w w w . L e a d e r E x c e l . c o m

ExcellenceL E A D E R S H I P

THE MAGAZINE OF LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, MANAGERIAL EFFECTIVENESS, AND ORGANIZATIONAL PRODUCTIVITY

Why Should Anyone Be Led by

YOU?

Why Should Anyone Be Led by

YOU?Rob Goffee &Gareth Jones

Christopher Rice onEngaging Employees

Organizations worldwide call upon BlessingWhite to design and implement employee engagement and leadership development initiatives.

We have a track record of successfully combining tried-and-tested content with customized curriculum design.

Our global network of certified consultants allows us to provide both the expertise and geographic reach that our clients require.

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ExcellenceL E A D E R S H I P

THE MAGAZINE OF LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, MANAGERIAL EFFECTIVENESS, AND ORGANIZATIONAL PRODUCTIVITY

ROB GOFFEE ANDGARETH JONES

Authentic LeadershipProvide followers with four things . . . . . . . . 3

TOM BARRY

Your LeadershipYou need to build a CASE for it . . . . . . . . . . .4

CHRISTOPHER RICE

Low Engagement?There are many things you can do about it. . . . . .5

CHIP CONLEY

Peak ExperienceGet your relational mojo from Maslow. . . . . . .6

ANGELA HILLS

Leading InnovationReward for failure as well as success. . . . . . . . . .7

CHRISTOPHER RICE

Retain Your Best PeopleBuild their emotional commitment. . . . . . . . . . . .8

KIM LAMOUREUX

Developing LeadersWe find three commondevelopment techniques. . 9

JOSH BERSIN

Leaders LearnAnd they build a learning culture . . . . . . . 10

RAM CHARAN

Leadership PotentialLearn how to spot a leaderat different stages. . . . . . .11

TERRY PEARCE

Communication fromthe Inside Out

Authentic leaders inspireand inform. . . . . . . . . . . .12

TOM PETERS

Tough TimesSet an action agenda. . . . 13

CATHY EARLEY

Time to CoachCoaching should be part of your daily activity. . . .13

STEPHEN PARKER

Effective LDSix pitfalls lead to thedownfall of programs. . .14

CHRISTOPHER RICE

Four PrioritiesMake talent a top priority . . . . . . . . . .15

JOHN KOTTER

Shared Urgency

Create a culture of urgency in six ways . . . . 16

JIM CHAMPY

Great CompaniesThey share five traits. . . .17

CATHY EARLEY

Avoid MicromanagingThe best way may not be your way. . . . . . . . . . .18

CHRISTOPHER RICE

CEO ComplaintsThese often signal destructive issues. . . . . . .19

WARREN BENNIS, DAN

GOLEMAN, JAMES

O’TOOLE

Candor KillersIdentify what impedestransparency. . . . . . . . . . 20

B L E S S I N G W H I T E S P E C I A L E D I T I O N

Perfect Practice

Real personal and leadership excellence is grounded in deliberate practice that turns averagetalents into exceptional performers, pushing them beyond what they currently do, enabling

them to perceive more, know more, remember more, and make more perfect shots.

IHAVE LONG BEEN INTERESTEDin the notion of authentic

leadership; in fact, I launchedLeadership Excellence magazine 25 years agolargely to explore this uncharted territory;and two decades ago I finished writing abook with Stephen R. Covey, Principle-Centered Leadership and started writing mybook, Beyond Counterfeit Leadership: How YouCan Become a More Authentic Leader.

Today, I’m pleased to see so many thoughtleaders join the discussion, especially thosefrom BlessingWhite, who we feature in thisspecial edition of LeadershipExcellence magazine.

I’m always botheredwhen I read somethingthat paints leadership witha didactic black-and-whitebrush. BlessingWhitepaints in high-definitionpixels, in appreciation ofthe relational and contex-tual elements. Plus, as evi-dent in the lead article byRob Goffee and GarethJones, they define leader-ship in nonhierarchicalterms: “Formal authorityor a title doesn’t make youa leader—leaders shouldbe found at all levels.”

In other words, it’s notsome formulaic, quick-fix,out-of-the-box Rice-a-Roni with coffee mealbut a home-made Christopher Rice withGoffee or Chip Conley or Cathy Earley.

Honestly, after a quarter century of edit-ing the “gurus” of management and leader-ship, I sometimes feel resigned to servinghash and scrambled eggs every month. Butthen, blessed day, I see something crisp,original, fresh, organic from BlessingWhite.So rather than park or head for the hills, Iturn to Angela Hills and Tom Barry. Insteadof seeing “more of the same,” I’m confront-ed with profound questions, such as: Whyshould anyone be led by you?

Such an in-your-face interrogatory inter-rupts my day, makes me sit up and intro-spect. It takes me back to the days on theplayground when kids would choose theircaptains, and they in turn would choosewho they wanted on their teams.

That raw, irrevocable law—that constitu-tion of authentic field leadership—is oftenlost in the maze of cubicles and organiza-tional charts that constitute corporate hier-archies. Even in field offices, the dreddeddysfunction, as depicted in the TV seriesThe Office, is more norm than exception.

So, where in the world do we find, ordevelop, leadership excellence? Must we jointhe Marines? Travel widely? Bring in RamCharan from India or James O’Toole fromIreland?

Having traveled throughout the U.S. andto some 22 other countries, I can say: TomPeters’ search for excellence continues. Andexcellence can be found in many nooks,

books, crannies and cra-niums, including amongesteemed academiciansfrom the UK, as Blessing-White proves in theirpairings and partnerships.

So, welcome back JohnKotter, champion JimChampy, mix in KimLamoureux and JoshBersin, and pass the Chipand dip. If it’s good forthe goose or (Dan) Gole-man, it must be good forthe candor.

Who and what killscandor is not some Clueboard game, but a glue-and-gut issue for Boardsof Trustees who haveeither misplaced (hence

“lost”) trust or displaced trust with fraud.In Fraud We Trust is now the coin of the

realm for many newly minted, wanna-be-rich-quick MBAs, as well as many overlymarinated, wanna-be-even-richer CEOs.

Sad, but hope springs eternal atBlessingWhite. And why not? This blessingcomes with no disguise, no black Zorromask, only pure-white intelligence.

So, Warren Bennis and I welcome oneand all to the pages of this BlessingWhiteedition of Leadership Excellence. It’s a maga-zine worthy of its name.

Now, in response to the orignal question,I say, “No one should be led by you if youdon’t know where you are going, how youmight at least begin to get there, and why theventure is worthy of our time and effort.” LE

Why should anyone be led by you?

by Ken Shelton

Volume 26 Issue 1

Leadership Excellence (ISSN 8756-2308) is published monthly by Executive ExcellencePublishing, LLC (dba Leadership Excellence), 1806 North 1120 West, Provo, UT 84604.

Editorial Purpose:Our mission is to promote personal and organi-zational leadership based on constructive values,sound ethics, and timeless principles.

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Executive Excellence Publishing:Ken Shelton, CEO, Editor-in-ChiefSarah Hayes, Circulation ManagerNancy Low, Marketing ManagerRob Kennedy, Business ManagerMichelle Christensen, Public RelationsGeoff Pace, Sales

Contributing Editors:Chip Bell, Warren Bennis, Dianna Booher, Kevin Cashman, Marshall Goldsmith, HowardGuttman, Jim Kouzes, Jim Loehr, Tom Peters,Norm Smallwood

The table of contents art is a detail from PPeebbbbllee BBeeaacchh -- 77tthh HHoollee (image cropped) © PeterEllenshaw, and is courtesy of the artist andart print publisher Mill Pond Press.

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Authentic LeadersE . D . I . T . O . R ’ S N . O . T . E

2 w w w . L e a d e r E x c e l . c o m L e a d e r s h i p E x c e l l e n c e

Editor since 1984

Rob Goffee Gareth Jones

Christopher Rice Cathy Earley

being crystal clear on their unique dif-ferentiators and by addressing the fourcritical needs of their followers.

TThhee CCAASSEE FFrraammeewwoorrkkYou build a case for your leadership

by providing your followers with thesefour things.• Community: Humans are hardwired

for sociability. They also desire solidar-ity. As a result, followers long for asense of belonging and want to feelpart of something bigger. Help themconnect to others (not just to you) aswell as to the overarching purpose ofyour organization. Are you helpingthem answer the questions “Why arewe here?” and “What are we part of?”

• Authenticity: Followers choose tobe led by humans not titles, credentialsor manufactured management clones.Identify and deploy your personal dif-ferences, foibles and strengths toremind people you’re human—and toinspire them to apply their energy andtalents to help you. Who are you andwhere do you come from? What is dif-ferent about you that will rouse othersto follow?• Significance: Followers want to

believe their efforts matter. Recognizetheir role and contributions in a mean-ingful way, with highly personalizedfeedback. When was the last time youpaid attention to the recognition needsof those you wish to lead? How canyou ennoble their efforts? How specif-ic is the recognition you provide?• Excitement: Followers need to be

inspired to higher levels of effort andachievement. Articulate your personalpassion, values and vision to provide

Authentic Leadership

the energy and enthusiasm employeeshunger for. Are you actually in touchwith your own values and motivators?A dead battery cannot spark another.And how can you display an edgyintensity at times to raise the bar onperformance?

FFoouurr EEsssseennttiiaall PPrraaccttiicceessAuthentic leadership contains

inherent tensions: You must stay trueto who you are and at the same timeadapt or conform to a particular cul-ture or situation . . . all the while con-sidering your followers’ needs. In theleadership development consultingthat we and our partner, consultingfirm BlessingWhite, have completedwith executives worldwide the follow-ing leadership practices matter most.

1. Become a situational sensor. Tobe successful you need to hone yourcontext-reading skills and your abilityto rewrite that context. Begin by tun-ing into your organization’s “frequen-cy,” by collecting and interpreting softdata. Listen. Observe. Pick up on non-verbals. Pay particular attention to theemotions and motivations of the peo-ple who influence your work. Onlythen can you react as an “authenticchameleon,” adapting effectively tothe context without losing your senseof self. Only then can you begin totransform the situation with symbolicactions and decisive behavior to createan alternative, inspiring reality foryour followers.

2. Know and show yourself—enough. Authentic leadership requiressome self-knowledge, not years of ther-apy. You need to determine what isspecial about you that works with oth-ers. What core values fuel you? Howhave your origins shaped you? Whatstrengths differentiate you? Whatweaknesses (stopping short of fatalflaws) demonstrate that you need oth-ers? Then, using your understandingof your followers and the particularsituations you encounter, determinewhich parts of yourself to disclose tostrengthen your relationships andinspire the action of others. The key isenough. A bit of mystery keeps youinteresting.

3. Get close but keep your distance.This is leadership, not friendship.Successful leaders manage relation-ships by knowing when to empathizeor get personal and when to step backto keep people focused on the organi-zation’s goals. To fully understandwhat makes followers tick you need toget close, to ask questions that gobeyond professional aspirations to

L e a d e r s h i p E x c e l l e n c e w w w . L e a d e r E x c e l . c o m 3

LEADERSHIP RELATIONSHIPS

by Rob Goffee and Gareth Jones

Excite others to exceptional performance.

NEARLY 10 YEARS AGO IN OUR RE-search we asked executives the

question “Why should anyone be ledby you?” It created a stir then and hassilenced countless rooms as we havecontinued our work with hundreds ofleaders or organizations.

Now, as then, leader-heroes makeheadlines. Executives at all levels tryto follow prescriptive recipes for imi-tating Jack Welch, Steve Jobs, RichardBranson or even, as we write, BarackObama. What’s the problem with thisapproach? It’s all about leaders, notleadership. Well-intentioned execu-tives worldwide are obsessed withonly one half of the equation. Theyoverlook the fact that leadership is arelationship. Without followers itdoesn’t exist. This is an important dis-tinction. Great leadership excites peopleto exceptional performance.

TThhrreeee TTeenneettssThere are three things you need to

know about leadership:First, it is relational—that is, it is

something you do with people, not tothem. Put simply again, you cannot bea leader without followers. Like allrelationships, leadership is a ratherfragile state. You need to carefullymonitor and cultivate it. Leadership isalso nonhierarchical. Formal authorityor a title doesn’t make you a leader.Leaders can be found—and for thesake of your organization, should befound—at all levels. Finally, leader-ship is contextual. The circumstancesthat you inherit or inhabit as a leaderare your starting point. You need tosize up and tap into what exists andbring more to the party.

Authentic leaders modify theirbehavior to respond to the needs oftheir followers and the situations theyencounter while simultaneouslyremaining true to who they are. Theyproduce results—and meaning—by

learn their interests, dreams and goalsoutside of work. (Of course, the pre-requisite here is sharing some of thatyourself.) When you need to addressperformance issues or difficult situa-tions, however, you might choose tocreate distance by reminding people ofthe job at hand and the larger purposeof the team or organization.

