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Leaders - Who's Watching You?
By Bob Mason
It was a job I hadn't asked for and a situation that was professionally hazardous. My predecessor had been fired and I had just learned that my new boss had little technical knowledge about the area to which I had just been assigned. With all that in mind, I sat down to that initial meeting with that boss, and I didn't expect much good to come from it.
But then something interesting happened. First, my boss was very honest about his own lack of knowledge. He recognized my situation up front and clearly explained what he expected me to do, carefully laying out the problems that needed solving. Then something really amazing happened. He listened and made it a point to learn more about my area. He encouraged my department and me and allowed us to try new things. I know he took at least a couple of spears for us, but his support never wavered. He set a good example of leadership.
In fact a couple of years later, I had the opportunity to lead a large and complex organization that came with a host of problems. In this new position, I found myself on the other side of the fence. I now had leadership and responsibility for several areas that were really outside my expertise. The example he had set was exactly the formulae for this new challenge and I approached it the same way.
As leaders, we always set an example. That example may be good, or it may be bad, but it's ever present. People are always watching you. If you lead a large enough team, you'll experience some remarkable examples of this phenomenon. Some years ago I was responsible for operations in a very large organization. The position was directly under the organization's leader and when she was called away at the last minute before a meeting with the entire organization, it fell to me to fill in. The day after that talk, someone in the organization saw me and commented that he enjoyed what I had said. I thanked him, but his comment was not what stuck in my mind. I had no idea who this person was, even though he knew me. When you're in front of an organization, physically or just metaphorically, the people in that organization will be watching you.
As I used to tell young military officers, as a leader you are always on parade. People are watching and are very likely to emulate you. Sometimes that's good, but it can also be bad if you have not been diligent in your own actions. Think about a bad leader you've worked for. I don't mean someone you just disagreed with, but the truly egotistical, non-receptive one that drove you nuts. Most likely, that person learned from a previous leader who was just as bad.
What have you learned from watching other leaders? What kind of example are you setting as a leader?
"His good example has such an influence that the good men strive to imitate him, and the wicked are ashamed to lead a life so contrary to his example." Niccolo Machiavelli
3 Things "Leaders-By-Title' Need to Stop Now to Be a Better Leader
By Karen Switzer-Howse
There are countless books on the subject of leadership and what leaders should be doing, however sometimes it's more important to stop doing something. I once witnessed the implosion of a highly productive business development organization after the arrival of a new Director. In very short order the organization went from one where people were clambering to work there to one where stress was rampant, morale was lower than a snakes belly and where everyone wanted out. Productivity dropped off the map. You might wonder how one man could do all this in not more than a year. In his case it was easy, it was all in how he managed his staff (I won't use the term "lead", it didn't apply!) Three management techniques which people found particularly offensive included: 1) Extreme micro-management. The organization was science based and the new director did not have a research background, which may have accounted for his difficulty in trusting his staff to do what needed to be done. Whatever the reason every action had to be cleared through him. The ultimate insult came when he issued a directive stating that staff could not leave the building to meet with 'clients' without first getting his approval and that any discussions with internal or external 'clients' could not be held without first outlining the purpose of the discussion, justifying the reason for it and obtaining his approval. Given the level of knowledge, skills and expertise each staff member possessed it should not come as a surprise to anyone that this was particularly galling to one and all and contributed to the growing toxicity of the workplace environment. 2) Not walking the talk. In spite of a clearly stated organizational Mission and Values document, which included the importance of people and recognizing them for their contribution, he let it be known that he did not have time to speak with staff. In fact it became widely know via his secretary that he never took calls from anyone except those higher on the organizational chart! Needless to say people quickly lost interest in going the extra mile for this "leader-by-title" and productivity suffered. 