But Sobel wasn’t the “BOSS”, Sobel was the “TRAINER”.

Sometimes good leaders can become selfish bosses and hot headed authority figures become good leaders. (My boss and GM for example) My boss was once a good leader and friend but the financial success of his business made him a selfish boss. While my GM started out hot headed, short tempered and easily frustrated but after being neck deep side by side in years of crud together he became a good leader and close as a brother to me.

I do believe the modern military has structured itself to accommodate for guys like Sobel. Case in point, in Marine Corps basic, the rifle range is always led by another DI. As you don’t want kids to have both weapon and ammo after they just got verbally abused by their green belt DI. Sobel was an excellent trainer, but it stops there. Guys like him have alway had it rough, when reality sets in. All generation and service branches have a Sobel.

Excellemt. Dad was on Luzon when he was 17. He became a Sgt then and later in Korea Platoon Sgt. I learned early on what leadership really was. Loveya Dad.

not 88's, they were 155's

3:07 I believe Sobel's decision to revoke everyone's passes was predetermined, unless in the 0.01% chance that there were no mistakes in their formation. I believe that if he showed appreciation on rare circumstances, like JK Simmons' character in Whiplash, it could've ended very differently, if it werent for his poor combat leaderahip skills

Men will follow you for one of two reasons.... out of fear. And out of respect. You as a leader must know your men well enough to know which of these leadership styles will get the best from the men who follow you. Semper Fi

You need the Boss when training men. It gives the team a Boss to focus their team frustration. Now Leading men in combat you need the trust and faith of a Leader.

He was GARBAGE..... and needed to catch some lead.......

Having served with the 82nd, i saw a what "fresh off the block" attitudes and untrained/ undisciplined thought patterns could possibly result in if the company was ever involved in actual combat actions. While we can look at Sobel and only see a egotistical tyrant, it cannot be ignored that he was the sculpture who molded and shaped this band into soldiers and was able to provide both the physical and mental ability to do the job that needed to be done. Winters was exceptional at then using what Sobel had formed in combat. Had it been Winters as head of Easy Company from the start and Sobel as his Lieutenant then it's unknown to understand how Winters methods would have made the men. A person can do a job in civilian life with proper training but it takes a "breaking down" of both mental and physical to make a man into a soldier. Sobel knew what was needed in combat. Winters, as yet, was as green as the rest.

Tell me you've never served in the military without telling me you never served.

In a working environment Sobel is the type of man who you’d hate working for, but the first person you’d hire if you were starting a company.

Blythe went on to fight in Korea and Viet Nam with honor and distinction. Why the producer picked Blythe to screw over is a wonder.

The story of Sobel is tragic. Yes, he was a bully. Even a tyrant. Petty and timid. He was duped by 'Major Horton' during a field exercise. Except it happened at night and over a radio. In another case, the medics complained they wanted a live patient to practice on. Sobel was selected. They knocked him out with chloroform. Made it appear like his appendix was taken out. Bandaged up and abandoned on the field. They didn't cut him. In another scenario they lie in ambush at night. Wind blew over the grass. Sobel yelled, "Here they come!" Gave them away. Things came to a head with Winters and Sobel. First Sobel altered the inspection time and came up with excuses on why Winters wasn't told. When Winters arrived to do the inspection of the latrines, Sobel was leaving the site with a disheveled Private Joachim Melo in tow. The Private had cleaned the latrine. As Winter said, he did a good job. That's when Sobel issued the threat, forfeited leave or faced court-martial. Fed up with Sobel's antics, Winters demanded a court-martial knowing he was in the right. After some legal wrangling the charge was set aside. Only for Sobel to come right back and charge Winters with failure to follow orders for Melo's unkempt appearance. That's when Winters exploded. It led to Sobel being removed. It was for the best. However, his strict discipline did make Easy Company the best. That aside, after Sobel trained non-combatants in a jump school at Chilton Foliat. From what I have read, he did jump into Normandy with the 506th, as well as Market-Garden and Bastogne. One news article stipulates he destroyed a machine gun position at Normandy with a grenade. For the latter two I was not able to find his level of participation. He didn't become regimental supply officer until near the end of the war. Things did look up for Sobel after 1945. He married a lovely woman named Rose, a nurse working at a VA hospital. They met when Sobel was there to visit a wounded comrade. Sobel's family did not like that Rose was Catholic, they did marry and had three sons. The family lived in Chicago where Herbert was an accountant for a company making telephone equipment. They had a good house. According to his son, Michael, Herbert dotted on his wife. On cold mornings he would warm up her car. In the evenings they share a cocktail and talk about their day. Then Herbert would have a PT session. If his sons are well behaved, they can join him. If not, they are excluded. Michael said Herbert never cursed or disciplined them out of hard. There were times when a spanking was warranted, and Sobel didn't do it. On Saturdays it was pancake day. The neighborhood kids came to the house. The former captain ensured that no one went hungry. Then things changed. In the 1960s, his sons became adults and left. One son was diabetic and exempt from service. Another joined the Coast Guard. Michael went to college but became part of the anti-war movement. Causing heat between him and his father. Then Rose left him. It's not certain as to what caused all this. According to Sobel's first executive officer, Maj. Clarence Hester, he described Sobel as bitter about everything. Perhaps being denied the glory Easy Company earned in the war. Or if he remained CO, he could have died at Normandy as the C-47 carrying his replacement, Lt. Meehan, First Sergeant Evans, and the rest of HQ was shot down killing everyone on board. That and probably Shell Shock or PTSD. Either way, Sobel attempted suicide, but the bullet only blinded him. The man spent the rest of his life rotting away in an ill-kempt VA assisted-living facility, dying of malnutrition. According to Stephen Ambrose, no one attended the funeral. That's because there was no funeral. Estranged from Rose and his sons they couldn't be located in time. In fact, it was at least a week before Michael found out his father passed away.

