“Today a Follower, Tomorrow a Leader?”: Reserve Platoon Leaders’ Perceptions of Leader Competencies in the Process of Role Acquisition

Military leaders’ perception of their role affects both their own performance and the commitment and satisfaction of their subordinates. Leaders also play a significant role in nurturing ties between individual and organization, contributing to the collective will to invest in organizational goals. The ramifications of these leadership principles are particularly relevant in armies employing conscription and reserve-based defence models, where wartime leaders are typically reservists – civilians trained during their conscript period. This study focuses on Estonian reserve platoon leaders’ (RPL) perception of the military leader’s role, expressed through self-analyses written before and after a five-week training course. The results reveal the relative importance of interpersonal and management competencies in pre-course perceptions, followed by a sharp rise in the importance of intrapersonal competencies by the end of the course. Participants discussed self-related issues such as the tension between self-confidence and insecurity, emotional self-regulation, and behavioural reactions. While these refer to typical role acquisition issues, the participants emphasized specific internal dilemmas stemming from the discrepancy between military and civilian perceptions and the resulting tensions between personal and organizational values.