How does a Lieutenant end up leading a Brigade-level innovation team? In this episode, we sit down with Vincent Gasparri, leader of the Bayonet Innovation Team for the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vicenza, Italy.

Vincent shares the unconventional story of how a critically honest email to his Brigade Commander led to the creation of a full-time innovation cell dedicated to closing capability gaps identified in modern conflict. We dive deep into the messy, rewarding reality of building a team with no doctrine or handbook, and the leadership lessons learned when ranks are blurred and the mission is the only metric that matters.

Key Topics Discussed:

• The Power of a "Sustain and Improve": How a junior officer’s feedback led to a direct response from the Brigade Commander and the birth of an innovation pipeline.

• Locus of Control: Understanding the radical responsibility of a leader to manage risk and prioritize resources, even when it means breaking from traditional Army structures.

• Leadership vs. Management: Why management is about systems and tasks, while leadership is about managing the incentives and vision that drive a human to move.

• Leading Your Peers (and Superiors): Navigating the unique challenges of "rank-blind" collaboration and how to maintain respect in a rigid hierarchy while flattening the organization for creative problem-solving.

• The Culture of Feedback: How to move past anonymity and normalize face-to-face, honest confrontation to improve both equipment and people.

• Mission as a Filter: A simple but profound rubric for decision-making: if it doesn’t contribute to the mission, cut it.