leadership in a pandemic

Being in command is the most challenging and rewarding tour of a military career. My last US Coast Guard tour was as both Commander, Sector Columbia River and Commanding Officer, Air Station Astoria. I was in command from June 2018 to August 2021 and it was during this tour that the Covid-19 pandemic struck. As we all know it changed our lives in the most fundamental of ways.

While many companies were able to adopt a remote work strategy, the Armed Forces were required to continue to provide in-person response services while moving non-mission critical activities to a remote environment. While we continued to operate in siloed teams, the unit could no longer meet all together, in person. I recognized I would need to find another way to connect with my over 500 unit members.

I would need to find a new way to communicate. Leading without meeting, establishing a connection and creating a common bond with each of the over 500 members, was my new challenge. How was I going to lead without being able to meet in person? I took to the written word to not only communicate professional updates but also to connect with members on a personal level.

I am going to post the emails I sent to my units. A new email will be linked each week until they’re all posted. Read along to see how we adapted during the pandemic to maintain unit cohesion and serve the public.