4. Communicate with care.Successful communication requires anappreciation of the message, the con-text, your followers and your personalstrengths and weaknesses as a com-municator. Choose your channel care-fully. Is it a small informal meeting or

by Tom Barry

Your LeadershipBuild a CASE for it with followers.

a dramatic speech in a larger setting?Will email do or is personal connec-tion essential for success? Create aclear and compelling vision—one thatarticulates your personal values andvision, one that creates a vivid pictureof where your followers fit in (thusmaking your “case”). To ensure thatthey translate their energy into an out-put other than applause, include clear,actionable steps on what needs to bedone and why.

““WWiitthh,,”” nnoott ““TToo””The truth remains: Leadership is

not something you do to other people.

Rather you do it with others. As aresult, there are tensions inherent inleadership, as in all relationships,which you need to manage. You mustbe yourself, but authenticity alone isinsufficient.

As you improve your ability to readcontext, understand your followers’needs and adapt accordingly you’ll beable to answer the question “Whyshould anyone be led by you?” LE

Rob Goffee and Gareth Jones are authors of several books,including Why Should Anyone Be Led by You? and Clever:Leading Your Smartest, Most Creative People (availableAugust 2009). Visit www.whyshouldanyonebeledbyyou.com.

ACTION: Be yourself—more—with skill.

AS ROB GOFFEE ANDGareth Jones

emphasize in WhyShould Anyone Be Led by You? leader-ship is a relationship between leadersand followers.

To successfully deliver desiredresults, you need to understand yourteam members’ needs and providewhat they’re looking for in that rela-tionship. Only then will they in turnbe compelled to follow your lead andapply their talents and discretionaryenergy to accomplish the tasks thatyou define as mission-critical.

FFoouurr BBaassiicc NNeeeeddssThe four basic needs of followers

are: Community, Authenticity,Significance, and Excitement (CASE).

Think about your team. How wellare you building a CASE for yourleadership with each team member?The questions at right can provideinsights.

Reminder: Self-assessment is a use-ful exercise. Ultimately, however, whatyou think is only part of the story.

You may be consciously trying toexhibit the behaviors at right, but your followers ultimately decidewhether your good intentions actuallysucceed. LE

Tom Barry is Managing Director of BlessingWhite Europe.BlessingWhite is a global consulting firm dedicated to rein-venting leadership and the meaning of work. Visit www.bless-ingwhite.com or email TomBarry@bweurope.com.

ACTION: Solicit your followers’ feedback.

# OF 4S AND 5S GRADE

CASE SELF-ASSESSMENT

Think about your behavior and consider the extent to which you agree witheach statement below . . .

COMMUNITY

1. I make sure employees know they are valued members of the team. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

2. I establish traditions that bring team members together. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

3. I build a strong team identity without creating silos. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

4. I build our team’s strength by leveraging each person’s unique talents. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

AUTHENTICITY

5. My actions align with my stated values. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

6. I share personal shortcomings. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

7. I “show up” consistently and appropriately in different situations ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

8. I let myself be known on a personal level beyond title or role. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

SIGNIFICANCE

9. I help individuals see how their work connects to larger goals. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

10. I often ask for—and act on—input from team members. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

11. I recognize individuals’ contributions to our team’s success. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

12. I provide specific, personalized feedback to team members on how to maximize their talents. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

EXCITEMENT

13. I convey my personal passion about team projects and the work we do. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

14. I display an intensity that spurs team members to higher levels of achievement. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

15. I celebrate significant individual and team accomplishments. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

16. I demonstrate expert knowledge of our business/industry. ➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄

12 or more Congratulations. Don’t sit on your laurels. Leadership is a relationship that needs constantattention. You need to build your CASE every day.

7 to 11 Take a look at trends. Are you better at satisfying some needs more than others? How canyou address your team’s needs while driving the organization’s priorities?

6 or fewerTake stock. Are you a leader known for results but also the wreckage of burnt out employ-ees? Are you struggling to deliver the results expected of you? Do you really want to be aleader? What’s getting in the way of the leadership behaviors above? If you fail to nurtureyour relationship with your followers, you are more likely to fail yourself.

4 w w w . L e a d e r E x c e l . c o m L e a d e r s h i p E x c e l l e n c e

SCORING: Count your 4s and 5s above. Don’t add them up; just count how many you have.

StronglyAgree

StronglyDisagree

port and sustain it. Ensure that systemsand processes work in favor of—not incontradiction to—the aspired culture.

Survey less, act more. Develop ameasurement strategy that providesactionable insights. Avoid the analysis-paralysis trap and hold all leadersaccountable for increasing engagement.

EEnnggaaggee YYoouurr TTeeaammLeaders are vital in employee en-

gagement. Like a catalyst that enablestwo chemicals in a beaker to combinewhat would not otherwise mix, youcan smooth the way for mutually ben-eficial connections between individualemployees (on their personal paths forgreat “work”) and your organization(with ambitious strategies that needexecution). To succeed, you need to:

Reflect and recharge. How engagedare you? You can’t help your team if

you’re miserable or out of control. Ifyou’re not engaged, think about whyyou took your job. Reconnect with thatpassion. If you are engaged, how canyou stay there—and “infect” others?

Hire engage-able team members.Select people who can succeed in yourenvironment. Do candidates have theright skills, interests, and experience?Cultural fit? Instead of training squarepegs to fit a round hole, hire round pegs.

Earn trust daily. Trust provides thefoundation for your effectiveness as aleader. To build it, you need to revealwho you are as a person. When youremployees look at you, do they knowwhat’s beneath the surface?

Stress employee ownership. Youcan’t create an engaged team if yourmembers don’t have visions of person-al success. Remind them that they areultimately responsible for their satisfac-tion and career. Be available to provideguidance and remove barriers.

Low Engagement?

EMPLOYEE ENGAGE-ment reflects each

individual’s uniquerelationship with his or her work.

We studied more than 7,500 surveyresponses and conducted interviewswith 40 HR and line managers to findthat fewer than one in three workersare fully engaged. Moreover, in NorthAmerica 19 percent are completely dis-engaged, and another 13 percent aredisillusioned, at risk for disengaged.

We see a strong correlation betweenengagement and retention. We findthat 85 percent of engaged employeesplan to stay with their company, com-pared to 27 percent of disengagedemployees. Engaged employeesappear to stay for what they give (theylike the work that they do), while dis-engaged employees stay for what theyget (favorable job conditions, advance-ment, growth, or job security). That’snot a winning business relationship.

The best organizations make en-gagement an ongoing priority, taking amulti-faceted approach to addressproblem areas and improve engage-ment. Their best practices include:

Maximize managers. Ensure thatmanagers are engaged and under-stand how to help their team mem-bers picture what full engagementlooks like. Hold them accountable forthe coaching and development oftheir people. Weed out bad managers.

Align, align, align. Make sure peo-ple see the big picture and how theycan contribute to the organization’ssuccess. Start at the top by aligningthe executive team, then communicateclearly and tirelessly. Your perfor-mance management system can help.

Redefine career. Provide employeeswith a compelling picture of what“career” means in your organization.Help them clarify what they want,provide them with tools and support,focus on development and opportuni-ties to leverage unique skills throughprojects, not necessarily promotions.Employees want assurance of a future.

Pay attention to culture. Work withmanagement to build a values-drivenculture and invest in managers to sup-

Remind people of your destination.If you’re not clear on your strategy,demand answers. Help your teamunderstand the direction you’re mov-ing toward and their role in it. Helpthem prioritize the myriad tasks theyface each day to deliver desired results.

See feedback as a gift. People wantand deserve information that can helpthem achieve their goals. Let them knowwhat they do well so they can keepdoing those things with confidence.Suggest course corrections to help thembe efficient and enjoy their work more.

Talk more and listen even more. Toooften communication is one-way. Con-versation is about dialogue. It drivesclarity. It is the most effective vehiclefor providing performance feedbackand generating new ideas for increas-ing business results and personal jobsatisfaction. It helps prevent misunder-standings and builds trust.

Match projects, passion, and profi-ciency. Every person comes into workwith different values, talents, andgoals, which they seek to satisfy on thejob. They don’t necessarily want alofty title or a higher salary. If you canhelp them connect what’s important tothem with what’s important to theorganization, you can make a positiveimpact on their job satisfaction, com-mitment, and contribution.

Get to know team members. Youdon’t need to be their friend. You doneed to know what makes them tick.Who shows signs of being disconnectedor burning out? What motivates yourmost engaged employees? Pay atten-tion. Ask questions. What’s preventingpeople from attaining maximum satis-faction and contribution in their jobs?

Tailor your coaching strategies. Investin moderately engaged team members,providing feedback, resources, andchances to excel. Redirect the efforts ofthose who appear disconnected. Helpnew hires ramp up their productivityand enthusiasm by clarifying prioritiesand what they need to do to succeed.Help those who are burning out toclarify what success looks like to them.Size up your disengaged, coachingsome out. Spell out expectations withthe rest; take stock of their interestsand talents, and enable them to dowork that matters to them.

Don’t take your engaged employeesfor granted. Full engagement is hard tosustain. Nurture them, recognize them,stretch them, and develop them. LE

Christopher Rice is President and CEO of BlessingWhite, a global consulting firm (www.blessingwhite.com). Emailchrisr@bwinc.com or call 908-904-1000.

ACTION: Lead better to engage more.

by Christopher Rice

L e a d e r s h i p E x c e l l e n c e w w w . L e a d e r E x c e l . c o m 5

PERFORMANCE ENGAGEMENT

I n v e s t m o r e i n y o u r p e o p l e .

(social/belonging and esteem), andTransformation (self-actualization). Icall these The Relationship Truths.

RReellaattiioonnsshhiipp 11:: TThhee EEmmppllooyyeeee PPyyrraammiiddCompanies often assume that com-

pensation is an employee’s primaryaspiration. Similar to Maslow placingphysiological needs at the base of thepyramid, Money (or, the full compen-sation package) is a base need, but alsoa base motivation for most employees.Loyalty and inspiration are fosteredfurther up the pyramid. Recognition isnot just about knowing someone’sname, but also their talents, goals, anddreams. The main reason employeesleave their job is the lack of recognitionthey feel from their direct supervisor.

At the top of the Employee Pyramid

is a concept that few employers talkabout. Finding Meaning in one’swork—both in what you do and in thecompany’s mission—creates a moreinspired employee. One of my mostgratifying experiences is to help thecompany’s housekeeping staff—overone-third of our employees—findmeaning in cleaning rooms daily.

RReellaattiioonnsshhiipp 22:: TThhee CCuussttoommeerr PPyyrraammiiddJust as money is at the bottom of

the Employee Pyramid, Meeting theExpectations of customers is the sur-vival need for this Relationship Truth.Most companies spend too much timetrying to achieve basic customer satis-faction at the base of this pyramid.Creating customer satisfaction won’tnecessarily tame your customer’s ten-dency to wander in an increasinglypromiscuous marketplace. Tappinginto customer Desires can create differ-entiation, which can be your cure for

Peak Experience

AFTER 15 YEARS OFgrowing Joie de

Vivre Hospitality intoNorthern California’s largest indepen-dent hotel group, I was hit by a per-fect storm. In 2001, the dot-com crash,fallout from 9/11, and the SARS crisisconverged upon the travel industry,sending the San Francisco Bay Areahotel industry into its biggest down-turn. I started looking for a solution.

Behavioral psychologist AbrahamMaslow studied healthy people, look-ing for commonalities in their outlookand behavior. He believed we’d beensold short by psychologists who sub-scribed to Freud’s psychoanalysis andB.F. Skinner’s behaviorism. He notedthat we are motivated first by physio-logical needs for sleep, water, andfood. As those needs are fulfilled, wemove to higher needs for physicalsafety, affiliation, social connection,and esteem. At the top of the pyramidis self-actualization—where peoplehave transient “peak experiences.”

A peak experience—comparable tobeing in the zone or in the flow—iswhen what ought to be just is. Peakexperiences are transcendentalmoments when everything seems tofit together perfectly. Maslow wrote,“These moments of ecstasy cannot bebought, guaranteed, or even sought,but we can set up the conditions sothat peak experiences are more likely.”

Yet, I couldn’t find one book thatapplied Maslow’s theory to the moti-vational truths that define our keyrelationships at work. I wondered: ifindividually we aspire to self-actual-ization, why couldn’t companies—col-lections of people—aspire to this peak,too? What does a self-actualized com-pany look like? And how could wecreate the conditions so that peak expe-riences are more likely?” How could Itranslate Maslow’s pyramid intosomething actionable for my team?

