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Star Trek Leadership, Part VI: Chain of Command

In Star Trek Leadership, Television by Brock Bourgase

The simmering Federation-Cardissian tensions come to a boil in “Chain of Command.” Edward Jellico replaces Jean-Luc Picard as captain of the Enterprise and everyone feels the stress from a rocky leadership transition. In this case, leaders can learn what not to do by noting the consequences of poor choices made by Starfleet and its officers. A conflict between Captain Jellico and Commander William Riker distracts from the key objectives, endangering millions of lives. Radical Honesty As the episode navigates towards the climax, Jellico needs an expert shuttle pilot for a dangerous mission. He speaks with every shuttle pilot onboard and …

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Star Trek Leadership, Part V: Dealing with Disaster

In Star Trek Leadership, Television by Brock Bourgase

For me, one of the fascinating aspects of Star Trek: The Next Generation is their collaborative problem solving. All team members have a role to play and everyone’s best efforts are integral to success. Characters don’t come to blow, there are few battles between egos and situations must be analyzed critically. In the episode “Disaster”, the Enterprise is impacted by quantum filaments and all members of the bridge crew must step forward and lead. Delegate Responsibilities: Captain Picard is stuck in the turbolift with three children who received top honours in a recent science fair. Children have long been a …

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Star Trek Leadership, Part IV: Overcoming the Odds

In Star Trek Leadership, Television by Brock Bourgase

Leadership assumes many forms: some lead by example and others delegate while standing by the side, some issue precise instructions and others leave room for creativity, some focus solely on the outcome and others emphasize following the correct process to get there. During the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “Peak Performance,” diverse crew members must act as leaders and determine what philosophy suits them best. A Starfleet battle simulation places Commanded Riker in charge of the antiquated U.S.S. Hathaway. Accompanied by a skeleton crew, Riken is given forty-eight hours to prepare for a war games exercise against Captain Picard …

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Star Trek Leadership, Part III: Starfleet Academy in the Delta Quadrant

In Star Trek Leadership, Television by Brock Bourgase

Star Trek remains extremely popular because of how the stories are analogous to many modern situations. It is a science fiction genre that does not overwhelm the viewer with technology; the characters – and humanity – remain the focal point. During a syndicated episode of Voyager entitled “Learning Curve”, Lieutenant Tuvok encountered Maquis crew members who were unwilling to follow Starfleet routines. The renegades were incorporated into Voyager’s crew after both were stranded in the Delta Quadrant although the partnership was not working entirely smoothly. Starfleet demanded strict adherence to procedures which was a stark contrast to the Maquis philosophy …

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Star Trek Leadership, Part II: The Wisdom of Captain Picard

In Star Trek Leadership, Television by Brock Bourgase

College coaches may send envelopes full of money via Emery Worldwide, professional coaches may be found guilty of sexual harassment forcing their organization to pay $11.5 million in damages, and international coaches may enter a non-disabled team in the Special Olympics but one person can always be relied upon for his leadership is Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the U.S.S. Enterprise. During a recently rerun episode of The Next Generation, Chief Engineer La Forge and Commander Riker submitted and unsatisfactory performance review for Lieutenant Barclay to Picard. The captain ordered the pair to reconsider their evaluation of the socially awkward lieutenant. It was …

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Star Trek Leadership, Part I: Humans and Klingons

In Star Trek Leadership, Television by Brock Bourgase

When Commander Riker volunteered to serve aboard the Klingon vessel “Pagh”, he encountered several challenges as he adapted to the new environment. Star Trek frequently used a utopian vision of the future to show how humans can better interact the episode “A Matter of Honor” is no exception. As a participant in the Officer Exchange Program, William Riker enters a new culture and must judge when he must adapt and when he must stand for his convictions, as a Benzite named Mendon does likewise as the Enterprise’s science officer. At first, he displays a tough exterior to his new shipmates …