Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Is the Recession Over?
Born in Glasgow in 1964, Niall Ferguson, MA, D.Phil., is Laurence A. Tisch Professor of History at Harvard University and William Ziegler Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. He is also a Senior Research Fellow at Jesus College, Oxford University, and a Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. Here are some of his current thoughts on economic recovery:
The Bottom Line Effectiveness of Leaders and the Importance of Inspiration
In other words, good leaders create more economic value than poor leaders and extraordinary leaders create significantly more economic value than the rest.
In the case of the impact of leadership effectiveness on employee satisfaction and commitment, the bottom 10% of leaders were below the 25th percentile on employee satisfaction/commitment, as compared to employees being at the 75th percentile who had leaders at the 90th to 100th percentile.
Here’s another example from the research of the impact of leadership on operational performance: more than 50% of employees who are “thinking about quitting” their jobs report to leaders in the bottom 10% of the leadership pool versus just slightly more than 15% who “think about quitting” their positions who report to leaders in the top 10%. (It’s worth noting that about half of the people in an organisation who are thinking about quitting actually quit within a year!)
The research also found that there is one pivotal competency that is most powerful in distinguishing the top 10th percentile of leaders from the rest and that is the ability to inspire and motivate others to high performance.
Former All Black captain, Sean Fitzpatrick says that one of the most important things he learned during his time leading the Kiwis was the importance of being an inspirational player himself at all times. As he says about his role as captain;
'It’s not about management, doing things right; nor leadership, doing the right things. It’s about Inspiration;
- Inspiration unleashes potential.
- Inspiration is contagious.
- Inspiration is about action.
- Inspiration leaves no one behind.
- Inspiration delivers real results.'
The Effectiveness of Leadership
This equation suggests that leaders must strive for excellence in both terms; that is, they must demonstrate attributes and achieve results.
Each term of the equation multiplies the other; they are not cumulative.
Mentoring Programmes for Professional Service Firms
Contrary to popular belief, mentoring programs are not solely for the young and new in their careers. Even more seasoned professionals find benefit by addressing issues related to personal development, business development, and life/work balance. Mentoring conversations are less about learning the ropes, and more about thinking strategically about goals.
Before you start your search for a mentor, decide what it is you would most want to accomplish through the process. It will help you make the best decision.
Where do you find good mentors? Here are a few places to look:
- Inside your firm. Fortunately, more organisations are identifying ways to help employees create and develop mutually rewarding mentoring relationships. Some offer formal mentoring programmes. Formal mentoring programmes should not be a simple matching game. While it might seem logical to pair a more experienced professional with an individual newer in his career, other issues should be considered first:
- The needs and goals of individuals.
- An individual’s commitment level to personal growth.
- The potential mentor’s commitment level to the process.
- The organisation’s top priorities.
- Outside your firm. There are some mentor programmes that exist apart from the organisation. They attract individuals from a variety of organisations. Participants in these programmes are assigned a mentor from outside the organisation. These programmes help you foster relations beyond your own internal network and across industries.
Not everyone should be in a mentoring programme. These programmes work best for those who are self-motivated and open to change. Mentoring programmes can be structured a variety of ways. Some include peer coaching or group coaching. Ideally a mentoring programme should be integrated with the strategic objectives of the firm. Determine the specific desired outcomes of the programme and measures of success.
You may also consider working with an external coach. An external coach provides a personalised approach to help you achieve specific goals. Explore the possibility of your organisation sponsoring a coaching engagement; otherwise, consider the process an investment in your own development.
Whether you’re working with a coach or a mentor, here are some tips on how to make the process most successful.
- Determine the outcomes both of you want to achieve first. For example, some may want to learn or hone a skill like presenting or strategic planning. Some may want to gain more knowledge about a particular career path. Some may want support dealing with a particular challenge or opportunity.
- Establish best ways to communicate. Will you meet in person, by phone or both? How frequently will you meet? Meetings need not be time consuming when you’re highly focused.
