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Primordial Leadership™ Excerpt Two Excerpt 2: A BRIEF History of

Western Leadership Thought In

the Last 100 Years

Primordial

Leadership™ By Lawrence D Duckworth

Unleash The Results nimal In You…

and In Others

Copyright, Lawrence D. Duckworth, 2013


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Primordial Leadership™ Excerpt Two

About this e-book:

This e-book is the first in an 8-part series on leadership to be published on PEXNetwork.com. It is basedon a forthcoming book authored by Lawrence Duckworth, who has himself held leadership roles rangingfrom Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer through to Chief Financial Officer. Mr.Duckworth has also been a well received presenter at PEX Network conferences on leadership, changemanagement and achieving a learning organization.

The series will look at how understanding the primal (primitive and subconscious) drives that powerfully,silently and consistently motivate human behavior can help you achieve exceptional results through anew level of leadership skill. The series will also offer examples of how concepts from Neuroscience andSociobiology apply to business, and provide practical tools and processes that you can use directly inyour own leadership approaches.

The series will be published throughout 2013 on PEXNetwork.com and broken down into the following

areas:

Excerpt 1: Introduction

Excerpt 2: A Brief Summary History of Western Leadership Thought In The Last 100 Years

Excerpt 3: Overview: Primal Drives Summary – to be released 3 June 2013

Excerpt 4: – to be released 17 June 2013

Excerpt 5: “You Can’t Manage Others Until You Manage Yourself First” – to be released 1 July2013

Excerpt 6: Primal Leadership – to be released 15 July 2013

Excerpt 7: To Do Tables and Leadership Tools – to be released 29 July 2013

Excerpt 8: Managing Change – to be released 12 August 2013

Feel free to download and save the excerpts, and to share them on Facebook and Twitter. A webinarbased on the book will be run on PEXNetwork.com this summer. Sign up atwww.pexnetwork.com/webinars.

The full Primordial Leadership book, which will be published in mid-2013, goes well beyond the conceptspresented in these excerpts, with additional chapters and Appendices. Contact Larry Duckworth [email protected] to reserve an autographed copy.

http://www.processexcellencenetwork.com/people-performance-and-change-in-process-improveme/white-papers/primordial-leadership-introduction/http://www.processexcellencenetwork.com/people-performance-and-change-in-process-improveme/white-papers/primordial-leadership-introduction/


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PRIMORDIAL

"adjective \ prī -ˈm r- dē -əl\

1

a: first created or developed : primeval

b: existing in or persisting from the beginning (as of a solar system or universe)

c: earliest formed in the growth of an individual or organ : primitive

PRIMAL

"adjective \ ˈprī -məl\

1: original, primitive

2: first in importance : primary

DRIVE

"To press or force into an activity, course, or direction"

Source: Merriam-Webster.comom


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Early Labor Credo

“The trade union movement

represents the organized economicpower of the workers... It is in realitythe most potent and the most directsocial insurance the workers canestabl ish.” --Samuel Gompers, earlyU.S. labor leader

Les Miserables

"One evening little Gavroche had hadno dinner; he remembered that hehad had no dinner also the daybefore; this was becoming tiresome.He resolved that he would try forsome supper."--Victor Hugo

The Grapes of Wrath

"How can you frighten a man whosehunger is not only in his owncramped stomach but in thewretched bellies of his children? Youcan't scare him--he has known a fearbeyond every other."--John Steinbeck

A Brief History of Western Leadership Thought in theLast 100 YearsBy Lawrence D. Duckworth

Political activist Marcus Garvey once noted that "A people without the knowledge of their past history,origin and culture is like a tree without its roots." For establishing the context of how PrimordialLeadership is new, additive art, we must first summarily trace the evolution of leadership thinking in thelast 100 years in industrial regions of the country, especially the West. The shift of views and methodshas been material, and is going in the right direction (thanks to growing eco-Safety). Yet leadershipinsights need to go one level deeper than past views, and how-to methods must be added.

As in an MBA program, we will observe a seminal

evolution/revolution of "modern" leadership thinking thatstarted in America in the early 20th Century, and continues toevolve today; and, with explanatory books like this, willprogress even further in the future.

Historical Summary

Prior to later sensitivities, workers up until the early to mid-

1900's were very typically subjected to low status, harsh roles,abusive conditions, poor pay, and even physical danger and

death. The result of subsistence living and unequal powersbetween workers and owners were a recipe for economic(and occasional physical) abuse by today's standards.