3) Asking for input with no intention of using it. While I'm not sure how rigorous it is in other organizations, in a research based organization it is normal and natural to have documents reviewed internally before publication. Following organizational procedure, the Director sent a major policy document out to all other senior directors and deputy-directors in the organization, with a request to review and comment on by a certain deadline. Imagine the reaction when the senior people discovered that he had already finalized the document and sent it to be printed well before the deadline he had given them! People talk - and actions such as these quickly become the main topic of conversations and stories spread like wild-fire throughout an organization. Morale drops, loyalty goes out the window. And some wonder why there is a rising wave of dis-engagement and workers looking elsewhere for employment! If you are truly interested in raising morale and getting productivity back on track, examine the day to day actions of those in charge, yourself included, and make sure you are not doing anything that could result in a toxic working environment. Let's all do our part in creating workplace environments that foster creativity and productivity, ones that people want to come to each day and that bring out the best in all involved. Karen Switzer-Howse, B.Sc., is an environmental biologist by training and a synergist by nature. She has worked at the interface between environmental protection and land use, between logical solutions and emotional responses, for over 25 years in the profit, not for profit and government research environments. She now devotes her time to helping science based professionals and technical experts working in multi-disciplinary environments create personal and professional synergy so they can improve their "workplace ecology", making their points and building success with confidence and ease with anyone, anywhere, anytime. To learn more about how to enhance your interpersonal skills to achieve success with synergy, please visit http://www.KarenSwitzer-Howse.com.
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Developing Leaders
Last month I told you a little about the curriculum for the first stage of a leadership development program. I also mentioned the need for coaching and counseling to make the program more effective. In fact, that is one of the most important aspects of the entire program. I know that I often think I've finally seen it all but just when I have that thought, something new comes up. Sometimes my own experience is sufficient to handle this new challenge, but often it isn't. That's when I need someone to turn to for advice.
Each leader needs someone they can rely on to help them in these situations. Mentoring is a popular word these days, but it really doesn't matter what you call it. What every leader needs is someone he or she can turn to, in confidence, to discuss those issues that are beyond their own experience. In fact, that should be part the leadership development culture in every organization. It isn't necessary to have a formally appointed mentor, but every leader in the organization should expect to be available to other leaders. In fact, it's a basic requirement of the job, or should be.
That doesn't mean every leader should have someone who can solve their problems for them. In fact, doing so would not be very helpful. So, learning to be that mentor, or coach is an essential part of leadership for the mid-level leader. We'll discuss that more next month. |
A QUESTION ON LEADERSHIP
There is a person in my group (part of a volunteer organization) that is poisoning the environment for everyone else. I've been appointed to lead this group. He's a long time member of this organization and a deep believer in the cause, but his toxic behavior is causing our membership to decline rapidly.
If this person is really on the road to destroying the larger organization, you must take action, and soon. Talk to the person. You want to find out why he acts the way he does. Sometimes there's a deeper problem. Remember, don't try to be more than you are. If you're not a professional counselor or clergy, it's best not to take on problems you're not qualified for. Sometimes though, people don't realize the damage they're doing and some subtle suggestions will be enough to fix the problem.
If not, try to find something he can do that will contribute but expose him to others in the group a little less.
If nothing else works, you can ask him to stop volunteering with that particular organization. This suggestions comes as a surprise for many. For some reason, volunteers are considered untouchable. After all, they volunteered, right? That attitude has led to death, or at least near-death experiences for more than one organization. The fact is, leadership principles apply to volunteer organizations the same as paid positions. If he is hurting the organization, it may be time to thank him for his service and ask him to leave.
Please send your thoughts and questions to comments@planleadexcel.com.
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THINGS TO PONDER
There seems to be an association for everything. Here are some of the more unusual ones.
Several colleges have a Rock-Paper-Scissors Club.
If you attend Harvard, you might want to join the Tiddlywinks Society.
There's the Association of Professional Animal Wastes Specialists. They go by the acronym aPAWS.
The International Graphoanalysis Society would only seem unusual if you didn't know that it's for handwriting analysts.
You probably don't really want to be a member of the ejection tie club. To join you must have ejected from an aircraft. If you're eligible to join you receive...a tie. And that's all there is to the club
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