- Set a goal. Set a specific concrete goal to accomplish during a given time frame. Make sure it’s not too general such as, “I want to be a better leader.” Instead it might be something like, “I want to meet with each person in the practice group within 30 days to get feedback.” Initiate a particular meeting or project that helps you exercise the specific skill you want to develop. Being goal focused helps establish greater accountability for results.
- Debrief. Establish checkpoints along the way to assess how things are going for both of you. Determine what would make the relationship or process even better.
While mentoring relationships can be interesting and enjoyable, they should also be productive. These relationships should provide opportunities for both learning and action. The best relationships have the potential to create value for the employee, the mentor and the firm as a whole.
How to Develop the Leadership You Need
A leadership strategy connects the business strategy with the capabilities that are required to succeed. Without proper leadership, even the best and boldest strategies die on the vine, their potential never realised. Without a solid leadership strategy, the most sophisticated talent management and development efforts will be weakened or, worse, become a drain on time and money.
Like business strategies, leadership strategies are based on a thorough analysis of the current situation and an informed view of the future. Leadership strategies make explicit the number of leaders that are needed, of what kind, where and with what skills. They go one step further to clarify how leaders need to behave — individually and collectively — to achieve success.
To understand and develop the leadership of an organisation, several factors should be addressed:
•The quantity of leaders needed, as indicated by current and projected formal leadership positions depicted on an organisation chart (i.e. number, level, location, function, business unit, reporting relationships).
•The qualities desired in selection — demographics, diversity, background, experience level.
•The skills and behaviour that are needed to implement the business strategy and create the desired culture (skills, competencies, knowledge base).
•The collective leadership capabilities of leaders acting together in groups and across boundaries to implement strategies, solve problems, respond to threats, adapt to change and support innovation.
•The desired leadership culture, including the leadership practices in use, such as collaboration across boundaries, engagement of employees, accepting responsibility for outcomes, creating opportunities for others to lead, developing other leaders and learning how to learn.
In much of the work on talent and leadership depth, the focus has been on only the first three of these ways of describing an organisation's leadership. By leaving out collective leadership and leadership culture, we have overlooked what makes leadership come alive in organisations and the factors that often determine whether strategies and plans will actually be achieved.
A good leadership strategy takes all of these factors into account.
Very few organisations have an explicit leadership strategy. Is it any wonder that without one, CEOs find that they don't have the leadership talent they require?
For more information, see - http://www.positiveleadership.co.uk/
The Benefits of Being a Mentor
What is a mentor?
A mentor affects the professional life of a protege by fostering insight, identifying needed knowledge, and expanding growth opportunities. This assistance supplements the coaching an individual already receives from his or her supervisor. Traditionally, the mentoring relationship consists of an experienced executive providing guidance and advice to an associate with less experience. The associate is looking to move up the career ladder, usually by learning from someone who is successful and well respected.
Why become a mentor?
Mentoring gives you the extraordinary opportunity to facilitate a protege's personal and professional growth by sharing knowledge you learned through years of experience. While the primary intent of your mentoring role is to challenge the protege to think in new and different ways, the protege is not the only one who gains from the arrangement. As a mentor, there are various ways you can benefit as well:
- Enhance your skills. The experience you gain by mentoring someone can facilitate your own professional growth, making you more of an asset to your organisation. Mentoring allows you to strengthen your coaching and leadership skills by working with individuals from different backgrounds and with different personality types. Your ability to manage people different from you is a valuable skill, especially as the workplace continues to grow more diverse.
- Develop and retain talent in your organisation. Your role as a mentor can contribute to the success of your entire organisation. By priming promising employees to become top-performing executives and by providing them with the challenges, support, and commitment needed to keep them in your organisation, your mentoring efforts effectively address issues of succession planning and retention.
- Create a legacy. By becoming a mentor, you create a legacy that has a lasting impact on your protege. Not only will you gain the satisfaction of helping to develop future management talent, the knowledge you foster in your protege can inspire new ideas for generations to come. Furthermore, through mentoring, you can help carry on your organisation's legacy by passing on its values and mission to your protege.
