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The Essence of Leadership
What is more important, leadership or teamwork? Leadership or consensus management? Today we hear frequently about teams, team-building, and teamwork on the one hand and management by consensus on the other. Although both teamwork and consensus building are critical skills in a leader, neither are substitutes for capable leadership itself. Instead, both, as commonly practiced in business today, are an over reaction to past autocratic management styles. What really is leadership? My working definition of leadership is: "Providing the capable oversight, guidance and governance necessary to direct a group a people in the successful attainment of a shared vision." Note that neither the words team nor consensus are mentioned in this definition. This in no manner diminishes the importance of these two criteria for the leader, it merely reflects the reality of what leadership is and is not. Leadership is by nature both action and individual oriented. Leadership is not the function of a committee or even of a group, although the best organizations benefit greatly from having a group of leaders. There is a popular cliché: Leaders like eagles do not flock, you must find them one at a time." Although this sounds catchy, it is not fully true. Leaders do not "flock," but they are not "loners" either. To return to our initial question ... leadership, teamwork, and consensus are all important, all necessary. In order to have effective teamwork and productive, real consensus (not just everyone waiting for clues as to what the boss thinks before expressing their opinion), the organization must have a firm foundation of capable leadership. I would add, "strong capable leadership," although I know that at hearing the "word" strong, some will immediately equate that to authoritarian or tyrannical rule. However, whether one sees a team of horses in a parade pulling a heavy circus wagon or a string of huskies pulling a dog sled, the lead animal does not dominate the others, but it does provide the essential function of leading the team. After all, someone must lead. Over my thirty plus years of business experience, I have participated in many, many management committees (teams), but in every case the effectiveness of the committee was determined directly by the apparent or de facto leader. There is an old axiom that is very true: "The speed of the leader determines the rate of the pack!" No group outperforms its leadership, at least not for long. Thus, effective and efficient leadership is provided by individuals, note the plural form of the word, but not individuals working individually. Rather, individuals cooperating in collaboration within a hierarchy. Now "hierarchy" has become another "dirty" word in modern organizational thought. However, the reality is that without some form of hierarchy, we have either chaos or stagnation. Due to the reactionary dismissal of hierarchy by many organizations today, stemming from a decades long disagreeable experience with corporate heavy-handedness, in many quarters no decision whatsoever can be made unless every team member and stakeholder is in unqualified consensus. Is it any wonder we see such paralysis in the corporate world? Decisions that formerly required days or weeks to gather the necessary facts and reach a conclusion to action, now require months or even years, as the team waits to achieve "buy-in" by all parties, even where the facts point to an obvious and immediate conclusion. More than twenty years ago, I worked as a director for a corporation in the energy business. We operated with a CEO and seven director level positions, all filled by strong individuals. It was not uncommon for our management meetings to become quite loud as those strong personalities vociferously championed their equally strong views. By the end of these boisterous sessions, we often had reached a natural consensus, but on occasion, we were more divided than when we had begun. In these instances, our CEO would make an executive decision, normally right then and there, based upon the facts as he had heard them forcefully debated. Not everyone was happy with the outcome of such executive edicts, but we were never unhappy about the fact that he had made a decision, and more importantly, we all got behind his decision to get the job done as quickly and effectively as possible. Our form of reaching consensus in those instances was simple: full and open discussion, sometimes peppered with heated argument; a command decision; acceptance by all! As long as the issues and decisions do not compromise moral or ethical integrity, this remains the most efficient manner for organizations, especially businesses, to advance issues. It is important to state that not all of the decisions reached in this way were right. Some over the course of time proved to be entirely wrong, as did an equal number of the decisions we reached through consensus of the entire management team. Contrary to popular belief, consensus is not a guarantee of optimal decision making. This in no way means that good leaders act in a vacuum or as a "majority of one." In fact, just the opposite is true. The reason our management team at the energy company worked together so well was that the CEO, although vested with final decision making authority, was not an autocrat, but rather a consensus builder. Effective leaders understand the value of collaboration, and they actively and continuously seek to develop avenues of collaboration within their organizations. One of the methods by which highly effective and successful leaders encourage and foster collaboration is through building cooperative networks, both within and outside of the organization, but especially within the leader's own management team. Leadership also requires vision, as I have said in the definition earlier, and vision is based upon aggressive, forward-looking strategy development. However, this too is a problem within our organizational cultures today, especially in America. A recent surveyi of 2,700 CEO's in nine countries reveals that American CEO's spend 22% of their time on strategic issues, 17% on fire-fighting crises, and 10% on work that they admit could be delegated. In contrast, their counterparts around the world are significantly more focused on the strategic issues confronting their businesses. Today, more than ever before, our organizations need leaders who are flexible as to methods and techniques, but stalwart with regard to ethics, decisiveness, and vision. Such adept leadership will result in a collaborative organizational culture that in turn fosters teamwork and consensus. Copyright 2005 by John Di Frances John Di Frances is an internationally recognized organizational legacy expert and professional speaker. www.difrances.com
