Medal of Honor Recipients share their stories of courage and leadership

Event & Context: Goldman Sachs hosted a special session featuring two Medal of Honor recipients, Slabinski and Groberg, to discuss courage, leadership, and resilience.

• Matt Gibson, Head of Client Solutions in Asset Management, introduced the speakers, highlighting the rarity of the award (3,528 recipients among 40 million uniforms) and the posthumous nature of most awards.
• The session emphasized the connection between military ethos (taking care of one's team) and high-performing corporate environments.

The Medal of Honor:

• Signed into law by President Lincoln in 1861; first awarded in 1863 during the "Great Train Robbery" of the Civil War.
• Represents the highest order a country can bestow on a citizen for service to national ideals and keeping the oath to defend the nation.
• Recipients view the medal not as a personal achievement but as a representation of fallen comrades and an opportunity to advocate for veterans.
• Neither recipient considered seeking the award during their actions; they acted solely on training, instinct, and the imperative to save their teammates.

Speaker Profiles & Awards:

• Britt Slabinski: Retired Command Master Chief; awarded the medal in 2018 (by President Trump) for actions in the 2002 Battle of Takhar Gar, Afghanistan.
  • Served 24 years in Navy SEALs (26 total years in Navy) with 15 combat deployments.
  • Currently President of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society; honorary member of the U.S. Naval Academy Class of 2023.
• Flo Groberg: Retired Army Officer; awarded the medal in 2015 (by President Obama) for actions in 2012 in Kunar province, Afghanistan.
  • Commissioned in 2008; medically retired in 2015 after recovery at Walter Reed Medical Center.
  • Currently Managing Director at AE Industrial Partners and serves on the board of the Wounded Warrior Project.
• Groberg's path to the U.S. Army was influenced by his uncle's killing in Algeria and his reaction to the 9/11 attacks as a freshman at the University of Maryland.

Courage & Training:

• Courage is described as both physical and emotional, often triggered by a "suicide moment" where logical assessment is bypassed in favor of instinct and brotherhood.
• Training (e.g., Ranger School, BUD/S) is designed to reveal a person's character when exhausted, hungry, and stressed.
• The "no I" mentality is central; teams succeed only when members prioritize the mission and their teammates over individual glory.
• High attrition rates (e.g., 69 out of 333 in Ranger School) are intentional to filter out those unwilling to carry their weight for others.

Resilience & Team Dynamics:

• Resilience is a trained capability, not an innate trait, defined by the ability to operate effectively when "impossible to think."
• Peer reviews in military training provide harsh, honest feedback that forces self-correction and prevents dropping the ball on teammates.
• Slabinski notes that Special Operations units require perfection in every detail; missing one data point can jeopardize the entire operation.
• Groberg compares his military experience to running the Distance Medal Relay, emphasizing that success comes from executing one's specific role perfectly for the team, not individual stardom.

Leadership Philosophy:

• Slabinski: Advocates for leaders to remain at the "friction point" with their teams; believes the "mental office door" must be open to ideas from any rank.
  • Transitioned the military mindset of "treating every individual as integral to success" to corporate America, noting that people "will run up a mountain" when valued.
  • Learned that "being ready to lose them" (when they are promoted) is a sign of successful leadership.
• Groberg: Emphasizes leading with "courage, conviction, and compassion," specifically advocating for human connection over cold efficiency.
  • Cites a specific moment of "best leadership" where a superior offered a silent, long hug after a traumatic engagement, restoring the soldier's resolve.
  • Advises leaders to counsel in private, not in crowds, and to focus on enabling others to succeed.

Corporate & Military Parallels:

• High-performing organizations share a common need for a clear mission and a foundation of human connection, even as AI integrates into operations.
• Slabinski notes that the hardest transition for him was adapting the "take care of your people" model to a corporate environment where relationships are less codified.
• Both speakers highlight that special operators are not "magical"; their success comes from being experts at the "basics" (discipline, showing up, no cutting corners) every single day.
• Goldman Sachs is noted to employ veterans, specifically valuing the "ultimate teammate" mentality and the discipline developed in special operations.

Advice & Reflections:

• Best Advice: "Stay in the fight" (Slabinski) and "Appreciate what you have in front of you" (Groberg, learned during recovery at Walter Reed).
• Worst Advice: "You need to be the best" (Groberg), which conflicted with his team-first identity; he prefers to be "excellent at what you do" and a great teammate.
• Difficult Advice: "Say no more often" (Slabinski), recognizing that over-commitment dilutes effectiveness.
• Ethos: Ethos, creeds, and values serve as decision-making tools; if a problem or choice "sticks" to the ethos, it should be pursued; if it "bounces off," it should be rejected.