Building relationships is critical to leading effectively, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. CQ Brown, Jr., said yesterday as he met with ROTC cadets and students enrolled in Christopher Newport University’s President’s Leadership Program at the university’s campus in Newport News, Virginia.
Brown, the highest-ranking military officer and the principal military advisor to the president, discussed his key leadership tenets and the core values that have shaped his nearly 40-year career yesterday as part of a wide-ranging fireside chat that drew more than 1,500 attendees.
The event, which was held at Christopher Newport’s Ferguson Center for the Arts, the former site of Ferguson High School where Brown graduated in 1980, also marked a homecoming for the chairman and a chance to connect with former classmates in the audience.
A recurring theme throughout the evening was Brown’s emphasis on the role trust and relationships play in leading effectively, whether in government or the private sector.
“You never want to cold call in a crisis, and you never want to burn a bridge,” Brown said. “And so, you need to build those relationships before you need them.”
He said working to build lasting connections and trust with others has been a constant practice throughout his career. And he said he hasn’t let up as chairman.
“In my position as the chairman of the joint chiefs, I talk to my counterparts all around the world,” he said. “Over the year I’ve been in this job, I’ve probably had 300 different engagements, probably three or four per week.”
Those consistent connections, regardless of the topics being discussed, are important, Brown said.
“It builds on those personal relationships,” he said. “You will do something for someone you know and have spent time with.”
Christopher Newport University President William G. Kelly kicked off the event by introducing Brown. He also welcomed Thomas W. Newton, one of the few remaining original Tuskegee Airmen and distinguished guest at yesterday’s event.
During World War II, Newton served in the U.S. Army Air Corps’ 99th Fighter Squadron, 332nd Fighter Group, the first all-African American fighters that became known as the Tuskegee Airmen.
Brown was named an honorary Tuskegee Airman in 2021 and said yesterday that the unit’s service has continued to inspire him throughout his career.
“They pushed for the opportunity to serve,” he said. “It was an uphill battle.”
But he said once they broke through the barriers in their way, they proved themselves in battle.
“One of the things I think about in my position is that every wants an opportunity,” Brown said. “And the fact that they were able to have an opportunity to demonstrate their immense capability and gain that respect, I thought was immense.”
The remainder of the fireside chat was led by two student moderators, Stephany Lindo-Batlle and Rachel Freeman, before opening the floor for questions.
Beyond questions about leadership, students also had the opportunity to ask about how Brown approaches high-level decisions and thinks through pressing issues impacting national security.
The students also asked about high and low points he has experienced throughout his career and who Brown has admired throughout his life.
Brown underscored the value of service and the incredible opportunities his career had given him.
“You should be very proud of your military,” Brown said. “We have 2.1 million men and women serving around the world keeping watch so we can actually sit here and have this event tonight.”
He added that he is “extremely confident in our capabilities as a nation and as a military.”
“I just feel so privileged and blessed to have this opportunity” to serve as chairman, he said.
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