Novel Assessment Tools for Empirical Determinants of Direct Leadership

Solus Biodefense and George Mason University proposes to develop an assessment battery measuring Army junior leader attributes, adaptability skills, developmental work experiences, and leadership effectiveness. Anticipated changes in the U.S. Army'soperating environment argue for the ascendant importance of leader attributes that promote complex problem solving and adaptability. The Army will also need to develop these qualities in their junior officers more quickly as the demand grows for highquality officers capable of performing in the increasingly dynamic and complex battle environments of the future. The proposed assessment battery, based on conceptual models of leader performance and leader development, will include novel and objectivemeasures of these attributes, and will allow for the assessment of leadership in real time, real world settings, using the internet and other digital technologies. The proposed battery is intended to be part of a longitudinal Army leader assessmentprogram. An integrated effort would link the measures in the proposed battery with those in other ongoing assessment programs (e.g., Baseline Officer Longitudinal Data Set (BOLDS)), and would provide an assessment of leadership growth and developmentacross an officer's career. The expectation is that the assessment battery will assist the Army in training, assessment, and development of its officer corps. The techniques and methods developed will be generic in the sense that, with domain andprocess specific modifications, they be applicable to other DoD services and, more generally, to leadership development in non-DoD and non-government service sectors, including perhaps K-12 education.