I started by defining three relation-ships—employees, customers and investors—and then distilled Maslow’s fiveneeds into three: Survival (physiologi-cal and safety), Success

progressive commoditization. Whencustomers have their desires met, theyare substantially more likely to comeback for more—and they’ll tell others.

Fred Smith, CEO of FedEx, notes:“We thought we were selling the trans-portation of goods, when in fact wewere selling peace of mind.” Mostcompanies think too narrowly aboutwho they are and whom they’re serv-ing. Rarely do they consider research-ing and meeting the UnrecognizedNeeds of their customers. Instead, atbest, they create focus groups to listento their customers’ conscious wishes.But, companies like Apple and Harley-Davidson became highly successfulcult brands by creating self-actualizingexperiences for their customers.

RReellaattiioonnsshhiipp 33:: TThhee IInnvveessttoorr PPyyrraammiiddThere would be no employees or

customers if there weren’t a capitalsource for the business. This RelationshipTruth addresses what a company can doto meet the needs of its investors. Manythink the only need an investor has is tomake bucketfuls of money. No doubt aninvestor’s base premise is to ensure astrong ROI. To facilitate this they needto have Transaction Alignment withcompany executives or a start-up entre-preneur, which builds trust.

Yet, just being aligned on the keygoals for an investment creates a short-term, transactional relationship. Youmove beyond this level by creating acollaborative partnership in which acompany or entrepreneur and theinvestor see the relationship as beingthe core to why they do businesstogether—as opposed to having thetransaction act as the glue that keepsthis relationship alive. At the core ofRelationship Alignment is the idea thatan investor has developed deep confi-dence in the people they invest in.

At the top of the Investor Pyramid isthe transformative nature of whatinvesting can mean in terms of makinga difference. A self-actualized investorsees the Legacy in their investing andexperiences pride of ownership.

These Relationship Truths are the rela-tional mojo that make companies suc-cessful. Creating peak experiences forkey constituencies leads to peak perfor-mance. Most of us spend our livesfocusing on what is, but Abe Maslow re-minded us to focus on what could be. LE

Chip Conley is CEO of Joie de Vivre Hospitality and author ofPeak: How Great Companies Get their Mojo from Maslow(Wiley). Visit www.ChipConley.com.

ACTION: Create peak experiences.

by Chip Conley

PERFORMANCE PEAK

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CHANGE INNOVATION

then they are faced with all the workthat needs to be done day-to-day.Pressure for productivity and quarter-ly earnings often takes priority.

2. The start-up effort is overwhelm-ing. For example, one multinationalmanufacturer is challenged with a dis-connect between R&D and Marketing.Who should drive the process? Whereshould the next big ideas be generated?They needed to help people in bothfunctions break out of their comfortzones and work through disruptionsand uncertainties. This may have slow-ed things down at first, but ultimatelythey created new ways of collaboratingthat led to more big and little “i”.

3. Fear of failure looms large. Whileeveryone wants innovation, not allleaders and cultures tolerate risk-tak-

ing that doesn’t deliver results. Failurecan result in lost time, wasted money,and finger-pointing. Most attempts atinnovation won’t work. To live up toits mission statement Inventing the digi-tal future, the leadership of Avenue A /Razorfish, led by Clark Kokich, tries tocreate a collaborative culture whereinnovation is expected. He believesthat to be innovative, his workforcewill inevitably make many mistakesand that these will be forgiven. In fact,not making mistakes is seen as notmaking an effort to innovate.

4. Innovators are disconnected fromthe business strategy. Creativity thatisn’t aligned to the business goals orcustomer needs is likely to fall short.One leader of a high-tech firm knownfor its growth noted that if the organi-zation tries to mandate innovation aseveryone’s responsibility, without abusiness context, they end up withsuperficial ideas instead of somethingcustomers need. That’s not innovation.

Leading Innovation

BUILDING A CULTUREthat fosters creativi-

ty and innovation is acritical strategy. Why is it so elusivefor most leaders to achieve? Everyleader wants innovation, but no onewants to deal with the failure that cansometimes come with taking risks.How do you create a culture whereinnovation is everyone’s responsibili-ty? How do you build trust so peopleare comfortable trying new things—whether they flourish or fail?

Transformational leaders fosterhealthy risk-taking at the grass rootslevels. Most leaders know that theyneed to overcome directive styles,deal with inertia, and tackle opposi-tion to disruptive innovation. Leadersmust help their people find innovativeways of working. If they don’t meetthis challenge, they squander theintelligence they want to keep andrisk being leapfrogged by competitors.

Innovation is not just about comingup with big breakthrough ideas. It isalso about encouraging creativity indaily activities. We define innovation insimilar terms used by Wharton profes-sor George S. Day: The organization-driven product or customer-focusedbreakthrough is innovation with a capi-tal “I,” and new processes and creativework applications are innovation with alittle “i”. Both are important. Most orga-nizations don’t innovate well, in partbecause they avoid taking risks.

FFoouurr CCoommmmoonn PPiittffaallllssTo create a culture that fosters inno-

vation and risk-taking, leaders need toreward for failure as well as success.Given one-in-three employees are nei-ther praised nor criticized for takingrisks, clearly many leaders are notbuilding cultures that can deliver on theinnovation and creativity they seek.

The four most common pitfalls thatstifle innovation include:

1. Today’s work gets in the way.There is tension between short- andlong-term priorities. Everyone wantsto innovate so their company comesup with new ideas for the future. But

TThhrreeee IInnnnoovvaattiioonn SSttrraatteeggiieessHere are three ways to innovate:1. Start with your culture. Behaviors

and business practices need to reinforcerisk-taking. Your culture, influenced byyour leadership style, can squash cre-ativity and risk-taking. Reward respon-sible failure and calculated risks.Consider previous innovations, assesshow they came about, and then createthe circumstances to help more happen.

2. Coach the right behaviors. Engagein dialogue about how innovation is de-fined and what it looks like. Innovationneeds to be tangible and presented inthe context of what drives the business.Coaching can help to articulate desiredbehaviors and changes you want toachieve. Employees need to hear storiesof risks that succeed and lessons fromthose that didn’t. For example, a nation-al insurance company created a newvision for innovation. We then definedbehaviors that they were looking for: 1)generating innovative ideas, fresh per-spectives, and creative solutions thatadd value; 2) considering a wide rangeof alternatives before making decisions;3) standing up for the team’s ideas withconviction and supporting data; and 4)encouraging the honest expression anddebate of different views and ideas.This inventory gave the leaders a toolfor coaching the right behaviors, whilethe employees had examples of whatwas desired. Many of the leadershipattributes and behaviors that build pro-ductivity and engagement are essentialto fueling creativity and innovation.

3. Build trust through modeling.Rigorously assess your own leadershipattributes. Do you have the characteris-tics that encourage risk-taking, boldideas, and inspiration? Lead and listenwith authenticity and have “real” con-versations about what needs to happen.These debates elicit authentic respons-es and open the door for innovation. Ifyour employees are in a place of trust,have a strong and positive relationshipwith you, feel comfortable to debateideas and express themselves honestly,and are passionate about their jobs,innovation will follow. Start small,since often it can be the multiple little“i” ideas that can build momentumand provide competitive advantage.It’s harder to copy multiple great ideasthan one breakthrough idea. This willalso build trust in the process. LE

Angela Hills is a Senior VP at BlessingWhite, a global consult-ing firm dedicated to reinventing leadership and the meaning ofwork. Visit www.blessingwhite.com, email ahills@bwinc.com orcall 1-800-222-1349, ext. 8175.

ACTION: Cultivate a culture of innovation.

by Angela Hills

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PEOPLE DEVELOPMENT

personal commitment to employees?”Every action that satisfies all threequestions will help ensure that youcreate an environment that inspires theworkforce heroics that you may neednow. Every communication thatreflects all three questions reinforcesyour credibility as a leader who valuesemployees in good times and bad.• Redefine “career.” Ensuring that your

employees have a career plan may notbe at the top of your priorities, but itshould be. Many employees mistakenlybelieve they need to consider otheremployers in order to advance in theircareers. The pursuit of career goals andpersonal development consistently topsthe list of reasons why employeesleave. Few people still define career as aladder or hierarchy of roles. But haveyou given people a new vision of what

a career with your firm looks like? Tomanage their careers, people needexamples of the paths they might taketo contribute in new ways. Stay atten-tive to employees’ goals and interestsand look out for projects and roles thatwill propel the organization forwardwhile satisfying personal aspirations.• Emphasize work that “works.” Four

out of 10 employees who want toremain with their employers like theirwork and the conditions under whichthey do it. Their work satisfies theirinterests, fits their life, and uses theirunique talents. Initiate conversationsabout the big picture—beyond the tasksat hand. Dialogue about what workmatters most to the organization’s suc-cess and to employees’ satisfaction.• Provide opportunities for change

and challenge. Involve employees insolving problems. Give them the chanceto make a difference and accomplishgreat things. This feeds their need forachievement and belonging and helpsthem satisfy their desire for something

Retain Your Best People

MANY EXECUTIVESwrongly assume

that in an uncertaineconomy fidgety employees settledown, becoming less demanding andless likely to bolt to greener pastures. Ihave bad news: the global workforceis still itchy despite a troubled econo-my and massive layoffs.

Faced with difficult market condi-tions, it’s tempting to lower workforceissues on your list of leadership prior-ities, instead focusing on the numbers,cutting costs, and scaling back on peo-ple initiatives. You may even findyourself lauding managers who“make the numbers no matter what,”ignoring those who coach and devel-op their teams, create an upbeat envi-ronment, or treat others with respect.Disregarding the personal needs ofemployees during challenging timeswon’t get rid of the issue however; itwill only get rid of people.

Of course, your top performers aremobile in any economy. They havedesirable skills and a proven trackrecord. They’re not going to stickaround just because your firm needsthem more than ever. Your “A” playerswill look elsewhere if you don’t satis-fy their needs for career and growthopportunities, interesting work, chal-lenge, and credible leadership.

It’s a tough balancing act. Maintain-ing profitability is a key executiveresponsibility. Yet fiscal competencedoes not necessarily correlate withemployee retention and engagement.Without careful leadership, employ-ees can feel abandoned or de-motivat-ed as they work harder than everwithout the results or compensationthey achieved in better times. Theiremotional commitment can falter. So,what should a leader do?• Demonstrate business competence

and personal connection. We all tendto think of choices in terms of either-or. As you consider your leadershipdecisions and communications, askyourself: “Am I driving businessresults and strengthening customerrelationships? Am I reinforcing whatwe stand for? Am I demonstrating my

new—so they don’t act on the erro-neous assumption that they need toacquire new experiences or build theirrésumé elsewhere.• Invest in development. Instead of

slashing your training budget, identifybusiness-critical development oppor-tunities. You’ll equip people to do thehard work while satisfying their desirefor personal growth. Training anddevelopment impact employees’ jobsatisfaction and contribution.• Invest in your leaders. Are man-

agers energized and aligned withgoals? If not, they’re poorly equippedto engage their teams. Ensure theyknow where your organization wantsto go—and what role their team canplay. Are you effectively developingindividual contributors who are transi-tioning into leadership roles? Whatabout experienced leaders facing newchallenges? This is the time to helpleaders at all levels become more effec-tive in leading virtual and culturallydiverse teams, making authentic con-nections with all stakeholders, andcoaching team members for personalgrowth and agility.• Foster desirable turnover. First iden-

tify and deal with the disengaged. Theonly thing worse than seeing your toptalent head out the door is discoveringthat they’re burnt out or disillusioned.When your prized employees slip intoquit-and-stay mode, you need to quick-ly re-engage them or coach them out,as they may bring down morale. Thenfire low performers or re-assign themto a role where they can succeed. Andweed out barbarian managers who hittheir numbers for a few quarters, look-ing like heroes, but leave a trail ofburned-out people and empty cubicles.• Keep the door open. When your “A”

players wave good-bye, wave back.Assure them that they’re welcome toreturn. “Boomerang employees” canbe your best assets. Many find thatwhat they’re looking for was aroundthe corner in your organization; andwhen they return, they’ll hit full pro-ductivity faster than a new hire.• Look to the long term. The resources

and effort you invest in employees’careers, personal development, and jobsatisfaction will pay off. People whofeel they’re doing work that mattersand fulfills their unique values andaspirations exert the discretionary ef-fort you need for long-term success. LE

Christopher Rice is President and CEO of BlessingWhite, aglobal consulting firm dedicated to reinventing leadership andthe meaning of work. Visit www.blessingwhite.com. Emailchrisr@bwinc.com or call 908-904-1000.