Sober was a hard task master. But deserves credit for their being the best Trained.

That was about the fastest 15 minutes I've ever experienced on KZbin! I'm a senior, yet my attention span is probably as poor as those in generations succeeding me. I have to pause to consider whether I want to watch a video longer then ten minutes. I've seen this video in my queue the last few days. I finally purchased the miniseries last night after several years of catching bits and pieces on different channels. I agree that the portrayals of Sobel and Winters by David Schwimmer and Damian Lewis were outstanding. I think, for dramatic effect, Sobel was drawn more harshly than the man he was based on - suggested by some research I did awhile back. It seems his authoritarian leadership style and its negative impact on his men was the general consensus. Winters - as portrayed - seemed to have a unique way of looking at things and a gift for effective action. As I recall, Sobel suggested that losing a weekend pass was no big deal for Winters because he spent most of his weekends on post anyway. Studying? Preparing? Sharing in the suffering of his men - or all of the above? This video exploration was well done - and earned a subscriber...

Some things to point out: 1. Captain Sobel was tough on his men but it also made sure that they were ready for the war. Sometimes you need hard training to ensure your own survival. Plus: Because everybody hated Sobel the soldiers bonded. Sobel just was a bad tactician in the battlefield, which would cost many lives. 2. Winters was a great leader because he lead by example. In Episode 5 he crouched ahead to scout the German MG-position and made a battle plan. The next morning he decided to attack the German position. He was not afraid to be the first in line. 3. In Episode 8 Winters stopped the second patrol because: I.) The prisoners they took the night prior didn't give them any vital information. II.) Colonel Sink, who asked for the second patrol, only cared about his own career and hoped another successful patrol would help him getting a higher rank/position in the military. III.) Because Winters battalion would get relieved the next morning anyway. So why risk another soldier ?

Sobel = Trained them to fight well Winters = Leads them to victory Also all the soldiers and their CO Winters admitted because of Sobel's training there were able to fight well.

Nobody talks about Middle Management Leadership which is often much harder to do right than upper management, ie Carwood Lipton.who btw after the war became a big international executive. Rising through the ranks to leadership.

“Those who can, do; those who can’t, teach.”

On the parade ground, you need a "Boss." Rank says you're the boss. In Combat, you need a Leader. Bullets don't count bars or stars. Combat leadership comes from both Knowledge of the situation and knowledge and understanding (applied knowledge) of those under your command. these two are brought together in moments of inspiration that the Leader must provide.

boring

The big fallacy with this analysis is that Sobel (as depicted in the series) wasn't a bad officer because of his attitude, he was a bad combat officer because he was incompetent. That's why the NCOs "mutiny" against him, because they know going into combat with him as their CO will get most of Easy killed. They hate him, but if he was a competent combat officer they would've never undermined him. That's why they follow Winters, sure they like him, and he's a good officer, but most of all he's competent. They know they'll be as safe as possible with him leading them into war.

