Photo By Christopher Goulait | Retired Army Lt. Gen William “Gus” Pagonis (right), receives a coin from Defense...... read more read more
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FORT BELVOIR, Va. - The U.S. Army’s “logistics point man” during Operation Desert Storm, retired Army Lt. Gen. William “Gus” Pagonis spoke at a Defense Logistics Agency military professional development training session March 6 at the McNamara Headquarters Complex.
“All wars are won because of logistics,” Pagonis emphasized.
The author of “Moving Mountains, Lessons in Leadership and Logistics from the Gulf War,” Pagonis oversaw the largest military logistics operation in history to that point. From Desert Shield to Desert Storm to Desert Farewell, Pagonis oversaw the care and feeding of 550,000 troops and the transportation of 7 million tons supplies halfway around the world against enormous challenges. His campaign logistics strategy during the war was widely regarded as one of the greatest achievements of military history.
Pagonis described the Gulf War as a logistical war in three phases: deployment, combat and redeployment. During his talk, he provided a behind-the- scenes look of the complex challenges of delivering logistics support against the fourth largest army in the world at the time, the Soviet-trained and -equipped Iraqi army.
Both during the presentation and in his book, Pagonis noted how, within a month, U.S. forces landed and processed more than 38,000 troops and 163,581 tons of equipment into theater to prevent the 100,000 Iraqi troops occupying Kuwait from attacking Saudi Arabia. He compared the deployment phase to the “logistical challenge of moving the entire state of Wyoming, including people, cars and belongings, to Saudi Arabia.”
“The study of war is the study of logistics,” Pagonis told his military audience. “It was a huge logistical challenge. We were prepared to fight the Soviet Union. The U.S. Army had planned for a war in Europe where railroads would play a major role in delivering heavy equipment.”
Pagonis lauded the king of Saudi Arabia for his support during the war.
“The King paid for all the meals bought and consumed in his country. This was comparable to the logistics of feeding 550,000 troops to feeding over 95 million meals, same as feeding the state of Rhode Island three meals a day for 30 days.”
In Saudi Arabia, the need for heavy equipment transporters became quickly apparent.
“We only had 112 [heavy equipment transfer systems] in theater, and we ended up renting nearly 1,300 HETS and their drivers from coalition allies,” Pagonis said.
He also remarked on how morale was a prime concern of his during the Gulf War. Combat convoy supply centers were set up on highways for truck drivers to stop and refuel, and Pagonis introduced the “Wolfmobile,” a fleet of 150 mobile canteen trailer trucks that delivered free hot dogs and hamburgers to coalition soldiers operating in the desert.
“It was a morale booster … that provided a little bit of home in the desert,” Pagonis said.
Pagonis served in the Army for 29 years, retiring with the three-star rank of lieutenant general. A recipient of the Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, and the Silver Star for valor in combat and Bronze Star, Pagonis retired from the Army in 1993 and became executive vice president of logistics for Sears, Roebuck and Company.
As the head of the supply chain for Sears Roebuck, Pagonis was responsible for all supply chain functions including the flow of inventory from vendor to store, transportation, distribution, international logistics, home delivery services, and the integration of information systems. In this role, he functioned as the single point of contact for all of Sears Supply Chain and directed logistics for more than 2,500 stores, and a network of strategically positioned distribution centers.
Currently serving as the vice chairman of the board for Genico, based in Pittsburg, Pagonis described his management style as centralized command with decentralized execution.
“A simple but well-executed strategy is better than the most sophisticated strategy,” Pagonis said.
He shared a few of his lessons in leadership and logistics developed over a military and civilian logistical career. In a time when there were no cell phones or GPS, Pagonis relied on 3x5-inch cards to communicate information up and down the chain of command. Brevity, daily 20-minute stand-up meetings and an insistence on flexibility were ideas Pagonis emphasized both on and off the battlefield.
Pagonis concluded by remarking that the military services and DLA in particular are one of the last bastions of loyalty and teamwork in a world where, when some companies don’t make their numbers, those values are harder to find.
Army Maj. Joseph Williams was a junior in high school worrying about making football practice when Desert Storm erupted.
“My first assignment as a lieutenant in Germany, I didn’t know what a 3x5 card was. I was always being asked by those senior to me, where are your 3x5 cards lieutenant? Now I know why,” Williams said.
As the military assistant to Defense Logistics Agency’s Army Maj. Gen. Lynn Collyar, director of DLA Logistics Operations, Williams experienced firsthand the leadership secrets of Pagonis.
“I had a boss in Bosnia who demanded brevity. If I didn’t fit my words on one piece of paper, he didn’t take it,” Williams noted, echoing a point Pagonis made during his presentation.
| Date Taken: | 03.07.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 03.15.2012 08:28 |
| Story ID: | 85272 |
| Location: | FORT BELVOIR, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 434 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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