ACTION: Provide growth opportunities.

by Christopher Rice

F o c u s o n l e a d e r s h i p d e v e l o p m e n t a n d r e s u l t s .

FFoouurr LLeevveellss ooff MMaattuurriittyyWithin our High-Impact LD model, we

discuss the four levels of the MaturityModel, including the best practices thatcompanies at each level perform:

Level 1: Inconsistent managementtraining. Organizations have little orno management support. They pro-vide courses that are not built on astrategic plan, are not progressive bylevel, and don’t cultivate skill-sets inspecific areas. Managers are basicallyon their own for development.

Level 2: Structured lead-ership training. Organizationsaddress the development ofleadership skills. They definecore competencies anddesign the program curricu-lum to build skill-sets basedon these competencies.Executives embrace LD as astrategic imperative.

Level 3: Focused leader-ship development. The intentis not to develop individual leadersbut to develop organization leadership.As culture-changing events occur, thefocus is on preparing for the future. Ablended-delivery approach is applied,and executives engage in LD activities.

Level 4: Strategic leadership devel-opment. Senior management supportis exemplary, and leadership develop-ment is viewed as an integral part ofthe talent management (TM) system.Program content is aligned with stra-tegic priorities and delivered by meansof a comprehensive learning format.

Determine your current level andidentify tasks, activities, and experi-ences that will help you move up.

TTeenn KKeeyy FFiinnddiinnggssMuch of the spending on LD is not

creating desired results, as directorsstruggle to make their LD programsdrive higher impact; reach a larger, morediverse audience; gain greater support;and integrate with TM programs.

Here are the 10 key findings:1. Six best practices directly con-

tribute to building a high-impact LDstrategy: 1) maintain strong executiveengagement; 2) define tailored leader-ship competencies; 3) align with thebusiness strategy; 4) target all levels ofleadership; 5) apply a comprehensive

Developing Leaders

IF YOU’RE WONDERINGwhere to best focus

your training, you cer-tainly want to explore the benefits ofleadership development. About 43 per-cent of companies rate LD as the talentmanagement function that needs mostimprovement, and 60 percent identifygaps in the leadership pipeline as theirtop talent issue. Leaders are spendingmost of their training budgets on LD.

Three development techniques arecommon to all the top programs:

1. Assessments. Self-knowledge andawareness of strengths and weaknessesare critical success factors: 360-degreeassessments, aligned to leadershipcompetencies, can be performed atintervals and help leaders boost theireffectiveness powerfully. Assessmentshelp leaders to understand individualdifferences, uncover new ways towork, understand others’ perceptionsof their style, and gain insight intobehaviors that drive performance.

2. Experiential learning. People learnto lead by doing, so the best LD pro-grams focus heavily on experientiallearning. Formal training encompassesabout 10 percent of someone’s totallearning experience; 20 percent of learn-ing comes from interaction with others;and 70 percent of learning is derivedfrom experienced-based assignments,such as on-the-job activities, projectassignments, job rotations, globalassignments, profit-and-loss responsi-bility, and team-based activities.Exposing leaders to senior executivescan boost managerial courage, busi-ness acumen, and political savvy.

3. Simulations. Simulations can beapplied to build soft skills and busi-ness skills and enable leaders to buildtrust, improve communication, leadteams, accelerate performance, andgain experience in strategy, finance,marketing, sales, manufacturing, andHR. In simulation, leaders can practiceand experiment with decision scenar-ios among different functional areas.

Our research confirms the impor-tance of using the right assessments,experiential learning, and simulationsfor maximum effectiveness.

program design; and 6) integrate withTM. About 88 percent of companieswith defined leadership competenciesare effective at driving better businessresults. Each best practice impacts theeffectiveness of the LD strategy.

2. LD programs are driven by theneed to ramp up talent in part, due toimpending baby-boomer retirements.The top drivers for LD are: 1) improveinternal candidate pools (44 percent); 2) reduce skills gaps (42 percent); 3) grow leaders more quickly (35 per-cent); and 4) driving growth (18 per-cent). Organizations now see LD as avital function to keep the pipeline filled.

3. Executive engagement has thebiggest impact on the effectiveness of anLD program. A direct correlation existsbetween senior management supportand the effectiveness of LD programs:

83 percent of companieswith strong executiveengagement have effectiveLD programs. Senior man-agement plays a key rolein defining leadershipcompetencies; developinga leadership strategy; andidentifying and approvingprogram participants.

4. Organizations withstrong LD programs realize

a higher impact on business outcomes.Organizations most successful in LDhave 73 percent higher effectivenesson four key business measures: 1)increasing the quality and benchstrength of their leadership pipeline(84 percent more effective); 2) improv-ing employee retention (73 percentmore effective); 3) increasing theengagement, retention and teamworkof the leaders (67 percent more effec-tive); and, 4) driving improved busi-ness results (66 percent more effective).

5. Most organizations today don’tprovide effective, well-developed LDprograms. Only 9 percent have strongleadership pipelines and highly effec-tive leadership development programs(Level 4), largely due to the lack ofstrong executive engagement. LD hasto be a business priority to be effective.

6. LD programs that include a com-prehensive learning approach are morelikely to engage leaders and providevalue. Effective LD programs include acomprehensive learning approach withopportunities for education, applica-tion, and reinforcement. LD solutionsmust be aligned to the culture andindustry and to specific problems.

7. A defined set of leadership compe-tencies is critical to LD success. Definedcompetencies for managing and devel-

by Kim Lamoureux

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LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

I t h a s b e c o m e a t o p p r i o r i t y .

oping talent define how leaders are tobehave and provide a basis for design-ing and developing learning activities,knowing what skills are needed andhow to focus their individual develop-mental efforts. Leadership competen-cies are unique to each company. Somecompanies have a very competitiveculture, and value drive in leaders.Others have a more coaching cultureand value collaborative styles.

8. Aligning LD efforts with businessstrategies is critical to driving impact.Aligning strategies and goals with LDis the top driver for identifying pro-gram content. The content of trainingprograms must build the skills setsthat are relevant to the company’s suc-cess. Case studies, projects and discus-sions should focus on company-specificexamples, such as business issues andcore processes. Strategic alignmentalso refers to the values, mission, andvision. The program should use a com-mon “business language” and instillkey messages about the company.

9. LD success requires integrating LDwith other TM processes. Organizationswith the best LD programs have ahigher degree of integration with otherTM activities. Other TM processes(such as performance management,succession management, and work-force planning) help to manage thedevelopment of leaders and determinewhat skills sets are needed to reachgoals. Address LD as an integral partof a TM strategy—from recruiting theright talent to rewarding performanceto enabling learning and progression.

10. Evaluating LD programs enablesleaders to drive the right behaviors andmeet expected outcomes. You need anefficient and effective process for mea-suring training. Of the 60 percent oforganizations that evaluate their LDprograms, 22 percent do not measurejob impact, business impact or ROI.We find that 85 percent of organiza-tions at Level 4 evaluate their programs.

LD is a process for systematicallyand strategically developing the skills,knowledge, and behaviors of leaders. Itrequires support and alignment withother TM functions. Leadership pipelinerefers to an ongoing need to have a poolof talent ready to fill positions wheredifferent competencies, knowledge, andexperiences are required. To keep thepipeline filled, you need an LD pro-gram designed to develop appropriateskill-sets (leadership bench strength).LE

Kim Lamoureux is a senior analyst at Bersin & Associates.Visit www.bersin.com.

ACTION: Improve your leadership development.

by Josh Bersin

grams, as well as quality and process-improvement programs. Talent-drivenprograms must be integrated withcareer development models and per-formance management. The programstake years to build and mature, de-manding long-term investments andsustained executive commitment.Talent-driven initiatives result in intan-gible benefits, such as employee satis-faction and engagement, innovationand customer loyalty.

While such benefits are more diffi-cult to quantify than those fromstraightforward, performance-drivenprograms, they have profound impacton a company’s long-term success.

The primary hallmark of a learningculture is an equal focus on both per-formance- and talent-driven learning.Learning cultures recognize the needfor performance support and improve-ment, but also embrace learning as acomponent of business strategy.

You can ask these questions toassess your learning culture:• Do you have a formal employee

development process coupled with yourperformance management processes?• Are formal coaching programs

available for managers to learn how tolisten and develop employ-ee performance?• Does your company

accept that some new ideaswill fail and, rather than“punishing” those who dareto innovate, recognize thatsuch experiences can pro-vide valuable learning?• Are there processes in

place for people to give suggestions? Issuch feedback taken seriously?• Is the company attuned to market

changes and customer input?• Does your company have experi-

ence with change and adaptation?• Does your company have the talent

and processes in place to shift yourbusiness when required by market orcompetitive changes?

A learning culture is built through asymphony of processes—driven byleaders at all levels. The CLO conductsthis symphony, ensuring that learningis balanced—that some programsdrive immediate business results andothers are investments in the future.

Performance consulting yields thehighest value out of all the tasks that aperformance-driven learning functionexecutes. LE

Josh Bersin is principal of Bersin & Associates, with 25 yearsof experience in corporate solutions. This article is adaptedfrom one in CLO magazine. Visit www.Bersin.com.

ACTION: Cultivate a learning culture.

THE PHRASE “LEARNINGculture” is used fre-

quently, and researchon high-impact learning organizationsshows that leaders who cultivate learn-ing cultures achieve the highest value.But what is a learning culture? Howdo you know if you have such a cul-ture? And, how can you create one?

Performance-driven learning, whichfocuses on solving timely and urgentbusiness problems, is typically thefocus of most learning organizations.Ranging from training employees tousing a new application to learningsupport for a new product rollout, per-formance-driven programs drive near-term, measurable business impact andpotential competitive advantage.

The success of performance-drivenprograms depends on your ability to:

1. Clearly diagnose theproblem to be solved (per-formance consulting).

2. Understand the audi-ence and its learning needs(needs analysis).

3. Build interesting andengaging content (contentdevelopment).

4. Deploy and manage theprogram well (program management).

5. Implement new technology whereneeded (e-learning, simulations, games).

6. Measure results and find areas ofimprovement (metrics).

Most CLOs recognize the impor-tance of continuously improving andupdating processes and skills in thesesix areas. However, to create a learningculture, learning organizations mustgive equal focus to learning that helpsthe company grow, adapt to change,cultivate employee talent, innovateand develop strong customer relation-ships. Such talent-driven learning pro-grams go beyond skills development.Rather, they focus on key competen-cies, select behaviors, and attitudes.

Talent-driven learning solutionstake many forms. A multi-tiered lead-ership development program (where25 percent of corporate L&D dollarsnow get invested) is an archetypalexample. Others include comprehen-sive, end-to-end sales training pro-

Leaders LearnBuild a learning culture.

LEADERSHIP CULTURE

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don’t subvert the common purpose.You know you have a leader with

people acumen when you see evidencethat the person selects the right peopleand motivates them, gets them work-ing well as a team, and diagnoses andfixes problems in coordination andrelationship with groups of people.

Real leaders enthusiastically selectpeople who are better than they are tolift the organization. They motivatepeople and develop them as condi-tions change, retaining those whoadvance the business anddeselect with dignity thosewho don’t. Such leadersshow a repeated pattern ofaccurately identifying otherleaders’ talents, helpingthem flourish, or easingthem into other jobs wheretheir talents fit better. Youcan often identify a trueleader because the peopleworking under that person are of highcaliber, are energized, and have a nat-ural affinity for the leader.

Leaders with people acumen getthe most out of their people by settingclear goals, then giving feedback andcoaching judiciously to help themachieve them. Most use key performanceindicators that measure progress inquantitative terms and influencebehaviors. They watch for problemsthat might hinder achieving the KPIsand give people unvarnished feedbackwhen someone is not up to the task.

Leaders with people acumen antici-pate problems. They size up the groupdynamics, pinpoint simmering conflicts,draw them to the surface, and intervenewhen they detect behavior that disruptsperformance. They also cultivate socialnetworks that include not only subordi-nates, peers, and superiors but oftenextend to customers, suppliers, regula-tors, politicians, and interest groups.

Business acumen. Every successfulleader understands how the businessmakes money by managing the profitand loss (P&L) and balance sheet.Managing the P&L requires leaders toconsider conflicting factors and incom-plete or distorted information andmake trade-offs with the goal of mak-ing money and generating cash on asustained basis. Leaders intuitively

Leadership Potential

EVEN THE BESTcoaches can’t build

championship teams ifthey pick the wrong players. So, learnto spot high-potential leaders early,treat them as such, and be clear aboutthe earmarks of leadership potential.

