Glory

The movie, “Glory”

Background

Glory is a 1989 American drama war film based on the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, as told from the Commanding Officer during the American Civil War. The 54th Regiment is an all-black unit comprising Northern freemen and escaped slaves. It depicts the story of the first black unit from the North to be trained and actually go into battle. Led by their very empathic but young Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, the 54th Regiment endures many hardships felt not only by being soldiers of this devastating war but as African Americans as well. The 54th was a step for black people to become accepted in the world and be known as more than just a property.

All team members regardless of race or economic status must have a basic understanding of what leadership is and does. Leadership is the process of influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation while operating to accomplish the mission and improving the organization. The definitions of leadership and leaders address their sources of strength in deep-rooted values and professional competence. Glory illustrates sequential scenes that Colonel Shaw undertakes and navigates through being the Commanding Officer of the 54th Regiment such as: the bloody battle at Antietam Creek; the first assembly of the 54th Regiment; the proud parade of the finally-trained and uniformed soldiers; the climatic attack on Fort Wagner.

Team Building through Adaptive Leadership

Adaptability is an individual ability to recognize changes in the environment, identify the critical elements of the new situation, and trigger changes accordingly to meet new requirements. Deciding when to adapt is as important as determining how to adapt. Adaptation does not produce certainly that change will improve results (Heifetz in Senge p. 505-506). In the beginning of the movie, Captain Shaw leads a company of soldiers in an attack on Confederate troops in the Battle of Antietam....