Apologies to Supertramp for borrowing the title of their brilliant 1974 album, see how old I am ! You cannot escape the news and it’ s at least 40% about the economic, banking, credit, recession and mortgage crisis. If you think it’s all over and start to plan you life, bang, another broadside hits. So leadership in Crisis, what about it?
So reality is we’ve all been living on credit, low interest rates and rising house prices for too long – the grim reaper of fate has decided it’s time to pay the toll. There are few, if any, sectors that will not be affected by the downturn, globally and nationally. So what has this got to do with this blog and my thinking? Well we are talking here about the role of leaders in change and change is responsive as well as preplanned. Here is an unprecedented learning opportunity for leaders – as the trite saying goes. However in reality it’s a time when leaders need to show their courage, their confidence and their competence even more openly. When the going gets tough the tough get going or better put by Kipling 
IF you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you
This really is the time for leaders to show some courage and take the initiative to share the why for their actions. Many business heads will be contemplating the need to restructure, reorganize and re size their operation. Take our advice and do this along with people and not in spite of them. Your employees will be worried about their livelihoods, their houses, their family, their pensions and their next pay cheque. Do not add to their worries by not informing them frankly and first about any plans to change the organization. These are the people who have served you well through the boom, so be honest and deal with them as adults in the bust times. As early as you know there are plans inform them – bad news, hope where there is some and just news about the organizations position.
Of course you will be held to some extent responsible, particularly is you display little in the way of pain yourself. However if the executives have taken a hit as well as the staff and you openly and honestly share with them the plans for the business though the tough times then you will gain their respect. This is an investment in morale, engagement and loyalty that you cannot do any other time. Employ adults, expect them to behave like adults and that means treating them as such, not being mis guided and over protective or at worst dismissive of their contribution.
Crisis management is good man management – people matter more than the balance sheet
time well spent
Today I have been talking to a European regional HQ of one of the worlds largest food companies. In talking to their Organizational Development people it seemed clear that their interest in leadership development and company re energizing was following a familiar path. A small group of senior team members set the overall direction for the business, aligned with the strong values of the company. They then turn these ideas into some statements of intent and priorities for the business. Job done – we now have a strategic direction and the business’s staff should fall into line to deliver.
Sound familiar? It does to me, it happens so many times. There is nothing wrong with the top team creating the lead, however what is wrong, in that in the current society we inhabit, is to expect people to go along with the plan without answering the why question. Why this plan, why not alternatives, why now, why not later in the year, why me, why not me, why in this way, why so aggressive a target, why not stay the same, why why why…… what we found endearing in children is seen as disloyal or skepticism in adults.
So what should we do instead? Construct with people a version of the answer, a way of understanding why so it doesn’t become a block to delivery. How is always the secondary question – how do we do this in a way that matches our integrity, values and competence…. but only when they know and commit to why. This is what we mean by envision and engage. Turning ideas into concrete commitments.
It take time to get real understanding , but discretionary effort is just that, free to give when people know why and not because they are consequenced to. I believe it’s time well spent, as the alternative is to waste time and effort in trying to deliver what is not understood.
I have had a number of personal experiences of being managed badly, but that’s not surprising in the long career I have survived ! What do I mean by being managed badly – well to me it’s being under used, rather than overworked.
I remember seeing a comment on my personnel file as I left a company after 20 years of varied service in a series of fantastic roles. It said ” mark has an unorthodox approach to authority and is one of the most difficult but talented people i have managed”. I can live with that as a company epitaph.
I have had bosses who want the ideas but don’t want to share the credit when they are implemented. For a short time this can be endured, but it always leads to dissatisfaction in the long term. I have had bosses who are not as smart as I am, and doing things that are plain wrong, but won’t or can’t hear alternatives. This is again a problem in the longer term, as you are working on things that are fundamentally wrong – and your advice has not been taken or heard.