The Benefits of Open Dialogue about Leadership
• What does your company value most about its leadership?
• What improvements would you like to see?
• What is your company’s philosophy about leadership?
• What would outstanding leadership enable your company to do better?
• What leadership skills are critical for success?
• What is the impact of your company’s leadership on your employees? Your organisation? Your market? The community?
As you address these kinds of questions, make a commitment to raise the bar on the level of leadership that exists in your organisation. Build your leadership pool, but don’t let potential leaders sit too long. They’re anxious to lead.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Poor Management Drives Half of Workers to Resign From Their Jobs
A recent survey of 3,000 adults showed that one in two would be prepared to take a pay cut if they could work with a better manager. The Chartered Management Institute (CMI) said UK firms invested less in managers than their competitors — and it showed.
Many bosses described themselves as ‘accidental managers’, with no training and no ambition to manage people at all, said the report. CMI chief executive, Ruth Spellman, said: “The figures reveal the depth of the crisis of confidence in UK management and leadership and the enormous toll bad management is taking on the UK economy and people's wellbeing. If we're going to stay competitive internationally, the Government and employers need to address this worrying skills gap."
Inspired Leadership
The answer isn’t ‘out there’ in terms of the best talent and your job is to go and get it. The answer is in you. Can you be inspiring enough to get ordinary people to perform out of their skins, and love doing it? That’s what the best organisations do and that’s what will lead your organisation safely through the downturn.
That’s what Captain Mike Abrashoff did when he turned around a poor-performing US naval ship to become the best-performing ship in the Pacific fleet in just a few months.
When he took command of USS Benfold, one of the most technologically advanced ships in the U.S. Navy’s arsenal, Commander Mike Abrashoff inherited a demoralised crew of “order-takers.” He realised that to be an effective commander, he would not only have to completely revamp USS Benfold’s culture, he would have to do so by abandoning the Navy’s traditional “command and control” model. Employing a grassroots leadership model, Abrashoff transformed his crew from order-takers into empowered decision makers, improving morale, increasing retention from 29% to an unprecedented 100%, and yielding $15 million in savings in one year!
He got his sailors to suggest to him ways of saving money. They did the job, he reasoned, so they were best-placed to suggest how to do it better and cheaper. One nineteen-year-old suggested using stainless steel rivets instead of iron ones. Abrashoff used the ship’s credit card to buy them from Home Depot, because the US Navy’s own procurement people couldn’t supply them. The new rivets, and other initiatives suggested by the crew, saved so much money that in his first year in charge, Abrashoff returned to The Pentagon $600,000 of his $2.4 million maintenance budget and $800,000 of his $3 million repair budget. That year he operated on 75% of his allocated budget. And his ship’s performance figures went through the roof.
“We saved money not because we were consciously trying to,” he explained, “but because my sailors were free to question conventional wisdom and dream up better ways to do their jobs.”
His ability to “envision the ship through the eyes of his crew” became a seminal case study for Fast Company magazine and the Harvard Business Review. This is a back-to-the-basics leadership story that begins at the core of an organisation and transforms its culture from the inside out, and from the top down.
For more on this fascinating story, see - http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/23/grassroots.html
Respect - The Single Most Important Quality in Leadership
'You cannot surround yourself with the smartest and most talented people and then start looking over your shoulder or behind your back, worried that somebody smarter or better might be on your heels. Big mistake.
Being respectful of people, I think, is the single most important quality in leadership — earning the respect of people who work with you, for you, your customers, your investors. That really to me is what defines successful leadership — earning that respect.
By definition if there’s leadership, it means there are followers, and you’re only as good as the followers. I believe the quality of the followers is in direct correlation to the respect you hold them in. It’s not how much they respect you that is most important. It’s actually how much you respect them. It’s everything.'
For more, see - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/08/business/08corner.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1
Monday, November 09, 2009
The Principles of Leadership
Leadership is a choice. Leadership does not just happen. Leadership is a choice we make to live out a vision and purpose daily.
