Nuggets of Gold

As a leader, you are facing unprecedented times.  Not that leading in normal times are easy, but the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic has been magnified by the world wide response and demonstrations in support of societal justice…specifically for those of colour.

Let me revisit that comment.  The world-wide response and demonstrations in support of societal justice have been magnified by the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic.  I think that it is important to put these two in this order because the former has existed for generations and cannot be fixed by the creation of a vaccine.  The latter has simply shone another and brighter light on the pre-existing situation.

Your challenge is to find the right strategy to guide your organization during these times.  I hesitate to say ‘through’ these times because the end is outside of your control.  Individually you cannot ‘fix’ either of these ills and you are as dependent as the rest of your team in the reliance of others to find the solutions.  Therefore you must strategize the ‘during’ period.

My advice is simple but, at the same time, also extremely difficult.

In all situations there is but one truth, one absolute.  And it is upon this truth that you can build a firm foundation.  That is the simple part.

The difficult part is finding it.  In today’s social media dominated world there is no lack of ‘information’.  Much of it is highly influenced by the biases of the author and by the validity of the ‘facts’ upon which the opinion is based.

You must be a prospector in your search for truth.  Not unlike the prospectors who panned for gold in the silt on the river bottoms, you must sift through the data and opinions until you find your nuggets of gold.  Once you have, and further tested to ensure that it is not fool’s gold, you have the foundation that is based on truth.  Now you can plan with assurance.

Recognize that this is not a quick process. No prospector got rich with one nugget and none found enough in one pass of the pan.  But the process is definitely worth the effort.

Don’t look for short cuts.  Don’t be ashamed to engage others in your search.

Like gold, your strategy will shine and show others – employees, clients, suppliers and society in general – the values upon which your company operates.  It will be evidenced in the moral, ethical and legal standards that support your decisions; that are reflected in your workforce; and by your contributions to society.

Simple, yes, but not easy.  Are you up to it?

Best before Date

I have written in the past about the need for so many of those in Executive positions to re-examine their ability to make meaningful contributions to their companies.  On balance I have not been kind to the Baby Boomer generation and the type of leadership that they have provided.  And I speak as an ‘early adopter’ member of the group.

The fact of the matter is that the primary objective of the vast majority of these CEO’s has been to ‘maximize shareholder value’ while simultaneously lining their own pockets with over sized compensation packages that reward them with stock options for fundamentally just doing their jobs.  And in too many instances they have padded their security blankets by ensuring that the Board is comprised of ‘friendly’ members.  For perspective, simply look at the exit package Boeing handed their departed CEO for his abject failure to navigate their recent fiasco.

With rare exceptions it is time for a changing of the guard.  The future will demand radically different thinking and the baby boomers are too tied to the present, and the past, to lead us there.  They lack personal understanding of the levels of technology that is needed.  Simply having brilliance as part of the team is insufficient to fully comprehend and implement the changes that the immediate future demands.

Succession plans must be implemented NOW.  The skills sets of the future are not embodied in the baby boomer generation.  Those in the corner office need to read their personal ‘best before date’ and make some painful admissions.

Oh, just a quick reminder, as you leave make sure you put the seat down in your personal washroom.  The next occupant prefers it that way!

Our Defining Moment - Part 2

In my previous message I stated the importance of the leader planning beyond this crisis.  Transitional, intermediate and long term planning that provides the direction of your company, or your team, in what is becoming the ‘new normal’.

I fully appreciate that there are a number of unknowns as you look into the future.  And I expect that this will be a very fluid situation with unanticipated factors impacting your decisions.

That said, it is vital to understand this.  Having a goal or an objective is not a plan.  Too often leaders confuse the end with the means and are surprised when the objective is unmet. 

This period of uncertainty is new to everyone.  Whether you anticipated it or not, there was no way to predict the impact and ultimate outcome. 