As employees we need to be heard, not always agreed with but also not always dismissed as disloyal. What is the point in having staff and not using their collective or individual skills to get a good result.The positive deviants we rave about in the book are not going to be easy to manage, if they were they would not be so valuable to the organization.
Why the post on managing upwards? – well it seems there are a lot of people I meet in conferences that are in similar positions to myself in my early career. They want to do well, show initiative and challenge things in a positive way but their efforts are either hijacked or rebuffed. In some cases this can just be mildly annoying in others the trigger to leave the organization. So what can you do in a situation where the boss is not getting the best from you and maybe taking more than is fair?
Perception is reality – and reality is what you can get away with. This stolen quote is a fantastic summary of how I feel about being managed by others. I am arrogant enough to know when I am right and when I have a skill or experience that is useful to the organization. I am also humble enough to know I cannot change other people at will to be more like a boss I would admire. So I change the perception of the relationship – I manage them, in my mind, and they work for me. This change in perception, if you are smart, can change the whole working relationship. I play the game by my rules – getting the pet projects I want into the agenda of the boss, whether they credit me or not. In this way I know who is in control, and let’s face it if they had really good ideas we would probably support them, but in the absence of their own, let them have ours free. But also let’s not forget – they need us to help implement.
Also, use the experience to build your own CV and create a valuable proposition for others to seek your employment. People leave people – you don’t leave businesses – no one ever left MicroSoft or Nestle – they left poor bosses or people who didn’t manage the talent in front of them.
Managing the boss is a art – but one that anyone can learn. Be clear about the commitments you are going to deliver and extract a price for delivery that is meaningful and worthwhile to you. Search this blog or read the books section on commitments and you will realize the power of negotiation when you have all the ideas.
Remember – the person who knows how will always have a job. The person who knows why will always be his boss.
Now you know why being smart is a good thing and that not being able to manage you is the bosses problem not yours.
Recently speaking at a conference about the ideas in ReEnergizing the Corporation, I was told that the ideas were fine but did they only apply to large corporations? Well the simple truth is that good leadership is not the reserve of large organisations, multinational or older and wiser organisations – why should it be. The ideas we think are important may be gleaned from research and working with larger organisations, but they are sound and suitable for all leaders of people.
Ask yourself thsese questions:
Should talent only be allowed to thrive in large organisations?
Should leaders only explain Why when they have more than 100 employees?
Should I develop my staff when there are so few of them?
You don’t have to be a business genius to see how stupid the answers seem if you take a view that small businesses can’t apply these ideas. In fact in a smaller enterprise the results should come faster. Being close to you staff is easier and therefore the individual responses easier in a smaller organisation. So big or small, east or west, high or low tech – good leadership is good for business.
Just a short post to share some thoughts about perceptions and reality. How many times in our life’s have we read or seen on the TV stories about people and places and taken them literally, or as fact and not just some journalistic representation. Whether its the stories about Palin, Blair or Chavez we ( at least I am guilty) of taking them at face value. The same is true about places and cultures.
I have just spend four days in Colombia, speaking at the ACRIP HR conference. When I thought of Colombia and the invitation was confirmed, I immediately researched the country with particular reference to security and its history of narcotics. What I read was reassuring , in that things were getting better , at least the embassy website with its safety warnings was saying that it was now ok to travel – as long as you knew where you were staying, keep out of un booked taxis, don’t wear expensive wrist watches etc etc. Well let me put the record straight…
Colombians are some of the friendliest people I have ever met, very polite, fun, lively, intelligent and in many cases ( at least female gender) stunningly beautiful. The country ( at least the part I saw) is also safe, welcoming and almost stress free for a western European tourist. I have had more hassle in Rome and Paris than in Cartagena. The city itself is a Unesco world heritage site and deservedly so.