Do you know a leader when you seeone? If you have the wrong notion ofwhat a leader really is and does andfocus on the wrong people, all yourdevelopment efforts can’t deepen theleadership pool. Brilliant strategists,creative geniuses, financial engineers,hard workers, and other bright peoplecommand our attention and respect.Unaware of their shortcomings anddriven to succeed, such experts maypush for leadership jobs, persuad-ing—even intimidating—their bossesto promote them. But many lackessential leadership traits. And with-out a natural ability to lead, they’reunlikely to succeed as high-level lead-ers outside their domains of expertise.

What do natural leaders look like at25 or 45? Attempts to answer thatquestion take the form of lists of quali-ties; however, these can be misleading.

PPeeooppllee aanndd BBuussiinneessss AAccuummeennOne way to think about the talent

or inner engine of a leader is to thinkof two strands of a helix: people acu-men (the ability to harness people’senergy) and business acumen (know-ing how a business makes money).These strands are largely in place inindividuals by their twenties. Afterthat, we can test for people and busi-ness acumen and expand these capa-bilities, but we can’t implant them inmature people who lack them entirely.

People acumen. Leadership is pred-icated on the ability to mobilize othersto accomplish a vision, goal, or task.Leaders can’t do everything; they getother people to do things by manag-ing. They increase their capacity—theability to get more done—through del-egation combined with follow-through.They set expectations, get the best peo-ple to do what needs to be done, andoversee relationships to ensure thatdestructive or self-interested behaviors

understand the connections betweencustomers, profits, money they borrow,and money they take in. They have aknack for making the right trade-offsand decisions to keep the cash flowing.

You can see such acumen in someleaders at low levels and in early stagesof their careers. They sense how theircompany makes money, what it offerscustomers, and how it compares withcompetitors. They see the relationshipsbetween the variables, determine whichare most important, and make decisionsthat deliver clear, measurable results.

As the scope of a job increases, sodo the variables, uncertainty, and com-plexity. The leader needs greater men-tal breadth and depth to cut through tothe fundamentals and make decisions.

The search for business acumen willhelp keep other traits and skills in per-

spective. Business acumendefines the substance of themessage being communi-cated. Some young leaderscan excite people to deliveron stretch goals, but canthey define direction? Arethey decisive? Can they sortthrough alternatives to findthe right pathway forward?Can they use their acumen

to choose the right goals and KPIs? Withpractice, any leader can improve, butsome leaders are naturally better at it.

HHooww ttoo SSppoott aa LLeeaaddeerrLook for actions, decisions, and be-

haviors that reveal leadership potential:Is her ambition clearly for a leader-

ship role? Does she take pride in bring-ing together and motivating others toachieve goals? Is she curious about sub-jects outside her area of expertise? Doesshe grasp the business and basics ofmoneymaking? Can she articulate clear-ly the requirements for doing her boss’sjob well? Is she continually learning?Does she deliver extraordinary results?Does she like to work with diverse,high-caliber people? How driven andpassionate is she about leading? Is shedealing with complex and uncertain sit-uations and using occasional failure asa chance to learn? Does she continueto build new skills and hone her per-sonality traits to achieve her dream?

Finding leaders can’t be left tochance or to mechanical processes thatcreate false confidence that the compa-ny is developing leaders and successioncandidates. To build great leaders at alllevels, you must first find them. LE

Ram Charan is coauthor of Execution and The Game Changer(Crown Business). Visit www.ram-charan.com.

ACTION: Recognize your leadership talent.

by Ram Charan

H o w c a n y o u b e s t r e c o g n i z e i t ?

nication. To believe that the mereachievement of external goals willinspire others is folly.

In a time when loyalty is waning,the generation of loyalty can becomea competitive advantage. Many tech-nologists are loyal to projects andfriends, but not to an organization.Many executives are loyal only totheir latest option grant and bonusplan. As long as such people are satis-fied at work, they stay at work. Satis-faction springs from what we do, andis always vulnerable to a mistake orto a better offer.

But loyalty is different. Loyalty toa leader comes from who he or sheis—from the motivation behind his orher actions. Loyalty is created fromvalues that matter more than transac-tions. Leaders can inspire such loyal-

ty—if they first understand who theyare, not just what they do.

Discovering what matters is thefirst and most critical piece of leader-ship development. I ask each of myclients to provide an autobiography,or at least a summary of the definingmoments of their lives to understandthe values and experiences that makethem care about their performanceand the performances of the peoplethey lead. From that material, we canconstruct the messages of changethat need to be delivered, and we cando it from a base of the leader’s per-sonal values, not just the needs of theenterprise.

FFiinnddiinngg VVooiiccee:: DDeecciiddiinngg ttoo LLeeaaddOnce these values are discovered,

the leader can start to communicatethrough them, not merely aboutthem. Values become the basis for all

Inside-Out Communication

WE’VE ALWAYSknown that sit-

ting in the corneroffice with a title was not sufficientto qualify one for leadership. Now,the information age has debunkedany notion that we might have hadabout leaders being those who knowthe most. But oddly, it seems thatmerely creating change is not leader-ship either.

Unfortunately, leadership, likeweight-loss, is not merely a matter ofchanging outside habits. Becoming aleader requires changes on theinside, and the ability to communi-cate those changes authentically inthe context of making the leader’sworld different in a meaningful way.

Leading is not just a matter ofknowing what to do—that is the jobof the strategist—it is a matter ofknowing and communicating whywe are doing it. What is absent intoday’s brand of leadership is notinformation, change, or knowledge—it is inspiration. Inspiration givesknowledge an application andchanges its meaning. We long forleadership because we are rarelyinspired, and we miss it terribly.

To inspire, “to breath life into,”requires self-knowledge, the courageto speak, and then it takes the emo-tional intelligence and commitmentto learn how to connect with others.Effective leadership communicationis clear and deep, creates commit-ment rather than compliance, and,for most of us, requires the learningand application of new skills.

DDiissccoovveerriinngg WWhhaatt MMaatttteerrssReal leadership is deeply person-

al. Real leaders communicate in away that inspires action from others.Real leaders understand who theyare and what they want. Each is dri-ven by principle rather than by poli-tics, and each does substantialreflection and writing about personalvalues and the change that shouldflow from the application of thosevalues. Personal values form thebasis of effective leadership commu-

leadership communication. Inspiringothers requires that we inspire our-selves, and it is most often that whichwe don’t say rather than what we dosay that we regret the most. RalphWaldo Emerson wrote: “In everywork of genius we recognize our ownrejected thoughts; they come back tous with a certain alienated majesty.”

Inspiration comes from spirit,depth, and meaning. Speakingthrough values inspires leaders, andthereby gives them the ability toinspire others.

Unfortunately, leadership commu-nication is not merely saying what wethink or what we feel. Leadingrequires a decision—a commitment toengage and connect with others; tolearn the skills of communication toinspire others to make change hap-pen. Deciding to lead is to take on agreater responsibility than merelyhaving a voice. It is to submit our-selves to the scrutiny of others—totheir criticisms and fears, to make ourown ideas of the future match withtheirs, and to communicate in such away that we connect.

EExxcceeppttiioonnaall TTeeaammssThe difference between high-per-

forming teams and exceptional teamsis the quality of the relationships—how well people like and trust oneanother. We can speak about whatreally matters to us, and listen towhat really matters to others, and we can do so in ways that signal ourwillingness to be known and ourinterest in knowing others. Stories,metaphors, and relevant personalexperiences can connect with othersin ways that facts and evidence can’t.Leadership communication connectswith the mind—it is logical andstrategic—but it also connects withthe heart by being personal andmeaningful.

Listening to connect is differentfrom listening to formulate a rebuttal.If the primary measure of trust iscloseness, then having and conveyingempathy is the hallmark of leadershiplistening.

The skills of leadership communi-cation are learned through introspec-tion, courage, and practice. The re-wards of the practice are immense.Those who follow you will be en-riched, and so will you. LE

Terry Pearce is president of Leadership Communication and the author of Leading Out Loud, the basis of theBlessingWhite leadership development process of the samename. Visit www.terrypearce.com or call 415-464-0581.

ACTION: Lead from a foundation of values.

by Terry Pearce

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LEADERSHIP COMMUNICATION

A u t h e n t i c l e a d e r s h i p i n s p i r e s a n d i n f o r m s .

talent pool, and using the recession asan opportunity to attract the best?

Visibility: March toward the soundof the guns. MBWA (Managing ByWandering Around). People have to seewho they are working for and who theyare dealing with. Treble your MBWA: Ayear from now you may wish you hadstarted today. Yes, today many of uswish we had wildly over-invested inemployee-vendor-client-communityrelationships when the market washeading North and there was a littleslack in the system. Well, perhaps youdidn’t, but it really is never too late.Work the phones. Keep working thephones. Keep showing up. Call clientsand suppliers, ask them how things aregoing, and how you can help. This isnot about sales (directly), but aboutshowing up—taking time from yourbusy affairs to offer assistance of anysort. This is even more important withemployees. Over-inform—rumors areworse than reality. Over-do the MBWA.

Are you tracking numbers of cus-tomer, prospect, and networking con-tacts in your reporting and recognizingthose people who are working hardeston relationships? Have you adopted

“face to face” as the man-agement medium of choicefor delivering tough newsto employees, colleagues,and partners?

Transparency: Beabsolutely straight withpeople, especially those atthe front line. People whoplay the blame game in anyway, shape, or form are outof here! It’s hard to find an

example of a business facing up to thechallenges of tough times, while stay-ing true to its people principles. In SanAntonio, Texas, the downturn forcedToyota to close their plant for threemonths, but Toyota redeployed work-ers on community work, retraining,and education classes, reportsLatondra Newton, GM of Toyota’sTeam Member Development Center.

Daniel Goleman identifies “the cri-sis of accountability” and contendsthat transparency, social and emotionallearning, and leadership must take ahigher profile on the leader’s agenda.

How can you strengthen your peo-ple and culture and keep peopleinformed of emergency plans andstrategies? Stay tuned in to the emo-tional temperature of your business. LE

Tom Peters is president of The Tom Peters Company. Visitwww.TomPeters.com or call 617-242-5522.

ACTION: Set your own action agenda.

FRUSTRATED AT THEnegativity in the air,

I compiled a few tacticsfor coping with this most disruptiveera. I here synthesize some of my mostcompelling messages into four themes:Excellence, Opportunism, Visibility, andTransparency. I hope these insights willinspire your own action agendas.

Excellence: Get on with doing thebusiness you have and see it throughbrilliantly. Stick to the basics. Keep itsimple! The devil’s always in the details.When it comes to basics, cash flow andcustomers come near the top of mostagendas. In a down economy, you needto stay focused on the lifeblood of yourbusiness—cash—and rediscover thelost art of authentic value creation.Good habits can turn customers into acadre of unofficial market-ing evangelists and keepyour business in the fore-front of their radar screens.Are you doing all you canto ensure that yourresources are deployed onthe products and servicesin your portfolio that createthe most value for the cus-tomer? Are you making itclear to everyone whoworks with/for you that the fulfillmentof the customer work you do mustembody the highest level of excellencethat you can collectively achieve?

Opportunism: Opportunism—theremay be a lot of room for it—will pay offthrough speed off the mark and excel-lence in execution. Like London buses,recession and business opportunitiesoften come along at the same time!Virgin Chairman Richard Branson istalking to interested parties about apossible bid for London’s secondlargest airport, Gatwick. So, it’s “oppor-tunity knocks” in recessionary times forSir Richard! Do you see opportunity?

In tough times, few employers seetheir current and former employees asassets. Yet this downturn may be yourbest chance to win some people back!

Are you thinking laterally aboutopportunities and needs being mani-fested in your marketplace? Are youthinking laterally enough about your

Tough TimesHere’s a bit of advice.

by Tom Peters

MANAGEMENT EXCELLENCE

COACHING SHOULD BEpart of your daily

activities to deliverresults, but is it? One in three leadersbelieves that coaching is too time-con-suming. It can be if you get overlyinvolved in your team’s work, believeyou need to solve everyone’s problems,or engage in long performance reviews.Real coaching is helping others figure outthe best way to achieve goals, buildskills, and produce desired results.

Some leaders believe in the powerof coaching to drive team productivity,effectiveness, and engagement. Theycoach daily to get work done and devel-op their teams. They are coaching leaders.

In coaching, focus on five things:1. Establish trust. Without trust,

well-intentioned coaching skills oftenbackfire. Effective coaches talk to theirteam members honestly and often.They get to know each team memberto create a trusting work relationship.

2. Build coaching partnerships (jointaccountability). Set the expectation thatteam members must ask for help, listento feedback, provide candid upwardfeedback, and follow up on agreements.Effective coaching depends on one-on-one pairings, not demographic trends.

3. Ask for feedback. If you don’t askfor feedback to learn the best coachingapproach for each team member, you’llwaste time trying to be all things to allpeople. You may think that you’re agreat coach, while your direct reportsfeel your coaching is a waste of time.