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Coaching The Goals of Leadership Coaching and Partnerships Webster's Dictionary describes a "partner" as an ally or an association built around common interests and goals. Strengthening Leadership Development with Employees Within every business lies a network of people who are working to make their employer successful. Because growing business requires more employees, employers need to seek prospective candidates who will align well with their business. Some businesses prefer to promote employees internally; and it can be very beneficial for their company. Keep in mind of three ways a business might want to hire internally. These reasons not only help with the growth of the business but enhance leadership development with their employees. E=MC - Is It In Me? How many times have you seen the E = MC2 formula and wondered what it might mean to you? Effective Listening Equals Effective Leadership: Learn How! No matter what role you play in your company, becoming a more effective listener will help you get ahead in your position. It means fewer errors, improved accuracy, and enhanced working relationships. And, listening to your customers and referral sources will definitely help you in your marketing efforts. You will solicit better information from other people whether interviewing job candidates, solving work problems, or working to make a sale. Always Be Open To Learning "We should not only use all the brains we have, but all we can borrow." -Woodrow Wilson Sometimes Leaders Need to Get the Boot Today I stood up to a guy right in front of his boss. I challenged him, the former leader, to change his position and give up his position of power. He had fallen from that position though no fault of his own, yet, he did not deserve the power that he desired. Birth Order - Understand How It Affects Your Personality "Know thyself" is a powerful principle that leaders, managers and effective people intuitively know. Leadership is About Growing Others - Its Not About You! "Before you become a leader success is all about growing yourself. Once you become a leader success is all about growing others." Jack Welch (1935- ) Former Chairman & CEO, General Electric" A Lasting Leadership Lesson: How One Leadership Talk By George Washington Saved The Revolution A Lasting Leadership Lesson: How One Leadership Talk By George Washington Saved The Revolution (And Our Fledgling Nation) From Catastrophe. 7 AAA Ways To Succeed! [Abounding Abundant Ample Ways To Boost Your Growth!] 5 Tips to Help You Win Big & Become a Village Hero A few years ago, I returned to my impoverished village in Haiti. Many in the village came to see me-the tiny and diseased child they did not expect to make it. Some of them used to call me Souyen and kokobay-words that mean "crippled." A man from the village, Alfred, reminded the people how they treated me. "Today" He said, "He returns as our village hero." Who Is Randy Gage and Why Is He One of My Mentors and Heroes? Who is Randy Gage? I first read about him in a newsletter by his friend, and another of my mentors and heroes, Stuart Goldsmith. The Code of the Conference Leader Are your meetings generally a waste of time? Do you have trouble getting commitment on the decisions made? The following information is based on "Conference Leadership", an atypical Marine Corps publication that is no longer available to the public (as it has been incorporated into a sensitive and restricted document.)The publication details a method of achieving results from groups and meetings that was far ahead of its time, originally published in 1947. Veins of "stewardship," "dialogue" and "servant leadership" can be seen throughout, though not by those names. Extraordinary People in Mediocre Times My grandfather used to speak of the days when people drove the world. It was a time when people were proud to contribute and move society and industry forward at full steam. But, people were proud of themselves! However, before he died, one of his observations was that "we have come to mediocre times." 3 Dynamic Techniques To Boost Your Executive Leadership! Here's a really simple way to measure the strength of your executive leadership skills. Ask your people to name 3 important reasons why they enjoy working with you. The Three Essential Attributes of a Leader: (Part 2) Bringing Others to the Vision We need to engage our listeners and transform them into excited, willing and committed supporters of the vision - for the duration of delivery! Are You Playing or Practicing Leadership? Anne was a new supervisor, and like many new supervisors she took the new role as a manager and leader seriously. She took advantage of training that was offered to her. She learned how to do performance reviews effectively, listened to other leaders to learn from them. She read several books recommended to her by others. The Flexible Leadership Workshop The Leadership Challenge Leading In The Face Of Disaster The date was Saturday, April 11, 1970, the time 13:13 CST. The event to take place was to be one of NASA's finest hours; the launch of Apollo 13. Apollo 13 was supposed to land in the Fra Mauro area. However, an explosion on board forced the crew to circle the moon without landing. 10 Ways to Develop Your Latent Leader latent (adj.) Not visible or apparent, but capable of developing or being expressed; dormant.
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