Episode 12: Interwar Learning: An Interview with Trent Hone, Author of “Learning War”

This episode of Strategy Matters aligns with the Interwar Case 5 of the Strategy and Policy Course: The Interwar World. Co-host Brendan Neagle interviews Trent Hone, the author of Learning War and Mastering the Art of Command: Admiral Chester W. Nimitz and Victory in the Pacific. The interview focuses on U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps adaptation in the interwar period between World War I and World War II. The discussion includes a description of complex adaptive systems, the influence of constraints on effective efforts at adaptation, aligning incentive systems with the desired outcomes, and the importance of communicating a clear objective. The interview closes with Mr. Hone proposing some key takeaways for the modern strategist from the U.S. Navy’s experience in the interwar period.

The opinions expressed on this podcast represent the views of the presenters and do not reflect the official position of the Department of War, The U.S. Navy, or U.S. Naval War College.

Guests:

Trent Hone is a Vice President with ICF and an award-winning naval historian. He works with organizations to improve their art of practice, increase effectiveness, and accelerate learning. He is the author of Learning War: The Evolution of Fighting Doctrine in the U.S. Navy, 1898-1945, Mastering the Art of Command: Admiral Chester W. Nimitz and Victory in the Pacific, as well as books on Leyte Gulf, Guadalcanal, and the Navies of World War I.