4. Delegate effectively. Delegate theproblem or task (what has to be done)by clearly describing the desired out-come and all parameters or constraints(scope, timing, resources, decision-making authority, internal politics).Then your team can determine the bestcourse of action based on their expertise.

5. Ask more questions. The morequestions you ask, the less likely you’llfall into micromanaging or irrelevantadvice. This collaborative approachalso shows your willingness to partner.

Coaching leaders coach continuously.Their coaching becomes a natural partof their daily interactions. LE

Cathy Earley leads the Coaching Practice for BlessingWhite.Visit www.blessingwhite.com, email cearley@bwinc.com.

ACTION: Use these five tips in your coaching.

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MANAGEMENT COACHING

Time to Coach

by Cathy Earley

Become a coaching leader.

they need to do to be more successful.The challenge is getting them to person-ally engage and wrestle with changesthat they need to make to become bet-ter leaders. While everyone may nod inagreement, they may not walk awaycaring enough to overcome the discom-fort of trying something new.

Leadership is personal. It mustbegin with inward reflection—a will-ingness to confront the emotionalforces that cause us to behave in cer-tain ways. This is not done withoutsome risk for leaders andfacilitators. Trust and timemust be built into a sessionto enable this to play out.Getting a senior team toopen up in five minutes isnot a recipe for success.

Recommendations: Datacan help build the case forchange, but don’t stopthere. Make sure the pro-gram drives individual reflection ofpersonal values and taps into the moti-vation of the person behind the title.

3. The CEO can’t contain himself. Aleadership off-site seldom begins with-out the CEO or senior leader callingupon everyone to “speak up!” TheCEO mistakes his vehemence for lead-ership and can scarcely keep his force-ful personality in check. While hebelieves that he is exhorting everyoneto join in with candor, the group hearsa threatening ultimatum. Intimidated,they close up, the CEO becomes frus-trated, and the situation gets worse.

As Samuel Goldwyn once said: “Idon’t want any yes-men around me. Iwant everybody to tell me the truth—even if it costs them their jobs.”

Recommendations: Coach the CEObeforehand. Discuss when and how heshould voice his opinions. Agree whenand how the facilitators will step in toredirect the top leader’s enthusiasm.

4. Awkward issues are not confront-ed. Few senior leaders consider howtheir personal qualities or their team’sbehavior may affect performance. Yeteffective leadership calls for self-awareness. In one session, the leaderasked everyone to set aside their dailyagenda and Blackberrys and focus ongetting value out of the event. He evenasked them to coach him—to call him

Effective LD

IT’S A FAMILIAR SCE-nario: Senior leaders

and executives go off-site for a team-building or leadershipdevelopment program with nobleintentions and an ambitious agenda,but weeks later they find little benefitfor their time and effort. Many organi-zations repeat the same mistakes thatcause these events to miss the mark orprovide ephemeral value.

LD programs often fail to achieve ob-jectives because of six common pitfalls:

1. Urgency overrides preparation.Seeing a pressing need to address keyissues, the CEO wants her team tomeet soon, often within two weeks.Her HR advisors may have been try-ing for years to get this executive toinvest in her team. Yet while they arethrilled that at last they have a con-vert, the zeal to deliver quickly maysupersede thorough preparation.Often the LD component will betagged on to an already overloadedplanning agenda. There is rarelyenough time to involve all stakehold-ers in thoughtful discussions aboutthe true issues (and what issues theyhave the energy to solve). The facilita-tors then enter blind. The sponsor ofthe event may be inaccessible apartfrom an initial briefing, so key deci-sions are left to the HR partners. Thecontent begins to lean toward the safeand the sure rather than what isrequired to make a difference.

We were once asked to run an off-site for a CFO’s team (held on July 3rd).We were told we couldn’t access theCFO or his assistant for two of thethree weeks’ lead time because theywere busy with an acquisition. Wepassed, explaining that the ROI for thissession would be limited given that thesenior leaders had other urgent, busi-ness-critical issues on their minds.

Recommendation: Don’t force-fit LD.Sometimes delaying or postponing asession is the best course of action.

2. Participants fail to engage emo-tionally. Unless you work for NASA,LD is not “rocket science.” It’s not thatdifficult to get executives to intellectu-ally agree with and understand what

out if they ever saw him using his.Everyone applauded, but on four occa-sions when he went into “Blackberryprayer” mode, nobody spoke up—andthe moment was lost.

Recommendation: Help the seniorteam practice discussing undiscuss-ables—the issues that no one wants totalk about that are impeding the team’seffectiveness. Make sure the facilitatorshave the competence and confidence tochallenge the group and leaders onawkward issues and bad behavior—and then guide agreement on how theleaders will hold each other account-able for better behavior in the future.

5. Trendy triumphs over consequence.The latest best seller by a celebrityCEO often becomes the catalyst forsenior executive interest in LD. Books

can provide great food forthought and inspiring sto-ries to prompt leaders’reflection on their actions.When translated into a LDevent, they rarely providelasting value, since fewbooks lend themselves topractical application. Thisapproach falls short sincepivotal leadership mo-

ments can’t be borrowed or bench-marked. They reflect the author’spersonal experience. A book mayprompt a lively debate, but partici-pants likely won’t leave the sessionwith action steps they can take in theirwork. Worse, so much is written aboutleaders and leadership that it’s tempt-ing to regularly introduce the latestmethodology or prescription. Hence,the leadership style becomes a patch-work quilt of fads and clichés.

Recommendations: Concentrate onrelevant challenges and behaviors.Steer the conversation from the CEO’sfondness for the latest best seller to acandid discussion of desired outcomes.Go deeper into one school of thoughtrather than ride the waves of trends.

6. Culture is not receptive to change.Even the best LD programs will fail tohave an impact if your culture is notreceptive to change. Too often leaderswant to train away problems or usedevelopment initiatives to raise the baron leadership behavior. But if the cul-ture punishes risk-taking, or rewardsthe same behaviors that need chang-ing, then T&D are beside the point—unless they focus on culture change. LE

Stephen Parker is Senior VP, Consulting at BlessingWhite, a global consulting firm. Visit www.blessingwhite.com or call 908-904-1000.

ACTION: Avoid these six pitfalls in your LD.

by Stephen Parker

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LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

A v o i d s i x c o m m o n p i t f a l l s .

short-term financial gain at the expenseof productivity and engagement. Theyalso measure pride, a prerequisite toretention and high performance.Leaders need to scrutinize the companythey keep and do business with entitiesaligned with their values.• Pay attention to behavior not rules.

A culture that operates with ethicalintent at every level is created by lead-ers who model desired behaviors, notby employees who follow policy.Paperwork that satisfies the scrutiny ofregulators won’t inspire the contribu-tion you need from every employee.Encourage people to do the rightthing, even when no one is looking.

• Earn trust every day. In a well-man-aged organization, only half the work-force will say they trust senior leaders,yet most executives rate themselves astrustworthy. This intent/effect gapresults from employees drawing con-clusions with minimum information—what is said in a meeting or a decisioncommunicated through the ranks—notthe other 90 percent of what leaders doeach day. So, leaders need to explainthe decision-making process and moti-vation for their actions.

3. Drive productivity and innova-tion through engagement. Leaders needto own employee engagement becauseengaged employees are more produc-tive, treat customers better, innovate,and stay. Don’t confuse employeeengagement with satisfaction andassume that a few HR initiatives cangive poor employee survey scores aboost. Engagement goes beyond satis-faction to reflect contribution. Engagedemployees are committed and alignedto apply their unique skills to con-tribute to priorities.

To boost engagement leaders should:

• Get rid of disengaged subversives(usually 10+ percent of the workforce).These employees may not have startedout so alienated; bad practices or poorleadership may have pushed them overthe edge. They undermine productivityby dragging everyone down aroundthem. They’re a threat to the bottom line.• Provide meaning. It’s up to leaders

to help their people find meaning atwork. That meaning can take the formof personal connection with ambitiousgoals or achievement of more personalcareer aspirations. Leaders need toarticulate goals, paint a compellingvision of the future, and help employ-ees to connect the dots.• Make sure you are engaged. Disen-

gaged leaders lack the clarity of pur-pose or energy to engage others.Executives must be clear on the strategyand their top three priorities before theycan align everyone else. And if theycan’t articulate why they show up atwork, they need to stop “doing” andthink about what matters most to them.

4. Make talent management a busi-ness priority. Leaders need to have theright people in the right jobs focusedon the right priorities—and ensurethat employees have the informationand support they need to align theirinterests and career aspirations withthe organization’s goals. That dualfocus can reduce unwanted turnoverand create a sustainable competitiveadvantage. To achieve it:• Don’t “manage” your top talent.

These people have marketable skills,and so if they have their fate decidedby a succession planning committee ora well-intentioned manager, they mayhead for the door. Top talent demand tobe involved. They have their own ideasfor moving forward. The best leadersoffer desirable stretch assignments andspecial projects and encourage innova-tion and risk-taking. Align individuals’initiative with organizational priorities,and then get out of the way.• Develop the pack. Many leaders

provide elaborate high-potential pro-grams and only mediocre develop-ment opportunities for the rest. That’sa shaky foundation. Leaders need totirelessly align and coach team mem-bers. Consistent high-performing busi-nesses hold leaders accountable fordeveloping team members. Leaderswho actively coach are well-positionedto quickly redeploy talent to meetshifting business requirements. LE

Christopher Rice is president and CEO of BlessingWhite.Email chrisr@bwinc.com, call 908-904-1000, or visit www.blessingwhite.com.

ACTION: Excel in these priorities.

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

LEADERSHIP ISN’T GET-ting any easier. The

market’s unpredictablebehavior stymies even the best strate-gists. Customers and high-performingemployees have more choices.Extreme transparency has replacedclosed-door inner workings. No won-der CEOs feel like they have a bigbull’s-eye on their backs.

Leadership requires a balancebetween business competence andpersonal connection. It’s no longerenough for leaders to be capable.They must also build authentic bondswith employees, customers, and otherstakeholders—a daunting challenge.To succeed, leaders need to focus onfour priorities.

1. Executive, develop thyself.Expectations of leadership have risenbeyond the capabilities of most seniorexecutives. The best leaders knowthey need to be compelling and inspi-rational, but they are often challengedby how to do it. What does it take?• Cast an objective eye. Know how

you measure up to today’s higherstandards and what impact youractions have. It’s easy to dismiss feed-back as grumbling, since the mostannoying employees are the first topoint out your flaws. It is critical,however, that you listen, not argue. • Take time to reflect on what drives

you personally. Personal values fuelconfidence and effective communica-tions. To be inspirational, you need tobe inspired yourself.

2. Correct cultural corruption.Compliance with the new laws andregulatory requirements might keepyou out of jail and your firm out ofthe headlines, but it won’t build a sus-tainable, high-performing organiza-tion. Cultural corruption isn’t aboutbreaking the law. It’s about bad busi-ness practices that undermine com-mitment. It’s about the chasmbetween leaders’ talk and actions.Prevent your high performers frombolting toward the door:• Watch for the little things that don’t

seem right. Audits and culture scanscan identify practices that may support

Four Priorities

by Christopher Rice

Bui ld bonds with s takeholders .

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PERFORMANCE URGENCY

versation to the real issues and cancelunnecessary activities.”

UUrrggeennccyy OOppttiioonnss aanndd MMiinnddsseettIn effect, people face three options:Option 1: Complacency and anxiety.

Many people believe that things arenot perfect, but for them, they’re doingthe right thing. At a feeling level, theyare content with what they’re doing,even complacent. In fact, they may becritical of highly productive people.Their complacency is manifest in theirbehavior, as they continue doing whatthey did yesterday. They tend to post-pone or procrastinate new behavior.

Option 2: False urgency and freneticactivity. This is what many leadersoften mistake for real urgency. Falseurgency is manifest in anxiety-driven,frenetic, unproductive behavior.

Option 3: Real urgency with processand progress. At a feeling level, this isdriven by a determination to movenow, to win now. At a behavioral level,it’s seen as hyper-alertness to what’shappening on the outside (in the mar-ket), focused on the real issues, gettingup every day with a commitment to

make progress on thoseissues, without gettingburned out, which hap-pens if you fail to get ridof the junk and delegate.

The urgency mindset isthis: “There are greatopportunities and hazardsout there, and we mustdeal with them.” There’senormous determinationto make something hap-

pen now and win. And determination isdifferent from frenetic activity, anxiety,contentment, and the complacency ofshowing up and doing the same thing.