Leaders are made and not born. Leaders know who they are, understand their unique purpose, strengths and skills. They use who they are to bring their vision into the present.
Leaders live their vision. They become the change that they want to see in the world. They set the example and show the way.
Leaders stimulate conversation. Leadership is about making a difference and driving change which stimulates conversation and debate. The ideas that get talked about are the ones worth talking about.
Leaders understand that character matters. Character establishes the foundation for trust. Without trust you cannot lead.
Leaders invest in themselves. Leaders take care of their spiritual, emotional, mental and physical needs.
Leaders are results focused. Leaders initiate and make things happen.
Leaders inspire. Leaders cannot achieve their visions alone. They inspire others to come alongside and participate in the journey.
Leaders leave a legacy. Success is what we do for ourselves whilst legacy is what we do for others. The legacy of leaders is what they do for others and how they have invested in and developed others.
The Importance of Mentors
It is interesting to see the importance which the US Government places on mentoring young people - see, http://www.nationalmentoringmonth.org/ and this video:
Life's Rewards are Directly Proportional to the Efforts We Make
"You have to decide: do you want to make things happen, or do you want to watch things happen. And I've found that people who watch things happen are usually left wondering what happened."
"Success changes as surely as the seasons do. It's a journey and the goals that we reach correspond directly to the distances that we're willing to go. In my opinion, our rewards are directly proportional to the efforts that we make. It's about not quitting at quitting time. The way I see it, the greatest risk isn't in taking the wrong action. It's in letting our fears prevent us from acting at all."
Get a Life!: Leadership Lessons from White House Fellows
by former Fellow Charles Garcia. Here are two:
- There's more to life than work. Great leaders are fueled by strong and supportive relationships with the people they love, regular exercise and setting aside time for reflection. Doris Kearns Goodwin (White House Fellow 1967-68), presidential historian and Pulitzer Prize-winning author, concluded that those who live the richest lives manage to achieve a healthy balance of work, love and play. "To commit yourself to just one of those spheres without the others is to leave open an older age filled with sadness, because once the work is gone, you have nothing left," Goodwin said.
- Put your people first. To be a great leader you need to attend to your people with a laserlike focus. Mitchell Reiss (White House Fellow 1988-89) has seen a leader's focus on people from National Security Adviser and former Secretary of State Colin Powell. At a picnic for National Security Council staff and families, Powell thanked Reiss’ wife for allowing Reiss to work the hours that he worked at the NSC. Reiss recalled, "That very brief but very personal interaction with Powell had an extraordinary impact on her. After he left, she turned to me and said, 'You better do a good job for that man. If you need to stay late at work, I will never complain.' That's the sort of transformative impact that leadership can have.”
Sunday, November 08, 2009
Lest We Forget
The Qualities of Winners
- Winners are less sensitive to disapproval and rejection - they brush it off.
- Winners think 'bottom line'.
- Winners focus on the task at hand.
- Winners are not superstitious - they say, 'That's life'.
- Winners refuse to equate failure with self-worth.
- Winners don't restrict thinking to established, rigid patterns.
- Winners see the big picture.
- Winners welcome challenge with optimism.
- Winners don't waste time in unproductive thought.
Saturday, November 07, 2009
'Attitude' - The Difference Maker in Leading Others
Great leaders understand that the right attitude will set the right atmosphere, which enables the right responses from others.
As Charles Swindoll says:
'The longer I live, the more I realise the impact of attitude on life.
Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company ... a church ... a home.
The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past. We cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable.
The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude ... I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me, and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you ... we are in charge of our attitudes.'
Friday, November 06, 2009
Failure is NOT the Opposite of Success
The perfect example of this view of life is Steve Jobs of Apple, today named by Fortune magazine as its CEO of The Decade:(http://money.cnn.com/2009/11/04/technology/steve_jobs_ceo_decade.fortune/index.htm).