Lily Tomlin once opined that ‘truth is nothing more than a collective hunch’ and during these times one may be inclined to agree with her.

We are in the early stages of this pandemic.  Everyone is anxious to have things return to normal.  We think that a lifting of the shut-down represents the end.

The reality is that it may represent a small victory. I think that Winston Churchill’s words best represent our current situation.  During WWII he commented after a victory in North Africa “…this is not the end, it is not even the beginning of the end.  But this may be the end of the beginning…”

Soon you must commit to a course of action.

Once you have, communicate, communicate, communicate.

Care and listen, not the other way around. 

If your team doesn’t think you care, they won’t say anything that you can listen to!

Only now can you focus on execution.  Stay focused on the process because this is uncharted territory for all of us and the end may not even be where we think it should be.

Your leadership mettle will never be more severely tested.  I urge you not to go it alone.  If you succeed there will be glory enough to share.

Your Defining Moment!

For the past decade we have all enjoyed a level of success and prosperity that has seldom been matched in our collective histories.  To have led and succeeded during this period was less a testament to our abilities and more a testament to our good fortune.  I don’t mean to understate the value of quality leadership, but candidly, you had to mess up pretty badly to have failed in this period.

But now we are individually and collectively facing a challenge that is literally unprecedented.  This is no understatement in the face of the response that seems to be necessary for us to pass through this portal of time.

I think that it is fair to say that for those in leadership at this moment, your legacy will be defined on the basis of how you respond in crisis. Here are my recommendations.

1.    Be present.  Even when you don’t have all the answers, your teams are looking to you for optimism and inspiration.  You must be present and available. 

2.    This is not the time for hyperbole; it is a time for humility.  No one has all the answers and speculation only causes more confusion.  Hope is a virtue, but false hope only disappoints.

3.    This is not the time for empty rhetoric; it is a time for honesty and action. 

4.    This is not a time for sounding an alarm; that time has already passed. It is a time to respond to the alarm and trust those whose advice is based on the best scientific evidence.

5.    We don’t need to hear how bad things are; dwelling on the obvious is for the historians. We need to hear how we are going to make things better; we need to be assured that the sun will follow the darkness.

6.    We need inclusive strategies that offer purpose to everyone.  Being part of the solution builds a sense of community and that will be critical in a successful recovery.

7.    Leaders must have multiple strategies.  There is the immediate; what are you doing during the crisis to survive. There is the transition time, how are you going to move from today to recovery as the disruptions are gradually lifted.  And then there is the new normal.  You need to determine how this crisis alters your business in the future.  What changes are permanent; is there long term impact on your employees; with your customer base; with your supply chain.  You need to be planning now and putting together different scenarios because none of us have any certainty what the future holds.

Right now, nothing is easy.  But just because we don’t have all the answers doesn’t mean that we won’t.  You must lead in a manner that demonstrates concern for the present; optimism for the transition and confidence for the future. 

Lead acknowledging these truths and others will follow!  

Obituary Decisions

Every year presents us new challenges.  As leaders you will be required to make some difficult decisions that will push your moral or ethical standards to the limit.  And if your standards are not clearly established you may find that your ‘limit’ is flexible based on the situation.

My recommendations for these instances are twofold:

1.    Make your standards fixed.  Situational ethics or morals mean that those who depend upon your leadership never know with certainty what to expect.

2.   If you ever find yourself in a dilemma over which way to go on a decision, ask yourself ‘…what would I want to read in my obituary…’ as to how I responded under pressure.  Did I hold to the standards that I set or did I cave?

Clearly the easier decision, in the short term, is to turn the blind eye and move on.  But this only leads to more trouble down the road.  The right decision, the tougher decision, is one that you will be able to defend to the grave.

What you will find is that having made the tough call, it actually becomes easier over time.  Others know that you hold yourself to the same high standards you expect them to adhere to and they respond accordingly.  There will be no misunderstanding.  No one will be able to say ‘…but last time…’ when recalling a similar situation.

