Four Capacities Every Great Leader Needs

The following is a great article on leadership that was sent my way. It is written by Tony Schwartz.

Develop a work environment that compels employees to give the highest value to your company. by Tony Schwartz


WHEN I WAS a very young journalist, full of bravado and barely concealed insecurity, Ed Kosner, editor of Newsweek, hired me to do a job I wasn't sure I was capable of doing. Thrown into deep water, I had no choice but to swim. But I also knew he wouldn't let me drown. His confidence buoyed me.

Some years later, I was hired away by Arthur Gelb, the managing editor of The New York Times. This time, I was seduced by Gelb's contagious exuberance about being part of a noble fraternity committed to putting out the world's greatest newspaper.

Over the last dozen years, I've worked with scores of CEOs and senior executives to help them build more engaged, high-performance cultures by energizing their employees. Along the way, I've landed on four key capacities that show up, to one degree or another, in the most inspiring leaders I've met.

1. Great leaders recognize strengths in us that we don't always yet fully see in ourselves.

This is precisely what Kosner did with me. He provided belief where I didn't yet have it, and I trusted his judgment more than my own. It's the Pygmalion effect: expectations become self-fulfilling.

Both positive and negative emotions feed on themselves. In the absence of Kosner's confidence, I simply wouldn't have assumed I was ready to write at that level.

Because he seemed so sure I could - he saw better than I did how my ambition and relentlessness would eventually help me prevail - I wasted little energy in corrosive worry and doubt.

Instead, I simply invested myself in getting better, day by day, step by step. Because we can achieve excellence in almost anything we practice with sufficient focus and intention, I did get better, which fed my own confidence and satisfaction, and my willingness to keep pushing myself.

2. Rather than simply trying to get more out of us, great leaders seek to understand and meet our needs, above all a compelling mission beyond our immediate self-interest, or theirs.

Great leaders understand that how they make people feel, day in and day out, has a profound influence on how they perform.

We each have a range of core needs - physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. Great leaders focus on helping their employees meet each of these needs, recognizing that it helps them to perform better and more sustainably.

Arthur Gelb helped me meet not just my emotional need to be valued, but also my spiritual need to be engaged in a mission bigger than my own success. Far too few leaders take the time to figure out what they truly stand for, beyond the bottom line, and why we should feel excited to work for them.

3. Great leaders take the time to clearly define what success looks like, and then empower and trust us to figure out the best way to achieve it.

One of our core needs is for self-expression. One of the most demoralizing and infantilizing experiences at work is to feel micromanaged. The job of leaders is not to do the work of those they lead, but to serve as Chief Energy Officer - to free and fuel us to bring the best of ourselves to work everyday.

Part of that responsibility is defining, in the clearest possible way, what's expected of us - our concrete deliverables. This is a time-consuming and challenging process, and most leaders I've met do very little of it. When they do it effectively, the next step for leaders is to get out of the way.

That requires trusting that employees will figure out for themselves the best way to get their work done, and that even though they'll take wrong turns and make mistakes, they learn and grow stronger along the way.

4. The best of all leaders have the capacity to embrace their own opposites, most notably vulnerability alongside strength, and confidence balanced by humility.

This capacity is so powerful because all of us struggle, whether we're aware of it or not, with our self-worth. We're each vulnerable to believing, at any given moment, that we're not good enough.

Great leaders don't feel the need to be right, or to be perfect, because they've learned to value themselves in spite of shortcomings they freely acknowledge. In turn, they bring this generous spirit to those they lead.

The more leaders make us feel valued, in spite of our imperfections, the less energy we will spend asserting, defending and restoring our value, and the more energy we have available to create value.

All four capacities are grounded in one overarching insight. Great leaders recognize that the best way to get the highest value is to give the highest value.

Tony Schwartz is the president and CEO of The Energy Project and the author of The Way We're Working Isn't Working.

Let us know your thoughts on this article!

Failure to Launch: Reasons Company Strategies Don’t Succeed

Today's post is written by David Mead of Mead Consulting. We couldn't agree more with what Dave has to say.

In 2008, I heard a presentation by Michael Canic of Bridgeway Leadership who discussed the reasons that strategies fail. He quoted statistics that over 65% of all strategies fail to reach expectations. Why do so many business strategies fail? Below are some key reasons. Knowing the barriers to successful planning and execution is the first step. Clients that follow our recommendations have been significantly outperformed the competition. We like to say, “A good plan, well executed, beats a great plan, poorly executed, every time.” Contact us if you would like more information.

1. No clear definition of success

Fuzzy goals lead to fuzzy outcomes. While it seems obvious, many organizations simply don’t articulate the specific goal of a business strategy. If the goal of your customer intimacy strategy is to form deeper customer relationships, that’s fuzzy. If the goal is to increase customer retention by 10 percent and increase annual revenue per customer by $10,000 and net profit by $1,000, that’s clear. Here, deeper customer relationships may be the mechanism to achieve the goal.

