Fmr. Navy Sec. John Phelan on Being Fired: When You’re Advocating Taking Risk, That’s Going to Rub People the Wrong Way and Make Them Nervous

EXCERPT:

PHELAN: “Oh, it’s a lot to cover in 18 minutes. First of all, thank you for having me. It’s a pleasure to be here. I always love being in Aspen. So, it’s a nice thing. So, look, I lasted 13 months in the job, which is as long as Teddy Roosevelt lasted as assistant secretary of the Navy. So, I feel like I’m in pretty good company is what I would say. Look, I was focused on urgency, speed, intensity, adopting technology, moving fast. And when you move fast, you break glass. And when you come into an organization like the Pentagon, which, unfortunately, is highly risk-averse, and you are advocating taking risk, that is going to rub numerous people the wrong way and make them nervous. So, at the end of the day, you know, maybe I pushed too hard, but I have no regrets from what I did in the job, and that’s my view.”