I dsagree with the previous post. Not every member of Easy Company felt that way about Sobel. As shown the non coms threatened mutiny because they knew Sobel was an incompetent combat leader.The thing that they felt Sobel did was get them in the best shape. Sobel was a horrible tactician. The men did not want him leading them into Normandy. Sobel never showed the men that he was behind ghem.

Major Winters' leadership style is the kind I am aspired to be in my daily civilian life. The man led by example. Sobel was rough to work with but his high stress high demand method prepared Easy Company for war. Sobel's method works in war but never in the corporate world.

Find you are so funny you treated viewers to Band of Brothers as idiots , you had better to teach kindergarten kids

I like spaghetti? When I was out in the field, I always ate last.

Winters kept saying "follow me," the motto of the Infantry.

Fantastic. This is so important.

Sobel is like General MacLennan during the civil war while Major Winters is like Grant or Sherman... both are needed.

As a 20 year soldier of the US Army (11B) and a former NCO, we could use more of Major Winters in combat and Cpt Soble in basic training. TAKE THE CHAINS OFF THE NCOs

4:33 That "you" was plural Sobel doesnt hate Easy company ,but hates all the men that are in it and comprise it

In this show we see a brillian distinction between 3 leadership styles : Authoritarian : Sobel Authoritative : Winters Permissive : Dike Both the Authoritarian and the Permissive types are wrong and are undermining the potential of the people you are leading Only the authoritative style can get the best out of them , and every person leading other people should be trained in this style even if it is not their natural style or what their instincts tell them to lead like

analysis of actors acting

Like Sobel or not. He did make Winters job easier by 1. Disciplined the shit out of Easy company, 2. Became the common enemy for the soldiers to unite again.

Sobel would have been killed by his men before Dday...they knew what a poor leader he was...

Let's not forget that Winters has stated that Easy is/was as disciplined as they were thanks to the training of Sobel. And for years after the War when remaining members would get together, Winters always extended an invitation to Sobel. Insisted on it even. However Sobel always refused...unfortunately

thats my favorite line of the movie. He doesn't hate easy company private Randleman he just hates YOU lol

As career wise you know I want recruiting experts to learn the potential of fresh graduates new guys who enter the force and Breacourt Manor is an excellent example Major Winters and his men weren't experienced in the war before D-DAY but as they went over and planned the assault on the guns at Breacourt Manor and how successful their attacking tactics were because of it until this they teach it at West point school of Cadet officers I wish recruiter's that an inexperienced person would amazed at how talented he is and this is one of the great examples to show why.

my boss........ - it be........ F E A R more than respect. Respect is where there IS a willingness to '' go the extra mile ''. boss -- is a strangle hold - when the chips are down, last call, he is a l o n e as others will just leave him to '' high and dry ''.

Sobel, is the classic BS manager in business today and when I was working. Weak, no leadership skills and just bark out do as I say not as I do! I refused to join these A-Holes and fought them for 38 years and nine months. Never brown nosed and couldn't stand these blood suckers and brown nosers. I do not regret playing their game to get ahead and did my own thing, for my family, for my morals, and for my sanity. 🤔

There is a time to be “Sobel” and there is a time to be “Winters”. Good Leaders know when to…

Boss is describing pretty much every CEO of a major corporation in the country. Guess why these people receive all the major pay raises and bonuses while the rest of workers struggle day by day. Yet people still keep kissing up these bosses?

The thing is, being a boss in the army can be a good thing. He just pushed it too far

dude it is easy .the leader leads and inspires by example .boss is behind you with a whip leader is in front leading and motivating

Dutch van der Linde would fit more of a boss role, even right before we see him get a concussion from the cable car crash in Saint Denis.

i actually sold beer to SOBEL when he was at a V A hospital in Waukegan Illinois he was blind at the time i think the year was 1975

Superb. Sadly, there are too many " "boses" out there.

You can't look at this in a pure civillian view. Every time you fall in, you have inspection. If you don't meet standards in drill, dress and deportment then there can be penalties. If your uniform is not to standard or your weapon etc has dirt or rust you can face consequences. Sobel (at least as portrayed 8n the series) was on a power trip and used punishment far to often which is why the men did not respect him plus he was not an effective Infantry officer but somethings he did was warranted based on military standards. If someone has not served and looks at it purely in a civillian occupation view then some of the context is off.

yeah sobel made them into best paratroopers if he wasn't such an asshole and a bully they might even respect him