How's this for a gripping corporate story line: Youthful founder gets booted from his company in the 1980s, returns in the 1990s, and in the following decade survives two brushes with death, one securities-law scandal, an also-ran product lineup, and his own often unpleasant demeanour to become the dominant personality in four distinct industries, a billionaire many times over, and CEO of the most valuable company in Silicon Valley.
What Leaders Can Do To Reduce Stress in the Workplace
In the UK, stress and anxiety as well as other mental health problems cost the average size company almost £1,000 a year per employee. In the USA, Harvard Business Review writer A. Perkins, advises that 60-90 percent of medical problems are associated with stress. Princeton, NJ insurance company Foster Higgins Co., reports that 45% of corporate after tax profits are spent on health benefits.
Forty-six percent of US workers report that their job is very stressful, according to Northwestern Life Insurance Company. And a 20-year study from the University of London reveals that unmanaged reactions to stress are more dangerous risk factors for cancer and heart disease than either cigarette smoking or high cholesterol foods.
Forty percent of job turnover in the USA is related to stress (Bureau of National Affairs), When you add in the stress related costs associated with quality control, customer service, sales and administration, you'll find that stress is taking a healthy bite out of your bottom line.
Bill Wilkerson, CEO of Global Business and Economic Roundtable on Addiction and Mental Health, conducted a survey to find the top ten workplace stressors. In a report to the Industrial Accident Prevention Association,Wilkerson listed the following:
"The treadmill syndrome" - employees have too much or too little to do. Some have too many responsibilities and work around the clock - even when away from the workplace. Others fill their days with unproductive busy-work, feeling the stress of knowing they could be more productive.
"Random interruptions" - telephones, walk-in visits, demands from supervisors. Goal setting and time management strategies can increase productivity and alleviate the stressfulness of incomplete projects.
"Pervasive uncertainty" - market conditions, company problems, unsatisfactorily explained and announced change. Economic fluctuations, off-shore job displacement, terrorist attacks, and market conditions all affect stress levels and productivity.
"Mistrust, unfairness, and vicious office politics" - keeps everyone on edge and uncertain about the future. Poor morale and esprit de corps increase stress levels and consume energy that could otherwise be directed at job related activities.
"Unclear policies and no sense of direction in the company" - undermines confidence in management. Development of sound policies is the first step. Management must then keep these policies updated and follow through to insure compliance throughout the ranks. Employees are easily stressed when it appears that management is out of touch.
"Career and job ambiguity" - a feeling of helplessness and lack of control. "How can I succeed if I don't know what's expected of me or if my job here is uncertain?" Stress levels are affected by far reaching market conditions, challenges by competitors, life-cycle of products, and societal influences as well as vagueness within management.
"No feedback - good or bad" - prevents people from knowing how they are doing and whether they are meeting expectations. Stress related to this issue is typically one of management misperception as to the amount, importance, and effectiveness of feedback to employees. Whatever the cause,employees are easily stressed by lack of communication in this area.
"No appreciation" - lack of recognition generates stress that endangers future efforts. Human nature requires that we demonstrate appreciation for jobs well done. Inadequate demonstration of appreciation results in lowered productivity.
"Lack of communications" - up and down the chain of command leads to decreased performance and increased stress. As with feedback, leaders sometimes misunderstand the adequacy and effectiveness of their communications. There are dozens of ways to improve communications, and employees will usually tell you of shortcomings - if they are asked.
"Lack of control" - the greatest stressor in the workplace because employees feel that they have no control over their participation or the outcome of their work. Employees recognise their lack of control when they are held responsible without authority. Stress levels are reduced when employees are involved in setting the course of the organisation, developing policies and strategies, and creating workplace expectations.
Leaders who recognise the high cost of workplace stress can tackle each of these problems. Good stress control gives employees a more pleasant and healthier place to work and puts money on the bottom line.
An informal, conversational survey of your own employees can help you identify the major stressors in your organisation. Professional assistance is available to target all of these issues and develop a strategy to overcome the top ten workplace stressors.
Start with the information you can gather on your own, and work your way forward. Employees will appreciate your efforts.