Workers' status was utilitarian only, with Selfishness thecontrolling Primordial Drive of most owners, and lowSociability concerns about workers' needs. Famous classics

like Charles Dickens’ The Tale of Two Cities, Victor Hugo’s LesMiserables, and others depicted a squalid society for the non-privileged masses in Europe in the 1800's. Woody Guthrie’s

Bound For Glory movie and John Steinbeck’s The Grapes ofWrath revealed abusive conditions for rural America workersinto and after the Great Depression. For centuries until themid- 1900’s, coal miner deaths were very high owing to non -care by distant owners (the author's father was a late 1940'scoal miner in WV that was injured several times by mine falls).


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Attempts to unionize to gain p ower for the workers started to gain traction in the late 1800’s, often bywomen originally. In the later 1800’s and early 1900's in the U.S. Samuel Gompers (Cigar Workers Union)and others eventually founded and confederated labor unions (e.g., the AFL (American Federation ofLabor) and CIO (Congress of International Organizations), who later merged). They began to fight formore worker power balance against the top-down, one-sided impositions of industrialists. Using

political power to augment workers’ e conomic powers, federal administrations supported efforts to givemore power to workers via passing the Clayton Act of 1914 and the Norris-LaGuardia Act of 1932. TheRoosevelt administration then supported this trend via many labor laws, including establishing theNational Labor Relations Board (in the 1935 Wagner Act) to better protect workers. It was growinglyrecognized that a strong middle class, founded on power-based rewards sharing via union power tooffset powerful owners, was important to America’s future strength via a middle class.

In Europe, political support for workers and union organizing somewhat lagged the aggressive pace inAmerica initially due to tradition being an even stronger force there, but at some point even surpassedworkers' rights and unionization in the U.S. Today, politics and labor unions under generally quasi-

Socialist political banners have major sway in most European countries.

More modern leadership views began evolving in the early to mid-20 th century. As increased ecosystem(economic strength) based Safety grew there were more societal pressures for owners to be morecompassionate (Sociability). Many laws were also passed to help workers.

In third world countries, workers’ rights generally continue to be weak, which contributes to theeconomic disparity gap in many locations. In some, like present day Venezuela, Bolivia and othercountries, Socialists have politically garnered major worker power reactions to income disparity tosupposedly provide some power balance. The success or failure of Socialism is still in process.

Dictatorships and Monarchies of different types generally favor the powerful, who are needed tosupport the dictators and not revolt. North Korea is a good example. Workers suffer greatly.

An American Leadership Evolution Occurred

An awakening was underway in the early Twentieth Century in America, to further explore humanproductivity improvements by means other than dictatorial methods. An oft-cited workers studyprogram were the famous 1920’s Hawt horne Studies where Western Electric piece-workers assemblingphones were researched for the purpose of improving productivity. Up until that time workers wereconsidered automatons who would be managed according to Frederick Taylor’s utilitarian, lowest cost“Scientific Management.”

When lighting was improved, productivity went up. When the lighting was lowered, productivity alsowent up. It was finally understood that workers being paid attention to, as though they were importantand appreciated, was the motivating force and not changes in lighting. It became apparent that moreforces were at work than just physical ones. (Many positive Primal Drives were being unleashed,including Safety *if I’m important enough to be researched, my job might be importan t], Selfishness


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potentials [I might get more rewards], and Hope was also triggered.) Productivity improved. Successreports went far and wide. Leaders started to think differently.

Then, in the 1930’s and 1940’s modern leadership mores and insights began t o actively take hold in theuniversities. Lectures and books began to picture workers as being of more than one dimension.

Abraham Maslow And His Famous “Hierarchy ofNeeds"

The mid-20th Century work of Dr. Abraham Maslow was amajor breakthrough in beginning to better understandhuman behavior in the workplace. This graphic and thebelow excerpts from Google Images and “Psychology - TheSearch for Understanding (Simons, Erwin, Drinnien) provideimportant insights into his seminal work.

“Humanists (Maslow and others) focus upon potentials. Theybelieve that humans strive for an upper level of capabilities.Humans seek the frontiers of creativity, the highest reachesof consciousness and wisdom. This has been labeled 'fullyfunctioning person', 'healthy personality', or as Maslow callsthis level, 'self-actualizing person.'

“Maslow has set up a hierarchic theory of needs. All of his basic

needs are instinctive, equivalent of instincts in animals.…Maslow's basic needs are as follows:

Physiological Needs Safety Needs Needs of Love, Affection and Belongingness Needs for Esteem Needs for Self- Actualization.”