So sat in the lounge of the airline in Bogota, I have been thinking about the injustice we can do people and places by taking all the information we have just at face value. How many times have we done the same with people, and unintentionally dismissed a talent that has yet to show its worth. I have made mental note to myself – in future check reality before making a judgment. Trust people to have good intentions and in 99.99 % of cases you will be found to be true.
A second note to myself – don’t accept an invitation to a latin country unless you can salsa first !
How often have we heard the cliche ” we need to do some thinking outside of the box” when we are being “inspired” by our well meaning bosses – mistaking management jingoism for leadership.
In order to risk being creative we need two things, confidence in our position to be radical, innovative and challenging, and also some structure to deviate from – pure blue sky thinking is really just that, dreaming, nightmare stuff. Companies need to have some idea of the context of their industry first, the position they are in now – before they start to T.O.T.B Leaders don’t ignore where we are now – extolling only a vision, without reference to where we are now. Context is important – it shapes our starting point, it helps place us on the map in the first place, so we can navigate to somewhere else. In order to think outside the box we need two things – a box in the first place, and the space and confidence to think !!
Take a look at the evolution of thinking in business. Back in the 1920’s when management and business was becoming the subject of rigorous study the interface of man and machine was the focus. History has taught us that efficient management can reduce costs and has made operations in business lean and repeatable. We have Fredrick Winslow Taylor to thank for this in terms of ideas and Henry Ford, Arthur Sloan and McDonald’s to thank for the case studies in operational excellence. The essence of this approach to “scientific management “ is/was to take all the skill out of the operation and reduce the process to the simplest possible level of action. Result; people are treated like Oxen. At the time it was considered the epitome of business intelligence and lauded as progressive management. We now know better. The interface of man and man should be the real focus – leader and led.
The problem with repeatable processes, and anything that can be reduced to a documented process, is ultimately it’s also repeatable by someone else. Result: limited competitive advantage, short-term savings for short-term advantage – necessary but not sufficient. In business terms a good try but no
cigar for the winner.
We are now emerging into a new era where the demand on the organisation from talented knowledge workers is greater than at any other time in the history of mankind. Bright people, and let’s at least acknowledge that we are smart enough to hire bright people, ask better questions. They want to be engaged with their employer. There was a time when a job was a necessity. If you were good enough to employ people this was reason enough to gain their loyalty. Commitment was automatic. People were self-motivated. Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on where you stand, this does not compute now for the majority of knowledge workers or the corporate competents, as some would label them. For this group of talented individuals they want or more accurately demand a better deal. The psychological contract, that unspoken deal we all make with our employer, is getting more complex and more demanding to fulfil. Engaging them, really differentiating the employee value proposition to a level of the individual, is the way to get talent committed to your cause. 1-2-1 leadership is the case for Engagement.
It’s a global phenomenon not just a product of the west or the affluent northern hemisphere. Intelligent people need to know why and how they deliver their input to the greater organization. Whether you are from India, Indiana or Indonesia, talented employees want more than a just a pay packet. They want to be led, inspired to give their best and not just what you pay for. Discretionary effort is a worldwide untapped energy resource – there is no energy shortage, we are just looking in the wrong places.
Compliance is not enough to keep the best and brightest in your organisation. You need a compelling employment value proposition. Talented people have freedom of choice and you need to ensure for the best players in the game, that they chose to be on your team. Oxen you could beat into compliance, or at least reward with a suitable carrot. Taylorism was built on that simple principle. Times change, people change, expectations change, and management is no longer enough. What these demanding times require is exceptional leadership. 3E Leadership captures the essence of what times now demand of us.
Just a short promotion for the conference I am keynote at before Christmas in Turkey. Its the 16th annual HR conference in Turkey and now the biggest event of its kind in eastern Europe. They expect at least 1500 delegates, which just shows how the economy and business life is growing in the region.
see the programme at http://www.peryon.org.tr/kongre_program3.asp
In our seminars and our book, ReEnergizing the Corporation, we talk about the need for and nature of surprise in business – discontinuity and disruption. You cannot ignore change. You can only produce or try to reduce it; and we think there is only one real choice. To make change happen you need to re-energize your corporation and our model of leading change, 3E, enables you to Envision, Engage and Execute change.
