Military college alumni perspectives: attributes of on-campus leadership development

Purpose This study aimed to explore alumni’s perspectives on which attributes of their military college experience were most valued for their leadership development and which attributes may have been missing from their on-campus experience. Design/methodology/approach We conducted semi-structured interviews with 15 military college alumni to explore their perspectives on the most valuable on-campus attributes associated with their leadership development and the missing attributes that would presently benefit their leadership practice in the workplace. Findings Alumni valued the following attributes connected to their leadership development at the military college: positional leadership roles, conflict and challenges, mentor relationships and the general rigors of their military college experience. Further, alumni believed they would have benefitted from increased diversity, improved mentorship and more exposure to a differing leadership approach. This different approach included a more relational form of leadership and leading with more ambiguity. Originality/value A growing body of research has examined the attributes associated with leadership learning on traditional college campuses; however, less is known about leadership learning in collegiate military environments.