This episode features an interview with LTC McKinley Wood, West Point class of 2001, and recipient of the 2023 Alexander R. Nininger Award for Valor at Arms.

LTC Wood most recently served as the Battalion Commander of the 3rd Battalion, 304th Regiment, with the responsibility of providing weapons, tactical employment of crew-served weapons, and physical confidence training to the United States Military Academy. LTC Wood earned a Bachelor of Science in Systems Engineering from West Point in 2001 and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in Armor. He has served as a Tank Platoon Leader, Company Executive Officer, and Battalion Maintenance Officer during three Middle East deployments, two National Training Center rotations, a Joint Readiness Training Center rotation, and more. He has civilian work experience as a Design Engineer at Caterpillar, Assistant Chief and Chief Engineer at Bank of America, and as Assistant University Engineer and Associate Director of Engineering Services at University of Richmond.

In this episode, LTC Wood talks about how to lead in asymmetric warfare through moral, ethical, and fair leadership, and how West Point taught him the most important lesson of all, the value of teamwork.

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“The Academy really brought to realization the value of teamwork to me, whether it's someone trying to help me through the studying for an exam, or me running next to someone on a PT test or practice saying, ‘Hey, here's how you breathe’, whatever it is. The value of teamwork and how much more you can accomplish. There's a saying that says, ‘if you want to go far, run as a group. If you want to go fast, go by yourself.’ And I prefer to go far, you know? Go fast, get tired quickly, be done with it, and get passed. So the academy really pushed on us, if you failed, it's not because you failed, it's because you all failed each other.” - LTC McKinley Wood

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(02:26) Attending West Point

(06:57) Becoming an Armor Officer

(13:50) Favorite memories as a cadet

(17:20) How to lead in asymmetric warfare

(24:32) Stories from the battlefield

(26:46) Leveraging connections throughout his career

(32:18) Experience as battalion commander

(36:14) Advice for cadets

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LTC McKinley Wood’s LinkedIn

COL James Enos’ LinkedIn

West Point Association of Graduates