Nuclear Leadership

For the first several thousand years of written history, humankind submitted to a variety of emperors, rulers, kings, czars, and dictators. While political empires are far less common today, this imperial leadership mind-set is deeply ingrained in our collective psyche. Our workplaces remain filled with miniature Napoleons and Hirohitos wielding supreme power over their subordinates through authoritarian, totalitarian, overbearing, and micromanaging (ATOM) leadership practices.

Against the Tide is a leadership book that illustrates how Adm. Hyman Rickover made a unique impact on American and Navy culture. Dave Oliver is the first former nuclear submarine commander who sailed for the venerable admiral to write about Rickover's management techniques. Oliver draws upon a wealth of untold stories to show how one man changed American and Navy culture while altering the course of history.

A deployed nuclear submarine operates alone - hundreds of miles from any support and hundreds of feet below the surface. An emotionless and indifferent enemy constantly surrounds the crew. Thousands of pounds of sea pressure sit right over their heads, waiting to crush them like a tin can and send them to the bottom of the ocean. Even the most junior sailor’s mistake can result in loss of the submarine and everyone on it.

In Station Blackout, Chuck Casto, the foremost authority on responding to nuclear disasters, shares his first-hand account of how he led the collaborative team of Japanese and American experts that faced the challenges of Fukushima. A lifetime of working in the nuclear industry prepared him to manage an extreme crisis, lessons that apply to any crisis situation.