As can be seen, Maslow importantly described the impacts, or the results, of the Primal Drives, includinga flow of Needs, and thus got close to the lower, causative Primal Drives by identifying their symptomswell; and even named one, Safety. Safety, Selfishness, Transcendence, Sociability and more are reflectedin the two-dim ensional needs “Hierarchy.” The truth of this is revealed when we ask Why? are these

Hierarchy drives like they are? What caused them? Answer: The Primal Drives, one level lower thanMaslow took us.

Maslow saw “self -actualization as theapex of human needs once all the others

have been taken care of


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Frederick Herzberg’s Two Factors Theory

Dr. Frederick Herzberg, a psychologist and professor, added even more understanding of humanmotivations and his findings closely align with the lower level Primal Drives; including how combinationscan be “marbled” in their effect.

As explained by Joseph Gawel of The Catholic University of America:

“In summary, satisfiers describe a person's relationship with what she or he does , many related to thetasks being performed. Dissatisfiers , (Hygiene Factors) on the other hand, have to do with a person'srelationship to the context or environment in which she or he performs the job. The satisfiers relate towhat a person does while the dissatisfiers relate to the situation in which the person does what he or shedoes.”

The two groupings are:

Satisfier Factors Hygiene Factors

Achievement

Recognition

Work Itself

Responsibility

Promotion

Growth

Pay and Benefits

Company Policy andAdministration

Relationships with co-workers

Supervision

Status

Job Security

Working Conditions

Personal life"

In terms of the Primal Drives, Herzberg missed the deeper Why? causal factors, but did reflect themarbling nature of them in varying, complex situations. Value was added.

Douglas McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y.

Dr. Douglas McGregor was another master of leadership study and publication, with The Human Side ofEnterprise his most recognized work. As a president of Antioch College, in addition to being amanagement professor, he brought unique “in -the- seat” experi ence to his observations. The experts atManagement Guru provide a good overview:


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No "Creeping Meatballs" Allowed!

Dr. Ed Maaze at VA Tech often gaveexamples of "face men" (vs. trueleader athletes) being promoted dueto socializing skills vs. true abilities.He derisively called them "creepingmeatballs." The author has observedthis dynamic, and some nepotism, inmultiple companies. In one, a key,high hubris P&L leader, in way overhis head, literally put a Fortune 100company so deep in the losses holethat, accompanied with otherproblems, the company never fullyrecovered. He would preen andschmooze, but was not only clueless,but wrong-headed. Disaster.

Drucker Was Unequaled

Dr. Drucker of Harvard has been called " the most influential management thinker of the 20th Century."His advice was heeded by more leaders than any other person. His dozen or more books were, and are,devoured by leaders. Such important bromides as the following resulted:

The effective executive achieves results. Be effective first, then be efficient. Do the right things first, then do things right. The purpose of a business is to create a customer. A manager is responsible for the application and performance of knowledge. A manager does things right. A leader does the right things. He stressed five key things: Managing time Choosing what to contribute to the organization Knowing where and how to mobilize strength for best effect Setting the right priorities Knitting all of them together with effective decision-making.

In his Five Most Important Questions… he stressed:

What is our mission? Who is our customer? What does the customer value?

What are our (target) results? and What is our plan?

Notice that RESULTS leadership is the purpose. He says to focus onthe key, difference causing areas, picking only the key ones isimportant, communicating the Whys? (including why the rejectedalternatives are not as strong), gaining emotional support andexecuting to exceed plans.

Getting the right people into the right jobs, and organizing tostrengths are emphasized. Ability versus schmoozing must be

identified, nurtured, promoted and supported. Meritocracy isenhanced culturally.

"Creating a customer" is a key Drucker imperative, using Marketingand Innovation. The importance of the "knowledge worker" is a key,early Drucker focus. This includes developing a knowledgeorganization.


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Self-management is an important leadership attribute as well according to Drucker. Staying true toone's own self while also listening to conflicting, and even dissenting, opinions before deciding is animportant success attribute.

Primal Leadership

This 2004 evolutionary book by Universities Professors Goleman, Boyatzis and McKee gets the closestyet to the key “Whys?” behind how to successfully get the most out of yourself, and out of others,presents many compelling scientific studies and surveys linking the brain's functions to management,and has many good recommendations; but still leaves important room for these deeper, more powerful“Why?” elements to be revealed.