I am reminded of a quotation from a highly respected college basketball coach who said:

        ‘…reputation is what others think about you; character is what you really are…’

I know what I want in my obituary.  Hopefully you do too.

A side note.  In my blog dated November 9^th, 2019, I wrote about the different responses to failure in Boeing and McDonald’s. 

It was recently announced that Boeing has fired their CEO for the culture that he created that allowed their Max 8 planes to be delivered with a potentially fatal software flaw.

It took the Board too long to act, but at least they finally did.

How well do you translate?

A key function of any leader, in fact one of the key measures that differentiate a good from a great leader, is their ability to translate.

I am not referring to an ability to speak foreign languages.  Rather I am talking about the process in which the needs of the client are communicated to those responsible for implementing a solution.

This process takes place on multiple levels every day and the better that those interactions take place, the more likely that the results will be positive.

Here are some examples that demonstrate the point.

1.   A CEO meets with a major client.  That client expresses, in their internal language, their needs.  The CEO must then translate that need back into his/her organization’s language to affect a solution.

2.   A mid-level manager meets with team members to discuss their needs in order to perform their duties more efficiently.  That manager must then translate those needs into a language understood at the executive level in order to get funds allocated or policies changed that allow for the maximization of potential.

3.   A purchasing manager meets with a potential supplier.  The purpose is to source specific products for the company.  If the purchaser cannot translate company needs into a language clearly understood by the supplier, there may be a disconnect between need and solution.

Each of these examples illustrate that being an effective communicator requires translation skills to advance the conversation.  Everyone in leadership roles must be constantly aware that we don’t all speak the same language even when it is the same tongue. 

Failure to interpret needs properly invariably leads to failure in outcome.  The best leaders know this and constantly hone this skill.  Poor leaders miss the point and struggle to understand why their best efforts continue to come up short.

Merry Christmas 

Joyeux Noel 

Buon Natale

Feliz Navidad

The Servant Leadership Misconception

Leadership has evolved over the past century, though many may dispute this fact.  The most effective style has moved from the ‘commander in chief’ model to one more generally referred to as the ‘servant leader’.

The reluctance of many to adopt this new model is rooted in a misconception as to what it means to be an authentic servant leader.  They have the mistaken belief that they must become servile and do the bidding of those who work for them.  For some reason they understand that the master / servant relationship has been flipped on its head and that the employee is now the master and the leader must acquiesce to their expectations and needs. 

With this type of understanding it is not surprising that many in positions of responsibility and leadership are unwilling to adopt the model.  Frankly I don’t blame them.

But here’s the rub.  They have a faulty conception of the meaning of servant leadership and thus they rebel against it. 

Servant leadership must be viewed as one being selfless not servile.  With this proper definition, the role becomes one of empowerment, not subservience. 

The servant leader sets aside personal ambitions of recognition or acknowledgement in favour of providing for those under their scope of responsibility.  When goals are accomplished, it is team effort and team recognition first.  Clearly the leader will ultimately be recognized as the catalyst for the success.  But the recognition is for the manner in which it was accomplished, that is, by the leader facilitating the group and providing the necessary tools, guidance and training to allow others to fulfill their potential.

When you properly understand the definition of servant leadership it is much easier to adopt and apply.  By looking out for the best interests of your team first, you are elevated.  It’s a matter of priorities.  If you look first to elevate yourself, you must put others down.  But when they raise you up because of your prior concern for them, the acknowledgement is that natural outcome of your sacrifice.

Today’s employees are better educated and generally better prepared to enter the workforce than any generation in the past.  Their expectations are in line with their abilities.  They will not suffer fools because their skills are so transferable and they understand that a career may entail many employers. 

To attract and retain the best of the best, leaders must be able to acknowledge and adapt to these realities.  The servant leadership model is the one which best accommodates these expectations.  Understand what it means and how to implement it and will you find success more often than not.