Visions for the future Brigadier General Karl Pichlkastner
Visions for the future Brigadier General Karl Pichlkastner Head of Institute & Programme director University of Applied Science bachelor degree programme Military Leadership +43664/622 2110 karl. pichlkastner@bmlvs. gv. at www. bundesheer. at 1 SCHUTZ & HILFE
5 years of the „European initiative for the exchange of young officers inspired by Erasmus“ …. undertaken by the European Union Member States aimed at developing the exchanges between armed forces of future military officers as well as their teachers and instructors during their initial education and training. Success story! Why do we need additional visions for the future? www. bundesheer. at 2 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Structure of my mind • Introductory remarks • Suggestions for the vision(s) • Reflections on a professional training at university level • Final vision(s) • Concluding remarks www. bundesheer. at 3 SCHUTZ & HILFE
xx The variety of institutions with their respective specific backgrounds has to remain and is a strong asset! www. bundesheer. at 4 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Suggestions for the vision • Using variety of institutions as a strong asset in a future model of cooperation • Not central solutions, but rather decentralized ones • Synergy through an effective network of cooperations • „The whole is greater than the sum of its parts“ • Overcoming a common fear – the fear of change www. bundesheer. at 5 SCHUTZ & HILFE
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UNESCO World Heritage Semmering railway www. bundesheer. at 7 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Suggestions for the vision • Successfully connecting of technical achievements with nature • Combining technical possibilities with the „human nature“ • Providing a human friendly use of technology • Being aware of the ethical dimension by using all means of technology www. bundesheer. at 8 SCHUTZ & HILFE
What are effective visions? “Effective visions provide context, give purpose, and establish meaning. They inspire people to mobilize, to act, to move in the same direction… Every good leader realizes that effective visions cannot be forced upon the masses. Rather they must be set in motion by means of persuasion and inspiration. ” www. bundesheer. at 9 SCHUTZ & HILFE
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I have a dream ……. • “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal. • I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood. • I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a desert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. • I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. • I have a dream today. ” www. bundesheer. at 11 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Suggestions for the vision • Highlighting important ethical values • Describing impressive examples for transferring these values • Personal reference to the target values • Demonstrating possible locations and interactions www. bundesheer. at 12 SCHUTZ & HILFE
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“First, I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the earth. No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the longrange exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish. ……” “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too. ” www. bundesheer. at 14 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Suggestions for the vision • Pronouncing outstanding goals with clear temporal perceptions • Distinguishing the outstanding importance of the project • Activating and focusing of all forces and instruments • Declaring intention to victory and differentiation to competitors www. bundesheer. at 15 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Reflections on a professional training at university level Way to a „European Basic Officer Education“ CLAUSEWITZ: „war as a chameleon“ Comprehensive security requires synergetic measures of organisations involved A broader understanding of the nature of differentiated systems in terms of ability to reduce complexity „Craft“ vocational training ist important in order to ensure the necessary stability in the reference systems. www. bundesheer. at 16 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Reflections on a professional training at university level www. bundesheer. at 17 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Future challenges are unknown Elite can perform something creative, something special, something unprecedented. Elite has inventive power. An averageorientated human-being cannot do that but an individual-thinking human-being can That is why we are all elite, an elite made up of individuals. It is our task to wake these elite up to reality. We all start as individuals, meanwhile we all need to fight a lifelong battle against egalitarianism. www. bundesheer. at 18 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Education requires enquiring, doubting, seeking individualists, that need to be bolstered. Profession requires Inrigorated and matured they will integrate themselves into the respective community and campaign for target achievment in a brave manner. www. bundesheer. at 06. 09. 2021 19 19 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Profession requires Their actions on the job should be built up on knowledge, skills and competences and should include the following characteristics: - Mental and physical strength - Interdisciplinary - Cross-cultural awareness - Interoperability www. bundesheer. at 06. 09. 2021 20 20 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Final Vision 1 Even before this decade comes to an end, the "European Initiative for the exchange of young officers inspired by Erasmus" will have become obsolete. Not because it was not successful, but because it has reached its goals and purposes and a common education for European officers has become a reality. www. bundesheer. at 21 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Final Vision 2 Specifically, I can see before my mind’s eye an applicant, taking part in an admission procedure for an “European degree programme” at a university in a member state of the EU. It is a parttime, multiple degree programme, based on agreements between several post-secondary educational institutions. There is no newly-created Central University, but rather the already established universities have expanded their offers to their contributions to this "multiple degree SCHUTZ programmes. " & HILFE www. bundesheer. at 22
Final Vision 3 The statement by Henry Ford, "Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success "has taken concrete shape in this programme. The institutions have found ways of networking and coordination. Based on the individual strengths of the institution, the part-time offer is introduced into the joint study programme. The control is decentralized. It is observed by the programme directors that cooperate and synchronize their decisions with each other. www. bundesheer. at 23 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Final Vision 4 Students choose their individual modules out of a wide range of study offers and are supported by direct supervision and organisation. They tailor themselves a programme, which serves the purpose of a common European qualification requirement. The study is characterised by alternating central and decentralised structures, which use the variety of the institutions as a strong asset. www. bundesheer. at 24 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Final Vision 5 As a retired officer I see myself attending a graduation ceremony at the Theresan Military Academy. Students receiving “European certificates” graduate alongside students who receive national certificates. Training of "European officers" is becoming more and more important in the Member States of the European Union and beyond. The range of courses covers the reference levels 6 -8 according to the EQF. www. bundesheer. at 25 SCHUTZ & HILFE
Final Vision 6 The virtual cooperation networks have proven to be more stable than initially assumed, most bureaucratic hurdles are overcome. Without giving up their own identity, the value of the successful services, which have emerged from new forms of cooperation among universities, increases. This contributes to the self-esteem of the institution and is reflected in the self-esteem of the European officer. www. bundesheer. at 26 SCHUTZ & HILFE
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