Change does not have to be seen as negative or problematic, it can and should be a positive process that enables employees to contribute to the success of the organization. So why is it so often seen as a problem to be overcome and not a process to embrace? In a nutshell it’s the way we communicate and lead change that requires a radical re think. Change should always be done with people not in spite of people. To really engage with your workforce requires you actually relax some control and yet paradoxically in doing so you gain more power. It’s not for the faint hearted it takes courage to release the reins of control of the organization.
Welcome to the 21st century. Welcome to the era of courageous leadership. It’s time has finally come and without exception the talented people who embrace boldness will flourish in a business environment that demands leaders of exceptional ability and determination. Gone are the days where compliance and control was king, welcome to the exciting era of engagement. When leading change is about navigating the surprises of the business landscape and becoming the surprise shocker of your industry, a new model of leading and delivering change is required. 3E Leadership brings together, people, projects and positive change in a way that makes change happen.
3E Leadership is not management; just as driving to work is not formula one racing. There is a difference in the level of talent required and the level of excitement and challenge it generates. Read on the brave, because in our belief only the courageous can lead change exceptionally well.
For all of you who like to get some information, get some ideas and get some of the daily commute used usefully, then listening to you mp3 player must be a great way to hear something new. Adecco were one of the sponsors of the World Congress for HR held in London in April. They selected a number of the masterclasses to create a report, Leading Edge HR, which they have now hosted on their site as podcasts.
So for those with little time but a healthy curiosity, here is our thinking in mp3.
Go to Adeccoand hear our ideas along side those of people like Charles Handy. We hope you enjoy and are stimulated by what you hear.
How can you apply 3e leadership principles to the work that you do? Well we have found a chart, a prompt sheet in a way, asking key questions is one way to clarify how this framework will help you. Copy the chart out and use the prompt questions to make you think about an action in each box.
When you have done this, you should have more clarity on what an integrated leadership approach looks like. Now take the courage to do something with it.
In our seminars and our book, ReEnergizing the Corporation, we talk about the need for and nature of surprise in business – discontinuity and disruption. You cannot ignore change. You can only produce or try to reduce it; and we think there is only one real choice. To make change happen you need to re-energize your corporation and our model of leading change, 3E, enables you to Envision, Engage and Execute change.
Change does not have to be seen as negative or problematic, it can and should be a positive process that enables employees to contribute to the success of the organization. So why is it so often seen as a problem to be overcome and not a process to embrace? In a nutshell it’s the way we communicate and lead change that requires a radical re think. Change should always be done with people not in spite of people. To really engage with your workforce requires you actually relax some control and yet paradoxically in doing so you gain more power. It’s not for the faint hearted it takes courage to release the reins of control of the organization.
Welcome to the 21st century. Welcome to the era of courageous leadership. It’s time has finally come and without exception the talented people who embrace boldness will flourish in a business environment that demands leaders of exceptional ability and determination. Gone are the days where compliance and control was king, welcome to the exciting era of engagement. When leading change is about navigating the surprises of the business landscape and becoming the surprise shocker of your industry, a new model of leading and delivering change is required. 3E Leadership brings together, people, projects and positive change in a way that makes change happen.
3E Leadership is not management; just as driving to work is not formula one racing. There is a difference in the level of talent required and the level of excitement and challenge it generates. Read on the brave, because in our belief only the courageous can lead change exceptionally well.
Whilst not everyone can be Lewis Hamilton, most people can become talented drivers in the race we know as business today. Let’s not forget, right now speed is critical in business and the decisions made by leaders affect the results of the race. In today’s business climate taking the right decision, taking the team with you and ultimately delivering the results expected of you, is what being a leader is all about. We capture this triad of expectations in 3E Leadership.
