, giving readers a unique window into the war and the country. Ultimately, My Share of the Task is about much more than war and peace, terrorism and counterinsurgency. As McChrystal writes, "More by luck than design, I’d been a part of some events, organizations, and efforts that will loom large in history, and more that will not. I saw selfless commitment, petty politics, unspeakable cruelty, and quiet courage in places and quantities that I’d never have imagined. But what I will remember most are the leaders."

Gen. Stanley Mcchrystal, General Stanley McChrystal, Stanley Mcchrystal (Author), Kevin Collins (Narrator)

Audiobook