ABCC-2021-003: Lessons in Crisis Leadership: From Peacetime to Post-911

Category: Organizational Behaviour

Abstract:

The 911 terrorist attacks in the United States in 2001 shook the world and changed the modus operandi of security forces around the world. The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) was no exception; it underwent a paradigm shift, from peacetime preparedness to an in-between: a new term called Operation Other than War (OOTW). This case examines how then-SAF Major (MAJ) Koh Cheng Boon, a newly minted Commanding Officer of the Field Defence Squadron (CO FDS) at Paya Lebar Airbase (PLAB), dealt with this black swan event as a leader and commander, as well as how this surge in operational tempo transformed his life, his perspective as a professional soldier, leader and commander.

ABCC-2021-003: “Lessons in Crisis Leadership: From Peacetime to Post-911”