CCuullttuurree ooff UUrrggeennccyyYou may find a sense of urgency in a

person or a pocket within a company,but rarely do you find it through anentire culture. As a leader, you need toinstill (not try to install) a sense of ur-gency in the culture. If you start build-ing the best practices into your systemsand structures, urgency will eventuallyseep into the culture. You need to iden-tify and implement methods that in-crease urgency and build momentum.

Shared Urgency

SUCCESSFUL CHANGEfollows a basic pat-

tern, starting with creat-ing a sense of urgency. In fact, the big-gest challenge leaders face in causingchange comes right at the beginning—in creating a strong sense of urgency.

Most leaders struggle to meet thischallenge for two interrelated reasons:

First, they miss important informa-tion. Most information is filtered beforeit gets to them, and much good infor-mation never reaches them. So, theydon’t see the complacency that residestwo levels down, or in a branch office.They can’t believe it, because they seetheir margins slipping and clearly com-municate urgent priorities. They don’tunderstand why everyone doesn’tshare a sense of urgency to deal withthe dilemma or seize the opportunity.Some leaders remain out of touchbecause they’re overwhelmed withwork, have a thousand messages com-ing at them daily, are internallyfocused, or have succeeded in the pastand become arrogant.

Second, they mistakeenergy and activity for realurgency. Top execs oftensee enormous activity:they see people runningaround, holding meetings,and starting projects, andso they look at me and say,“Look, we have a sense ofurgency!” I find freneticactivity, usually driven byanxiety, but no sense of shared urgency.

When people have a shared sense ofreal urgency, they tend to be extraordi-narily alert. They move faster, launch-ing initiatives that address the problemsand opportunities they face. They listenbetter and cooperate more. When theiragenda starts to fill with new tasksbecause they must run the currentoperations and leap into the future—they identify the low-priority items andeither cancel them off their calendars ordelegate them to others to free up timeto handle new, more important tasks.They think, “This change may take usthree years to complete, but every daywe’ll make progress. We’ll redirect con-

Soon these urgency practices become“the way we do things around here.”

When I consult, I talk about twokinds of change—episodic and continu-ous—and ask, “What kind of changeare you facing?” Historically, most lead-ers report facing episodic change—anIP changeover or new strategy imple-mentation in Division X. It’s a specificthing that comes and goes. Now, moreexecutives are facing continuouschange. And I can’t imagine how theywill cope, unless they can build a senseof shared urgency into their culture.

The leaders who do this best tend tobe leading medium-sized and smallercompanies. Some big companies thatonce had a shared sense of urgency nowhave arrogance and complacency. Evenafter being whacked hard by the compe-tition, they are mostly engaged in frenet-ic activity—people are running aroundin circles like rats in a maze—not build-ing a shared sense of urgency into thesystems, structure, and culture.

SSiixx WWaayyss ttoo PPrroommoottee UUrrggeennccyyA shared sense of urgency is not

always the consequence of tough com-petition or harsh external conditions.Proactive leaders and lower-level man-agers create urgency in four ways:

1. Bring the outside in. People on theinside tend to become disconnectedfrom the world. Great leaders maintaina sense of urgency by reconnectingpeople with the outside world—bybringing the outside in, bringing infor-mation and outsiders in, at the righttime and in the right way, realizing thatchange is a head/heart thing. It’s notjust about how people think, but mostlyabout how they feel. And that means nothiring a big consulting company andhaving them dump a logical report onpeople at the wrong time and place.That practice only creates anxiety. Theleader has to say, “Let’s look at thefacts—we’ve got to move, now.”

2. Send scouts out. One CEO told ahigh-potential employee that he want-ed him to enroll in a university’s lead-ership development program, andthen said, “Let me explain why. I thinkyou have potential, and this programwill accelerate your development. Youwill learn what’s going on and leavewanting to come back here and helpothers develop that same sense ofurgency—to share with them in a waythat captures their minds and heartswhat you’ve gone through. That’s myprimary objective.” So, sending a scoutout is another way to bring the outsidein and create a sense of urgency.

3. Listen to your front-line sales and

by John Kotter

M a k e i t p a r t o f t h e c u l t u r e .

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LEADERSHIP GREATNESSservice employees. Tell them, “You’renot only selling products—you’re sup-plying vital information about what’sgoing on.” And don’t send this infor-mation up seven levels of hierarchy orwrite meaningless reports. Senior lead-ers should seek these people out. SamWalton would fly around in his propplane, talking to store managers andstaff associates alike, constantly asking,“What’s up? Don’t just tell me whatpeople are buying—tell me when theysmile, or frown. What are the trends?What cars are in the parking lot now?”His aim was to bring the outside in,and not do it in a dry, factual, every-body-forgets-it-in-15-minutes way.

4. Find opportunity in crisis. Whena crisis looms or appears, pause for aminute and ask, “Is there an opportu-nity here to help us get out of compla-cency and start feeling a strong senseof urgency?” Don’t assume there willbe. In many cases, you must get inthere and bail out the boat. But culti-vate the mindset of looking for oppor-tunity in every real or potential crisis.

5. Behave urgent every day. Once atHarvard I met a CEO who braggedabout one of his Indian managers whohad become a beacon of urgency. Hewas constantly talking about what washappening in the industry and compa-ny, how their past success meant noth-ing, how they had to move faster, andthen modeled moving faster. If holdinga meeting was a low priority, he’d can-cel it; if he held it, he would end everymeeting by saying, “Next week, I’mgoing to do A, B and C as a result ofthis meeting.” He’d turn to the guy onhis left and say, “How about you?” Hetapped into their aspirations to dosomething great and win.

6. Deal with the No-Nos. These arepeople who have some power, usually,who hate all change, and who won’tadmit it. They present themselvesappropriately, but they are relentless inkeeping complacency up, creating fearand false urgency. When you findthese people, you need to deal withthem so they’re not in the way.

To inspire a strong sense of sharedurgency, you’ve got to win over thehearts and minds of people. Creating asense of urgency is a life-and-deathissue. If you don’t get your act togeth-er quickly, somebody will buy you upand then slice and dice you out of exis-tence. If that image doesn’t engender asense of urgency, nothing will. LE

John Kotter, HBS professor, is best-selling author of Our Ice-berg Is Melting and a new book, ASense of Urgency. VisitJohnKotter.com; for training call Greg Kaiser at 919-618-9955.

ACTION: Create a sense of urgency in your culture.

by James Champy

unmet needs of thousands of indepen-dent musicians and performers andwhose founder has led the company toa unique position in the music businessfor independent performers—a $13 bil-lion-a-year market that no one saw ororganized until Sonicbids came along.

4. Focus: Good companies stayfocused on what they know and cando well. When companies search fornew ideas, they often drift intounknown territory and get in trouble.Good companies just keep growingand expanding into familiar territory.Shutterfly is a wonderful example of acompany that’s growing by expandingwithin the social expressions business,helping communities of people sharephotographs in hundreds of ways.Niches can be very large markets.

5. Execution: Satisfying a customerrequires relentless attention to execu-tion. Building a company’s capability todeliver makes the difference betweenturning a great idea into a business orfailure. But execution is not just aboutdelivering a product—it’s also aboutservice. Over the years, I’ve observedthat technology companies are bad atrecognizing and responding to the ser-

vice needs of their cus-tomers. Counter-intuitively,high-tech requires a lot ofhigh-touch. Partsearch is acompany that knows whatit’s doing with customerservice, helping customersfind what they need in anocean of millions of partsand accessories for con-sumer electronic products.

6. Inspiration: Smartcompanies engage all of their associatesin building the business, from idea cre-ation though delivery. Ideas may cometops-down, but they also come bot-toms-up and from every other direc-tion. Everyone in the company feelsthat they own a piece of the action andare accountable for performance. Theinspiration for a company starts at thetop, but good leadership drives thatinspiration deep into the company byengaging people broadly in decision-making. People are more than mechan-ical parts of the enterprise, and themore they see customers, the bettertheir business sensibilities.

These six traits are common in greatorganizations, smart companies oper-ating quite brilliantly. LE

Jim Champy, author of Outsmart! Reengineering theCorporation, X-Engineering, Reengineering Management, andThe Arc of Ambition, is Chairman of Perot Systems’ consultingpractice and head of strategy. Visit www.jimchampy.com.

ACTION: Become a great organization.

FOR YEARS I’VEsearched for great

companies. Like manyobjectives, greatness is in the eye of thebeholder. It’s an honorable aspiration.I’ve looked at over 1,000 high-growthcompanies and found many good ones.

My search is driven by a desire tofind companies that have new busi-ness models, delivering new productsand services to customers and execut-ing in new ways. I’ve written aboutmy discoveries in Outsmart! AlthoughI could find no single formula for whatcreates a great company, I did find sixshared characteristics.

1. Culture. My ultimate test of thequality of a company is whether Iwould like to work there. The goodnews: I see many high-growth compa-nies where I would work.One simple test for a greatculture is how a company isexperienced by its con-stituents—its customers,associates, owners, andbusiness partners. The bestcompanies treat all of theirconstituents well and, intheir own unique ways,aspire to greatness.

2. Ambition: The leadersof great companies have a great ambi-tion for the company—one thataddresses an unmet customer need.The ambition is not one of personalgreed—it’s about building a companythat delivers on its promise and does itwith a unique quality. My experienceis that it takes a great ambition to cre-ate even a good company. I’m inspiredby the company Minute Clinic, whoseambition is to change how healthcareis delivered, for the benefit of everyoneinvolved in the system.

3. Customer: Every good companybegins by meeting a customer need.That need is often deeply understoodby the founders because they, them-selves, experienced the need—and sawhow that need was not being well met.Sometimes the founder delegates themanagement of the company to some-one who operationalizes the idea. Butthat wasn’t the case in the example ofSonicbids, a company that saw the

Great CompaniesWhat are five shared traits?

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the answers. Whatever the cause, leaders who

micromanage convey the message thatthey don’t trust their employees’ judg-ment or skills. The result: Disengagedworkers who put in time but little else.

AAvvooiidd tthhee ““MMyy WWaayy”” TTrraappHere are eight reminders for effec-

tively delegating and coaching tomake your job as a leader easier—andensure the work gets done with pas-sion and commitment.

1. You’re a leader first,expert second. Coachemployees to best applytheir knowledge and skills.They’re experts, and youdon’t need to have all theanswers. The most impor-tant actions a leader cantake are to provide oppor-tunities for employees tostretch and help themsolve problems on theirown. This requires a shift from beingan expert to an expert leader of people.

2. Establish relationships. Get toknow the individuals you’re leading.Employees come to work with uniquesets of values, aspirations, experiences,and talents. The more you can under-stand and tap into those qualities, thebetter. Solid working relationshipsensure trust and prevent miscommu-nication. And don’t forget that rela-tionships work both ways. Make sureyou let your team get to know you.

3. Size up the situation and the indi-vidual. Good coaching is relative andrelevant. One person’s micromanagingmay be another person’s dream coach-ing. Your most talented team membermay actually crave guidance in onesituation and demand independencein another.

4. Provide context. When delegat-ing, explain why the assignment iscritical and how it fits into your orga-nization’s business imperatives.Employees want to be part of some-thing bigger. That connection to cus-tomer and organizational benefitsmotivates them to do their best work.Plus, when they understand the busi-ness context they make better deci-sions—without you.

5. Keep to the “what” not the

Avoid Micromanaging

MICROMANAGINGdamages

employee engage-ment, sapping the initiative of eventhe most motivated team members. Itundermines confidence, quashesinnovation, and drives away top tal-ent. Leaders who micromanage oftenbecome exhausted and embittered.No one wins.

Micromanagement is generallyunderstood to mean managing withexcessive control or attention todetails, and our research indicatesthat more than one-in-three workersexperience it.

Ironically, micromanaging leadersmay be well-intentioned and behavethis way because they are smart,achievement-oriented, and skilled infiguring out the best way to dothings. They’re eager to help theirteam, enjoy solving problems, andwant to ensure high-quality, cus-tomer-centered results. They justdon’t know how to delegate.

Other leaders get labeled as micro-managers when they try to coachemployees without a trustingemployee-manager relationship.Without trust a conversation about aproject’s status feels like an interroga-tion, suggestions are interpreted asmeddling, and a simple check-inbecomes micromanaging.

New managers—especially thosein highly specialized disciplines—often default to micromanaging astheir way of leading. They are starperformers who are moving fromproducing results on their own toachieving objectives through theirteam, so they mistakenly believe thatthey now need to manage the detailsof everyone else’s work in addition totheir own. They don’t realize thattheir new role is completely differ-ent—as a coach and leader of people,not a super-manager of multiple pro-jects or tasks.