For the guidelines which have now been issued in the UK to improve mental health in the workplace, see -
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/6502086/Nice-guidelines-on-improving-mental-health-in-the-workplace.html
Thursday, November 05, 2009
Why Do Women Leaders Often Get a Poor Press?
And, if she shows a tear in the corner of her eye, others will wonder if she’s an emotional wreck.
A woman in power struggles constantly with finding an agreeable midpoint: her bosses, employees, or colleagues will call her aggressive when she’s asserting herself. Others will find her style robotic when she’s just focusing on the points she needs to address in an objective way. Assertiveness, strategic approaches, and focused actions have been leadership qualities that are more traditionally attributed to males.
Instead, many people feel more comfortable around women with a more traditionally female-style: a woman who smiles and mediates discord, a woman who will back off and never come off too strong in an argument, even if her point remains vague, or a woman who will show her sensitivity and seem to empathise with everyone’s feelings in spite of not getting the job done.
A strong woman in power will maximise her position, asserting herself in the key issues, addressing them at the core and yet, she will be aware and connected with her audience, listening to their stories, empathising with their challenges, and proposing the commitment to help them out in every possible way.
After all, for all of us looking up to them, all we want is someone who will take care of business, focusing their time in resolving issues rather than in trying to destroy their opponent, someone who knows both because of thorough knowledge and experience and someone who cares.
Great leaders, both male and female, will connect in this way to get things done.
General Colin Powell Receives American Patriot of Character Award
The American Patriot of Character Award honours one American citizen whose leadership exemplifies the very best of the nation's founding principles. The award recognises individuals not only for great success in their chosen field, but also for upholding the highest ethical standards in service of the common good.
"General Powell is a remarkable public servant who has truly made a positive difference in our nation," CEP's executive director Joe Mazzola said. "He is a shining example of integrity for young people, and all American citizens, to emulate. We are honoured to have him as the first recipient of this award."
In his acceptance remarks Powell talked about his family's emphasis on good character and achievement. He said a turning point in his life came about when he entered the ROTC program in college, and it emphasised West Point's code of ethics.
General Powell also congratulated the National Schools of Character award winners who were in attendance to receive their awards. He commended the educators for their efforts to develop students of good character.
The purpose of the National Schools of Character awards programme is to identify, honour, and showcase exemplars in character education and facilitate their leadership in mentoring others. The goal of the national program is to provide a variety of models of comprehensive, quality character education, representing America's diverse educational system.
Here are General Powell's 13 Rules of Leadership:
Why Leadership Depth Matters in an Organisation
Each year, about 25 percent of US managers in typical mid-sized companies change jobs. Most spend an average of four years in a given position. High potential leaders in mid-senior ranks move more frequently: every two to three years. These statistics demonstrate why companies must build solid leadership. Leaders must concentrate on developing their teams, getting the right people in the right jobs and producing results. Good leadership also influences a person’s decision to remain with a company.
Here are ten ideas for building your leadership pool:
1. Transfer knowledge and experience from the top
Companies can capture the wisdom from experienced leaders to aid in educating and developing future leaders.
2. Build relationships across generations
Leadership skills, talents and values differ across generations. Dealing with these differences constructively strengthens the overall leadership of your organisation.
3. Strengthen leadership peer relationships
Often, large organisations operate like a conglomeration of silos. It’s easy for leaders to feel isolated in their roles. Helping leaders learn from each other and strengthening interpersonal relationships build needed peer support and camaraderie.
4. Develop succession plans
Companies shouldn’t wait until the need for a leader is obvious. Careful thought and planning in advance eases the transition.
5. Identify and nurture high-potential leaders
Pay special attention to those employees possessing strong capabilities operating below the radar. They can be the most likely to leave.
6. Provide needed cross departmental learning and exposure
With better knowledge of other departments and the organisational system as a whole, leaders can help your departments function more effectively.
7. Offer executive coaching/real-time learning
Large companies are turning to fresh approaches to help executives learn, get feedback and gain support based on experiential learning. Many executives like the personalised approach.
