Captain’s List — Tameichi Hara #599
Corsair’s Profiles in Leadership Series
The captains of fiction and history have much to teach us. They are leaders who often serve in times of great challenge and turmoil. Articles in this series focus on an individual captain and utilizes their quotes, their writings, and their actions to inspire core leadership elements in all of us.
Captain Tameichi Hara
Hara was the Captain of a destroyer during World War II. His success and longevity combined with his unique experience provided him with an able platform after the war. He published the aptly titled: Japanese Destroyer Captain which is considered required reading in many military and naval circles.
In his book, Hara outlines his personally military doctrine which includes such mottos as “Never ever do the same thing twice” and “If he hits you high, then hit him low; if he hits you low, then hit him high”. While taglines are useful for remembering or discussing combat tactics, they are merely examples of the stronger leadership qualities that he possessed.
Tactical Analysis and Exploitation
It is probably not surprising that a man with a long Samurai heritage became a student of tactical principals. The Art of War has been available for thousands of years. What was remarkable was Hara’s ability to consistently execute upon it.
Hara’s analysis of the changing combat tactics of World War II were excellent. He well recognized the advantages of emerging technologies like air power and the strategic misjudgment of his superiors in how they employed their own resources. With the bigger picture in mind, he exploited surprise and other critical advantages as they presented themselves. He never became set on any one course of action and remained ultimately flexible.
How often do business leaders fall to the same failures as Hara’s superiors? Granted business is not war, but competition is pretty close. Managers and executives often fail to adapt. They fail to see the big picture. They fail to exploit opportunities because those opportunities do not fit their models. Hara’s story is one that holds plenty of inspiration for what superior tactical analysis can do, even in the face of a superior enemy.
Critical Assessment and Communication
If Hara’s lone critical assessment of his superiors had merely come in the form of a popular book published after the battles were over, there would be far less to admire about this warrior. But much like the outspoken Rommel, Hara was not quiet about his opinions (though his communication channels could have used some work). Hara would eventually write a letter to the Emperor himself, outlining the shortcomings of the Japanese Navy and entreating him to seek peace with the United States.
This sort of open communication is critical of leadership in any domain. If leaders are not casting a critical eye upon their enterprise — whether military, business, or other — they are not providing the feedback and assessment needed to improve their organization. It is also essential that criticism is communicated effectively and properly.
It is perhaps one of Hara’s shortcomings that his own critical assessment never made it to his intended audience. Perhaps he can be forgiven, delivering critical opinion to a man viewed as God on Earth during a major World War at a time when things are clearly starting to fall apart, may rank among the most daunting tasks in communication history. Or perhaps his lesson should be viewed as one of failure?
In the end, Hara’s story is one that provides us with important examples of tactical analysis and critical assessment. These are two attributes that will contribute to the greatness (and longevity) of any leader. This Captain and his tale are certainly worth the read.
Corsair’s Profiles in Leadership, Captain’s List is an article format created by Corsair’s Publishing in conjunction with our parent company Corsair’s Ventures. This series seeks to focus the reader on core components of leadership by utilizing the larger-than-life and often fictitious stories of the great captains of history.
