The first American Heroes Challenge will take place in Las Vegas Nov. 7-8, 2009. The event features four-man teams comprised of military, law enforcement and security personnel who will compete in a six-stage, live-fire firearms and tactics competition. Each stage is named in honor of a fallen American hero. The contest is designed to test technical, tactical and physical skills as well as the ability to evolve with the mission. 

The American Heroes Challenge organization is a nonprofit created to benefit and honor members of the military, law enforcement and first-responder communities through the challenge event. All proceeds will go toward the goal to raise $1 million in 2009. That money will be donated to the construction of a veteran’s memorial in Las Vegas.

More information about the event, the troops after whom stages are named, sponsorships, donations, team applications and the entry fee is available on the Web site.

Constant reorganizations and realignments occur in every government and every alliance. A major study is ongoing in NATO to determine the alliance’s direction. In the United States, the creation of the new joint Cyber Command and the Air Force’s new Global Strike Command are recent examples of significant change.

Many who are directly affected by such changes have worked with governments to facilitate the efforts. With that in mind:

• What lessons have been learned by those of you who have been impacted by the changing environment that we are all doing business in?
  
• How have the latest round of Base Realignments and Closure decisions impacted you?
• What major changes do you see for the future?

Storytelling can be a powerful communication tool, and it is one that Andrew O’Keefe uses in his novel The Boss to show people how to be a better manager. The book’s protagonist, Lauren, tries to succeed at her job as a marketing professional while under the leadership of a team of terrible bosses.

O’Keefe has more than 25 years of human resources experience, including a decade as an HR executive at IBM. After years of hearing nightmare stories about awful bosses, he decided to put those stories to good use and wrote his novel.

“I hope managers can read my book to see mistakes and to learn how to improve. It was written very much with bosses in mind. ‘Do I do some of the things Lauren’s bosses do?’ I hope managers realize the impact people have as a boss and how they might choose to do something differently.”

He suggests that employees who show leadership potential receive management training early on to develop their skills. O’Keefe believes that managers who truly enjoy interacting with people will succeed and that senior management should create a “doable job” to which managers are held accountable.

You can read more of his tips for grooming successful managers in “Who Bosses the Bosses?” from this month’s SIGNAL Connections. We at SIGNAL Scape also invite you to share your best practices for good leadership here. What qualities do you think make someone a good boss? What have you learned during your experience as a manager?

The Outback Steakhouse Annual Golf Classic is raising money for the American Freedom Foundation for the second year in a row. The foundation supports veterans and their families by raising money and awareness for veterans’ organizations. The non-profit group has a special focus on welfare and education issues facing troops wounded or disabled in action and the families of veterans killed in action during operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom.

The 17th annual golf event will be played Monday, October 5, 2009, at  Cannon Ridge Golf Club  in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Last year, the classic raised $75,000. Information about this year’s sponsorship opportunities, registration and activity times can be found on the Cannon Ridge Web site.

Last October, AFCEA and U.S Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) hosted SOUTH 2008, a conference focused on operations in SOUTHCOM’s area of responsibility. Coverage of the event appeared in the December edition of SIGNAL in the article Narcotics and Terrorism are Linked, Pose Threats to Hemisphere. Adm. James Stavridis, commander of SOUTHCOM, played an integral role in the success SOUTH, and gave a keynote address during the event. His presentation focused on the problems and links of drugs, terrorism and poverty in the Western Hemisphere. The admiral also addressed the issue of drug smugglers effectively using semisubmersibles to move their products as well as the potential danger of those vehicles being used to smuggle terrorists.

Adm. Stavridis brought up the same problems on March 17 when he presented a posture statement to the Senate Armed Forces Committee. He made even stronger links between terrorism and drugs, speaking about specific efforts undertaken to root out terrorism in the region. Aside from terror groups native to the region, terror organizations more associated other parts of the globe are operating in Latin America. Adm. Stavridis’s remarks also touched on the need for interagency cooperation, advancing technology and success stories in Latin America, including huge advances toward peace and stability. He additionally stressed the continued problem of semisubmersibles. The text of the admiral’s presentation is available online. 

Another combatant commander and speaker at SOUTH, Gen. Victor Renuart, USAF, commander, U.S Northern Command, and North American Aerospace Defense Command, also gave testimony at the committee meeting. His prepared statement is posted online as well. Two other combatant commanders also gave statements in the meeting, Gen. William Ward, USA, commander, U.S. Africa Command, and Gen. Duncan McNabb, USAF, commander, U.S. Transportation Command. The entire committee meeting is available through the Webcast.

AFCEA and SIGNAL Magazine join all Americans in welcoming back our three countrymen who were rescued from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia (FARC) terrorists in Colombia last week.

Northrop Grumman, their employer, has updates on their return, including a statement from the former hostages and links to Department of Defense images, here.