The pronouncements are materially correct and very helpful. An important exception is in the Preface'spage 1 when they say that the "fundamental task of leaders… is to prime good feelings in those theylead." They are confusing "means" and "ends." Dr. Drucker, and the author, say that RESULTS are thefundamental task of leaders. Positive, motivated "resonant" employees are certainly key means to thoseends, and the preferred means if possible, but are just a means. However, non-"good feelings"leadership acts happen scores of t imes every day…to achieve leadership results in the real world versusacademia. To be fair, the authors later do show that negatives sometimes have to control

They use the term Emotional Intelligence (EI) and Emotional Quotient (EQ) throughout. Their views arethat leaders need to be emotionally sensitive, and provide "meaning" and "resonance" to theorganization; and that leaders are key to transcendence as "emotional guides." (Braksick in UnleashBehavior-Unleash Profits talks about the importance of "discretionary (voluntary) performance," whichis similar to "resonance.") The author fully agrees. The importance of "Humor" is highlighted, which willbe seen as a key Safety-releasing Primal Drive.

Much emphasis is made about "how" leaders lead. Somemention of the importance of vision is noted, but notsufficiently in the author's view. )Positive feelings do notlast long if the company is being beaten in the market dueto a poor vision and resulting plan, and workers' jobs areat risk.)

In an exciting and pioneering way, much time is devotedto the brain, its lymbic system, the amygdala (shown here,which has fully 20% of the brain's synapses, controlsemotions, memory, reactions and much more), and otherbrain processes; including the interactions with the pre-frontal lobe (emotions). They seem to stress the emotionalareas over the neo cortex, "thinking brain." (The authorgenerally reverses that view.)

The Amygdala area of the braincontrols emotions, memory,

reactions and more


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Generally Terminate The Lowest 10%

This mantra of Jack Welch received muchresistance, but he persevered because heknew it would harness the Selfishnessand Safety needs of a person to not be inthat 10%, thereby boosting performanceindividually and collectively. Also, the barwould naturally be constantly raised as aresult for all.

BUT, MAKE SURE OBJECTIVE CRITERIAAND DUE PROCESS ARE USED!

An "open loop" brain is discussed, and how we make connections with others' brains to form"contagions" and to "latch." All is correct, well documented with many research studies, and useful toknow as we move forward as leaders. Research showing the positive impacts of "upbeat," mutualcomfort cultures or "climates" are documented.

Perhaps too much emphasis is made of "good moods," upbeat styles and more, however, in these timesof Gen Y and Millenials, such styles are becoming increasingly expected. They show how "Discord" (fear)caused a "flooding of heartbeats" (increases) as the negative reaction. They note that "dissonance"(negatives) can be used when needed, but will have short run impacts only. They did not explain why,however.

Four domains of EI and sub-elements are reviewed, summarized as follows:

Self-awareness Self-management Social awareness Relationship management

Leadership styles are structured in six groups that areeach reviewed:

Visionary Coaching Affiliative Democratic Pace-setting

CommandingA major, correct emphasis is on choosing A-players. Competency profiles are needed, objectively basedon the best performers. Identify those with high potentials and move them up the ladder at the rightpace. This fosters meritocracy also.

Other key areas were reviewed.

While Primal Leadership has been criticized for few how ideas to actually use, it does move theleadership evolution forward towards the brain- centered Primordial Leadership™ bedrock, and isrecommended reading.

Many Other Leadership Insights Exist…But

Blanchard, Bennis, Collins, Covey(s), Champy, Gladwell, and many others provide excellent indirectobservational insights to leadership, organizational development, change management, re-engineeringand other aspects of effective leadership. All of their ideas are so und…and all over the board. Theproscriptions are many, and are generally hard for consistent implementation in the myriad of situationsthat will be encountered daily by leaders . They provide many good “What?” and some “How?” ideas,


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but fall short of the key underlying , more powerful “Why?” factors explained by the Primal Drives,which are underlying powerful constructs that can be applied consistently in varying situations.

Max Dupree's The Art of Leadership , thought irreverent, has many practical insights and ideas from aleadership practitioner.

Moving The Ball Forward

Primordial Leadership ™ moves the ball forward from these great minds, and adds even more powerfultools and insights. The coming Overviews provide important contexts before four chapters onimplementation.

"One of its central tenets is that genes (and their transmission through successful reproduction) arethe central motivators in animals’ struggle for survival, and that animals will behave in ways thatmaximize their chances of transmitting copies of their genes to succeeding generations. Sincebehaviour patterns are to some extent inherited, the evolutionary process of natural selection can be

said to foster those behavioural (as well as physical) traits that increase an individual’s chances ofreproducing."-- brittanica.com

“…Social relationships ‘are merely by -products of behavior originally (genetically) selected to avoidour being eaten by predator s’ (or today, being beaten by competitors, technological change, theeconomy or laws changes —author’s add)”— Dr. Gazzaniga, Director of the SAGE Center For The StudyOf The Mind at UC-Santa Barbara
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/537189/sexual-reproductionhttp://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/537189/sexual-reproduction

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