My guest is W. Scott Butler, a retired Navy Captain who led a 300-person Strike Fighter Squadron for the Navy, directed more than three thousand troops from multiple countries in Italy during combat operations over Libya, and trained thousands of military leaders each year across 80 countries as Commandant of NATO’s School in Germany.
Along the way he also spent a year as a Military Legislative Fellow for Senator John McCain, and today he’s Director of Business Development at Chemring Energetic Devices, translating that same command experience into the private sector.
We talk about what it takes to earn trust in the environments Scott operated in, which spanned an established chain of command, a multinational alliance, and a civilian boardroom. While the stakes and objectives may have been different, the insights he provides have practical applications for many of today’s leaders.
Scott shares real-world stories that reinforce the strategic importance of trust to elevate team performance, and how a betrayal of trust, such as in the Navy’s “Fat Leonard” scandal, can ruin the lives of individuals and the reputation of an organization for many years after. Most importantly, Scott offers practical lessons that shouldn’t be missed.
In this conversation, we dive into:
The Backseat Bet: what it’s like trusting a fellow aviator you’ve just met with your life every time you strap into a fighter jet, and how empowering the lowest ranks builds trust at every level above them.
Humble Pie at Mach 2: how a squadron of the Navy’s most experienced aviators had to become students again overnight, and why shared vulnerability built commitment faster than rank ever could.
Capitol Hill’s Trust Deficit: why a fighter pilot found more genuine trust in a combat zone than among Senate staffers, and the moment he watched two senators tear into each other on camera, then laugh like old friends the second the cameras stopped.
The Multinational Mashup: leading more than 3,000 troops from multiple nations, IKEA tents and all, during combat operations over Libya.
The Fat Leonard Lesson: a Navy scandal that shows how a lifetime of trust can be destroyed in an instant, and never fully rebuilt.
THE BOTTOM LINE
A leadership title doesn’t grant you the trust of your team or organization. Scott earned it the same way in a cockpit as he did running a base or sitting in a legislative office: by being the same authentic person whether he was talking to a young pilot or a U.S. Senator.
Openness, trust, and accountability, those are the things that work regardless of culture or nation. -- W. Scott Butler
WINNING MOVES
Model the standard: a commander who cuts corners can’t expect any better from anyone else. This holds true whether you’re leading in the military or in a civilian role.
Don’t stop communicating when situations are tense: silence under pressure increases stress and lets people assume the worst. Act consistently, whether in combat or in maintenance, and people will manage the situation better.
Rely on tools, not just gut: when you’re deciding on the next resource or personnel decision, run it through the Trustworthy Decision Matrix to make sure you’re trusting the right individuals with the right amount of oversight.
If you want to dig deeper into the trust side of leadership, please read Win Via Trust or subscribe below for future Trust Lens newsletters.