8. Include more leaders in strategic planning
One of the most common challenges faced by leaders is the need to think and act more strategically. Busy executives struggle to find the time to think about the issues they most want or care about. Their focus is diffused. Fostering strategic thinking early in a leader’s career will serve him or her well in the future.
9. Provide mentoring or coaching support for new managers
Along with a new title and pay raise, new managers should benefit by having stronger initial support through mentoring or coaching programs to help them get acclimated in their new roles.
10. Assess leadership talent
There are a variety of assessments in the marketplace to help companies assess leadership skills, behaviours and values. These tools give leaders insights to help them increase their effectiveness.
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
Operating on Data vs Instinct - An Opportunity for Leaders to Out-Perform?
Our ability to still make good decisions even with incomplete information relies on instinct – a sense of what the right decision is that comes from inside. Often, that voice inside of us is built out of a lot of learning about the world, a lot of experience of both success and failure. Learning trains our instincts so that we can make better decisions with less information.
Historically, a leader, in the end, is a person others rely on to make the difficult decisions and set the direction for everyone. A well-honed instinct is key to being that kind of leader, and a good leader relies on and trusts that voice inside of himself.
However, data mining and the proximity of the internet to most of what we do is changing the proximity of proof to decision and perhaps the role of instinct in a leader's decision making. Now, you don't need to do a lot of research, the data is just a click away. So, what are you going to do when your hunches don't match the data that's now pouring in? The data shows, for example, that texting while driving is more dangerous than driving drunk. It doesn't feel that way, of course, but will you respect the data and stop?
It is now clear that many data-driven findings are counter-intuitive but how long it will take leaders to get their arms around this avalanche of insight. Probably longer than most of us think.
Perhaps sport can shows business leaders the way forward and the significant commercial and competitive advantages of basing decisions on more than just instinct?
When Michael Lewis published Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game
in 2003, it instantly became one of the most influential books about American sports in a generation. Michael Lewis, normally a financial writer, analysed how baseball’s Oakland A’s managed to consistently produce highly competitive teams despite a payroll that was a fraction of their biggest rivals. From 1999 -2006, the A’s finished either first or second in their division, and won over 100 games in both 2001 and 2002. They won more games than any team in baseball other than the Yankees during that period, but had one of the smallest payrolls in baseball. The protagonist in Moneyball was A’s general manager Billy Beane, who looked at potential baseball players in a completely different way from other GMs.
From Lewis’ perspective, Beane was doing what any good executive should do – trying to bring rationality to a completely irrational market. Beane saw that the market for high-end free agents was over-inflated, and the rational tools (primarily baseball statistics) for properly valuing players were underutilised. Beane was able to use those tools to find outstanding players that were completely overlooked by other teams at a fraction of their market cost.
Arsenal has finished in the top four every year for the past decade, and under Wenger has collected three Championships, six FA Cups, and went undefeated for the 2003-2004 EPL season. He has done this while spending a small fraction of what his rivals have spent in the transfer market. If you add up all of Wenger's spending since he joined the team in 1996 and subtract his sales in the transfer market over that time, his net expenditures are £17 million – less than £2 million per year.
(For more on the Wenger approach, see - http://www.epltalk.com/arsene-wenger%E2%80%99s-moneyball-strategy/12292 )
Maybe now is the time for hard pressed leaders to re-evaluate the role of instinct in decision making as they seek to win in the new post-recession environment?
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
Gavin Hastings joins the Board of Positive Leadership Limited
Gavin brings his direct experience of leading successful teams at the highest level of world rugby, as well as his business expertise in the sports marketing and event management arenas, to the advisory and consulting work of Positive Leadership.
The vision of Positive Leadership - to help leaders excel under pressure - is communicated by drawing extensively on lessons from the elite sporting environment. As such, Gavin will play a significant role in assisting our domestic and international clients, in both the business and sporting worlds.
Lions coach, Ian McGeechan said of Gavin; ‘...his greatest asset was to engender confidence in those around him and to lead by example when the opposition had to be taken on.’
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)