Catherine the Great's Leadership and

Application of the Decision-Making Processes

Leadership:

            As an autocratic Empress, Catherine the Great displayed a very authoritarian style of leadership. She retained all control over Russia and every decision made in regards to the country was either approved or initiated by her. She reinforced her authority through power and discipline, which always remained consistent. She developed the Russian laws, and she strictly adhered to them. In one respect Catherine did differ from typical authoritarian rulers though. Catherine was open to new ideas and theories and welcomed freedom of speech, as long as it did not heavily criticize the effectiveness of her rule and reforms.

            This leadership style was effective within Russia during that time period because the country displayed very little unity, many of the citizens were quite limited in their capabilities, and Catherine herself possessed outstanding vision, intellect, and creativity. Further, there were too many people throughout Russia to have everyone participate in the governing of the country; therefore it was necessary for one person, the ruler, to be held in a decision-making capacity. Catherine was also successful as an authoritarian Empress because she made the needs of her subjects her primary concern and dedicated her life to serving her subjects.

Systems Thinking

            Catherine the Great used systems thinking to help with her decision-making processes by realizing that there was a connection between the actions she could take to better Russia and the end results that she desired for Russia. When she first became Empress of the country, she recognized that Russia needed to increase its national wealth and the effectiveness of its industries and production. She also realized that Russia had at its disposal a vast territory of agricultural land full of a multitude of natural resources desired by other countries. By employing systems thinking she was able to solve the problem of the country’s suffering economy by understanding the connection between exportation of resources and the wealth that could be obtained. When this solution proved to be successful, Catherine again used systems thinking in her decision to encourage immigration to the country, recognizing that this would further increase the productivity of the nation. With further reform, Catherine recognized the final correlation between introducing the emerging theory of capitalism throughout Russia and maximizing Russia’s potential for wealth.

            Additional examples of Catherine’s use of systems thinking include the educational system and Russian culture. Catherine realized that by providing a better education system for all children, both boys and girls, she was actually investing in the long-term capabilities of her nation. She knew that better educated subjects would translate into more capable and more productive subjects. By improving Russian culture, Catherine suspected that there would be a relationship between working towards an advanced and rich cultural society and that other nations would begin to respect the superiority and quality of the Russian presence.

Taken all together, Catherine the Great was actually applying systems thinking on a small scale as part of the bigger picture. As she was transforming Russia, she was fully aware of the direct connection between increasing Russia’s wealth, improving the aptitude of her subjects, gaining the respect of other nations, and enlightening Russian society towards propelling Russia to the status of a European world power. This was her ultimate goal and the essential problem that she sought a solution for.

Creative Thinking

            Whenever Catherine the Great was faced with a problem she would always consider all the options that were available to her. She would then weigh these options in order to determine the solution that seemed most likely to provide her with the result she desired. In her approach to improving and transforming Russian society, Catherine was extremely open-minded and revolutionary. She was not afraid to consider possibilities that others thought were ridiculous; instead she welcomed the new ideas from the enlightened philosophers. Catherine realized that in order to transform Russia into a major nation, she would have to discard the approaches that maintained Russia’s current status and adopt innovative and fresh ideas that offered the necessary changes that would elevate the country. Therefore, creative thinking was a very effective tool for initiating reforms throughout the country. Catherine was able to respond to many problems with an innate logic and sense of what was necessary for success.

            Specific examples of when Catherine would have employed creative thinking to her decision-making processes include when she was analyzing the Enlightenment ideas, when she was developing strategies for the wars, and when she was producing the legislature she wished to introduce. By deciding to engage in war, Catherine had already carefully considered all the possible locations and all the possible strategies for attack and defence. With help from her military advisors, she was able to determine the best military tactics in regards to strategic battle locations and fighting methods. When faced with the possibility of war on many different fronts (from Poland, Prussia, the Crimea, and the Baltic) Catherine would have familiarized herself with all the military options available and then have chosen the one that seemed likely to result in the greatest success with the least amount of casualties. In terms of analyzing the Enlightenment ideas, Catherine would have been exposed to a multitude of new ideas regarding reforms to all areas of society and from all these suggestions she would have had to select the reforms that she thought would result in the greatest societal improvement and benefit for Russia. In addition, she would have had to consider which ideas it would be possible for her to integrate into society and which would be accepted by all members of society. For both of these problems it is likely that Catherine would have used a decision-making tool similar to the PMI or the APC, where she would have identified the good ideas, the bad ideas, and the ideas that interested her or the alternative ideas, the possible ideas, and the choices that were available for her to make. Catherine would also have considered the Consequences and Sequel tool in her plans for advancing Russian society and elevating it to the status of a world power. She would have been focusing on the long-term effects of her decisions and basing her decisions on which ideas offered the best possibilities for the future. Lastly, Catherine would have utilized the OPV tool because when implementing her reforms into society she would have had to consider the manner in which the nobles, the bourgeoisie, the peasants, and the serfs would react. Interpreting their reactions to her reforms would have been crucial for maintaining control and not losing the trust and confidence of all her subjects.

Lateral Thinking

            Catherine the Great’s use of lateral thinking would have extended to her recognizing and acknowledging all the possible theories in circulation at the time regarding the best manner in which to govern the country. She would have realized that the solution she decided on was only one of several possibilities. Catherine was also revolutionary in her approach to the problems within Russia because she was able to abandon the previous notions about how a country had to be ruled; she was able to “escape from the established pattern in order to switch into a better one”.

Problem-Based Learning

            Catherine the Great employed problem-based learning into her decision-making processes when she first became Empress because she immediately became aware of several problems with Russia’s financial and social situation that she had previously been sheltered from. Therefore, as Empress, she immediately had to begin dealing with all these problems and develop solutions without any previous experience to guide her. Examples of problems she faced during her reign that forced her to develop solutions include: the large debt that had been accumulated by the country, the Pugachev Revolt, the lack of unity throughout the nation, and the codification of an effective legal system.