Still other new managers may tryto control more because they lackconfidence in their new responsibili-ties. In their efforts to establish credi-bility they think they must have all

“how”. Assign a problem or task (whathas to be done) by clearly describingthe desired outcome and all the para-meters or constraints that youremployees need to work within (e.g.,scope, timing, resources, decision-mak-ing authority, internal politics). Thenlet employees process the informationand explore ideas to determine the bestcourse of action. Many leaders do notclearly and thoroughly communicateassignments. For employees, workingon the wrong things when you thinkyou’re working on the right things isincredibly demotivating.

6. Ask open-ended questions and lis-ten. Since you’re not directing employ-ees on the how of a task, you need toexplore ideas with them. This requirespatience and self-control because youmay have done their job before. You

also think you’ve gotsome great ideas. Whenyou find yourself talking alot about your ideas stop.Ask a question. Listen.Your team member willimmediately re-engage.Remember also, that ideaexploration is not a test.You can’t go through themotions waiting foremployees to come up

with the “right” answers (aka the wayyou would do things). If you do,they’ll keep their ideas to themselves.

7. Ask for feedback. The only way toknow if your actions are helpful is tospeak with each team member. Whatdo they feel they need in terms ofdirection and coaching? What do youdo that helps them do a better job andalso makes them feel like they’re mak-ing a significant contribution? Whendo they feel like they can move for-ward without you? This type of con-versation also builds trust.

8. Know when to tell. There are timeswhen there may not be a lot of optionsor room for new ideas. If regulationsrestrict the solution or a situation re-quires a directive, don’t waste employ-ees’ time exploring ideas. Ask whenyou can, but tell when you have to.

SSttaayy DDiisscciipplliinneeddMicromanaging is a loss for your

organization, a frustration for employ-ees, and a waste of your time as aleader. So remember that the best waymay not actually be your way. LE

Cathy Earley leads the Coaching Practice for BlessingWhite, aglobal consulting firm dedicated to reinventing leadership andthe meaning of work (www.blessingwhite.com). Email cear-ley@bwinc.com or call 908-904-1000 ext. 8108.

ACTION: : Coach, don’t “do.”

by Cathy Earley

1 8 w w w . L e a d e r E x c e l . c o m L e a d e r s h i p E x c e l l e n c e

PEOPLE MICROMANAGEMENT

E i g h t r e m i n d e r s f o r e f f e c t i v e c o a c h i n g .

I encourage senior teams to reservetime to step out of the business at handto reflect on and reveal what fuelsthem as individuals. What personalvalues matter most to them? What piv-otal moments from their past shapetheir goals and aspirations? Why arethey working for this organization?

Such reflection provides individualleaders with the personal clarity theyneed to take a stand on important top-ics. The sharing of personal motivatorsis also critical for senior team dynam-ics, helping the executives understandand trust one another, and work moreeffectively together. Another importantbenefit: Leaders who understand whatmatters most to them can bring theirpersonal passion into their messageswith shareholders, customers, and em-ployees. Knowing what inspires them

personally, they inspire others to action.“All we talk about is results, but we

don’t change the way we do things.”High-performing organizations holdthemselves accountable for not onlythe “what” (results) but also for the“how” (core values). This isn’t an easypractice for senior teams pressured todeliver quarterly earnings. Yet thereare a number of steps that senior exec-utives can take to drive the type ofchanges needed for long-term success.

Leaders can take a reality checkthrough focus groups, interviews, or acultural audit. These data-gatheringmethods help executives understandthe behaviors and practices that arerewarded. Some firms may find thattheir core values are merely espoused,not reinforced, modeled, measured, orrewarded. A common example: A com-pany may pledge the value of team-work but have a compensation planthat rewards individual contribution—or may promote leaders who get

CEO Complaints

GRIPES VOICED BY THEpresident or CEO

often are clear signalsthat the senior team is not functioningwell. These complaints can reflectunderlying interpersonal issues con-fronting leaders, or stem from the topexecutive’s own behavior. If unchecked,problems at the top seep down, affect-ing culture and productivity, holdingyou back from great accomplishments.

FFoouurr CCoommmmoonn GGrriippeessThese four CEO complaints repre-

sent potentially destructive issues: “All I get is data, but not much

insight.” Numbers are required forrunning the business, but top execu-tives shouldn’t have to slog throughpiles of data. They need the numbersnetted out into meaningful informationto drive effective decision-making. Yetmany senior teams spend so muchtime mired in the weeds of the datathat decisions get postponed repeated-ly. That’s not a winning pace.

CEOs need to set clear expectationsto encourage meaningful recommen-dations over data dumping. One exec-utive of a pharmaceutical businessunit tells his team, “Tell me the story. Iassume the numbers are there.”Another approach is to require seniorteam members to build presentationsaround only one number to forcethem to focus on the implications oftheir analysis and next steps. Focusingon insights at the top encourages agili-ty and helps prepare leaders to com-municate decisions in a way that iscompelling and makes sense to others.

“We focus so much on competencethat the senior team never gets emo-tionally charged up.” Overall businesscompetence can be considered the“entry fee” to a senior team. Businesssavvy, clear reasoning, responsibility,and a focus on results all help execu-tives secure a seat at the coveted table.Yet today’s market leaders are fueledby passion. And the source of energy?The executives at the top. Senior teammembers need to be capable of “flick-ing the switch”—to trigger enthusiasmand commitment throughout the ranks.

results without living the core values. Senior teams need to examine their

own leadership behaviors as well,since the “way we do things aroundhere” starts at the top. A reality checkis helpful for leaders, and can involvemulti-rater feedback, for example.Another helpful practice is “discussingundiscussables.” This exercise is bestinitiated by a neutral third party like aconsultant, but once the team learnsthe basic steps required to get sensitiveissues on the table, they can use it reg-ularly as a way to hold themselvesaccountable for effective teamwork.

“Everyone always agrees with me,and that makes me uneasy.” Agree-ment and politeness are only slightlybetter than open warfare. It’s essentialto create an environment where differ-ent points of view can be debated with-out executives walking away angry.

One firm has a mantra that “silencedoes not equal agreement.” It’s com-mon practice for senior team membersmaking important decisions to sharethe “why” behind the “what” of theirvotes. This acknowledges that fewdecisions are simple yes/no choicesbut rather shades of grey. Anotherteam practice that drives constructivedebate is to structure discussionswhere team members need to articu-late opposing points of view to ensureall sides of the issue are considered.

Of course, CEOs need to be vigilantin assessing their own behavior andfine-tuning their radar to pick up whatthey’re not hearing—and why. CEOswith charismatic personalities need tobe extra wary, because their clarity ofvision and passion may create reluc-tance within the team to question orsound a discordant note. Many of theexecutives who complain that no onespeaks up actually send a clear mes-sage that dissent is not welcome.

TThhee BBoottttoomm LLiinneeLeaders at the top need to stay

attuned to the issues that may beundermining the effectiveness of theirsenior managers. When the right num-bers are coming in, it’s easy to over-look behavioral issues. Yet the greatCEOs don’t wait for earnings to tailoff, but intervene so that all their toppeople are involved on a visceral leveland working together as a team.

CEOs need to listen to their owngrumbling now—and step in. LE

Christopher Rice is President and CEO of BlessingWhite, aglobal consulting firm dedicated to reinventing leadership andthe meaning of work (www.blessingwhite.com). Emailchrisr@bwinc.com or call 908-904-1000.

ACTION: Monitor these common gripes.

by Christopher Rice

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LEADERSHIP COMPLAINTS

H o w y o u c a n p r e v e n t t h e m .

their own assessments of the reliabilityof the source of specific data. As aresult, sources with low credibilityintroduced information that was laterfound to be wrong. Analysts shouldnot be put in the position of making ajudgment on crucial issues without fullunderstanding of the reliability andsource of the relevant information.

Businesses tend to operate with lessopenness about mistakes—and fewerfull-scale investigations—than does ademocratic government, and so exam-ples from government are easier tofind. But any time an organizationmakes a seriously wrong decision, itsleaders should call for an intensivepostmortem. Such learning opportuni-ties are often overlooked. Sadly, lead-ers tend to call on the PR department

to spin the matter, to make anotherinadequately thought-out decision,and perhaps to scapegoat, even fire, afew staff members. Because most lead-ers cover up their mistakes, systemicflaws in information flow tend to re-main to do their damage another day.

3. The “shimmer factor” impedes thefree flow of information. The public andprecipitous fall of many celebrity CEOshas dimmed the once-shining image ofexecutives. But despite the discreditingof many executives, leaders still tend tobe perceived by many as demigods.And that perception still deters follow-ers from telling those leaders essentialbut awkward truths. As everyoneknows, there’s a far different standardfor scrutiny of the CEO’s expenseaccount from that of a file clerk. In toomany organizations, one of the privi-leges of rank is a tendency to get auto-matic approval of behavior that wouldbe questioned in the less exalted. Many

Candor Killers

IN A RATIONAL UNIVERSE, LEADERSwould embrace transparency on eth-

ical and practical grounds, as the statein which it is easiest to accomplishgoals. But that is rarely the case.Powerful countervailing forces tend tostymie candor and transparency.

Here are four such forces:1. Leaders routinely hoard or mis-

handle information. A common maladyamong insiders is hoarding informa-tion. This is one way information getsstuck and is kept from flowing to thosewho need it to make solid decisions.Wholesale classification keeps informa-tion away from the frontline peoplewho actually manage the business andserve customers. Small cliques of insid-ers tend to hoard information becausethey want to know things that othersdo not. Some executives seem to takean almost juvenile pleasure in knowingthe “inside dope” and keeping it awayfrom their underlings. In some organi-zations, knowledge is seen as the ulti-mate executive perk, not unlike thecompany jet, kept solely for the useand delight of the elite. This stance iscostly in terms of efficiency and morale.

2. Structure or system impedimentshamper information flow and bungledecision making. The U.S. declarationof war on Iraq was largely based onseriously flawed data from America’sintelligence community. Later internalinvestigations brought a structuralproblem to light. Inadvertently, thesystem of information flow had beendesigned to foster poor decisions bydepriving key decision-makers of cru-cial data. The main flaw lay in the dif-ferent mandates of two divisions atthe CIA: the operations directorate,which gathers intelligence data fromaround the world, and the intelligencedirectorate, which sifts through thatraw information to draw conclusions.

To protect their sources’ identities,the operations people did not reveal

leaders encourage this godlike view ofthemselves in countless nonverbalways—from the cost and spotlessnessof their desks to the size and isolation oftheir homes. We often hear tales of lead-ers who do something outrageous,undeterred by those who should bewatching but who fail to speak up.

The best antidote to the shimmereffect is the behavior of the leader. Thewisest leaders seek broad counsel, notbecause they are so enlightened butbecause they need it. Power does notconfer infallibility. There’s a compellingreason to become more open to infor-mation from people at every level: thoseclose to the action usually know moreabout what’s actually going on withclients, production or customer service,than do those on the top floors.Effective leaders find their own ways toelicit many points of view, believing“None of us is as smart as all of us.”The CEO of Pacific Rim bank, forinstance, schedules 20 days each year tomeet with groups of his top 800 people,40 at a time. Aware that isolation in acorner office may weaken his ability tomake good decisions, he regularly seeksfrank feedback from many sources.

Beyond asking for the counsel ofothers, leaders have to hear and heedit. Reflect on how receptive you are tothe suggestions and opinions of othersand alternate points of view.

4. Sheer hubris hinders the flow ofinformation. One motive for turning adeaf ear to what others have to sayseems to be sheer hubris: leaders oftenbelieve they are wiser than all thosearound them. The literature on execu-tive narcissism tells us that the self-confidence of top executives can easilyblur into a blind spot, an unwillingnessto turn to others for advice.

In extreme cases, narcissism cancause leaders to refuse to hear whatothers say. Leaders can suffer from“tired ears.” The CEO of one interna-tional organization, for instance,decried the lack of an informal pipelinewithin the company—he felt that theexecutive summaries he received dailyfrom his direct reports were being sani-tized for him. Yet he could not imaginehimself turning to anyone lower in theranks for a private conversation—letalone cultivating a nonpowerful confi-dant—because it might be seen as asign of weakness on his part.

Address these and other impedi-ments to transparency. LE

Warren Bennis, Dan Goleman, and James O’Toole are co-authorsof Transparency (Jossey-Bass). Visit www.josseybass.com.

ACTION: Address the candor killers at your work.

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ETHICS CANDOR

W h a t i m p e d e s t r a n s p a r e n c y ?

by Warren Bennis, Dan Golemanand James O’Toole

Rocket launcher.

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You may see a brush, but in 1968 Joe Saltzer, a cleaner working for NASA saw it differently. When asked by a visitor what he did,

he replied, “I’m helping to put a man on the moon.”

The result? People who go the extra mile. And organizations that go with them.

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This level of commitment can’t be bought. But it can be developed.

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