2. Too many goals

When everything is a priority, nothing gets accomplished. Many so-called strategic plans have too many goals, objectives, success drivers, strategies, initiatives and so on. Worse, it’s not clear how these various appendages are linked. Is it any surprise these plans sit on shelves and collect dust? Choose to do fewer things much better.

3. Metrics and Alignment - Either no metrics or vague metrics

Many plans are simply a brainstormed list of things to get done by unspecified people at indeterminate times. A plan with specifics outlines who will do what by when. It takes into account the sequencing and timing of tasks, activities and resources. Make certain that the goals of everyone in the organization are aligned to the few key objectives.

4. Visibility - Progress isn’t measured and managed

Ever notice how plans placed in the spotlight flourish while those left in the dark shrivel? Any plan worth executing is worth tracking. A monthly meeting with a tight agenda can quickly determine what actions have been taken; what progress has been made; what will be accomplished over the next month and by whom, and what, if any, challenges have emerged. This builds commitment, accountability and confidence in the process.

5. You lack the right people

Some of those nice people who work for you may not be the right people to get the job done. That statement makes you uncomfortable, doesn’t it? Many have been loyal, are committed to the culture, and may be friends and family. However, If you are truly committed to winning, or achieving success - however you define it - then at some point you have to take a long, hard, honest look at the capabilities of your people. Point them in the right direction, support them, develop them – give them a fair chance to succeed. But if they can’t get it done, then your responsibility is to get people who can.

6. Flexibility – Failure to update the plan to stay real

Reserve the right to do what makes sense. Plans are based on assumptions that can change over time. If they do change, then the plan may need to change. A quarterly “recalibration” meeting is a good forum to test your assumptions and determine which, if any, have changed. The meeting may result in either a revalidation or redesign of the plan. It ensures the plan stays real and relevant.

7. Reaction to Failure - Failure is met with indifference or an inquisition

Is your team serious about its definition of success? Your response to failure sends a clear message about your commitment to winning. Just as importantly, it sends a message about your credibility. Do you ignore a failed initiative and move on to the next big thing (which conveys that you really weren’t that committed and you shouldn’t be taken seriously)? Do you look for scapegoats (which communicates that you don’t take personal responsibility and can’t be trusted)? Or do you first look in the mirror, take responsibility, then publicly commit to getting it right, and effectively engage your people to make it happen? Your choice speaks volumes about who you are as a leader.

Let us know your thoughts.

Help Great People Do Great Things

Last week at the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) Denver luncheon, the keynote speaker was Jerre Stead, President and CEO of IHS. IHS is closing in on $1 Billion in revenue. Since 2005 the company has made 33 acquisitions. Since completing its IPO in 2005, the company revenues have more than doubled and EBITDA has grown about fourfold. SUffice to say, their performance over the past few years is worth noting.

Jerre Stead's message to the audience was straightforward - The Role of the CEO is to "Help Great People do Great Things." He then described five principles that he uses to operate IHS.

1. People are the only sustainable competitive advantage
   Treat them all with equal dignity and respect. There are no "perks" for anyone at IHS.
   
   
2. 100% trust of every person in the company
   At one point, Stead ordered the detailed IHS policy manuals (with hundreds and hundreds of policies) be shredded. "Do we need guidelines? Absolutely! But, if you let people use their best judgment, you never know how great they can be."
   
   
3. Invest in training and development
   "If I had an extra dollar, I'd spend it on training and development." It's the best investment you can make and its the surest way to reduce involuntary turnover.
   
   
4. Facts are our friends
   
   • Not masses of information, but "actionable facts".
   • "Give me three important facts that will help me make a decision."
   • One of Steads comments was that all proposed decisions at IHS require the generation of a "one-pager." On the one-pager is the summary of the proposal, what decision you are looking for and "three facts that will help me make the decision."
   • You can always ask for more detail, but get the key facts and help me make the decision.
   • You never have enough facts, but if you wait to make the decision until you have all the facts, it typically is too late.
     
     
5. Have an intense internal and external intellectual curiosity about customers
   All senior meetings start with some interaction about customers.
   
   
6. Reward ... Reward ... Reward ...
   HE said there were five principles, but he added a sixth very important one. Remember to reward employees continually for company success.
   

Share your thoughts on Jerre Stead's key principles.

Managing Your Way to More Effective Meetings

Meetings are integral to business. Whether you are running a meeting or participating in a meeting, there are things that all of us can do to improve the overall success of every meeting. So, today’s post is some simple tips and tricks to make your meetings more effective.

First and foremost, do you need to hold a meeting? Meetings cost time and money, both of which are valuable. Hold meetings only when necessary, and ensure that they are concise and constructive. Here are some questions to ask yourself:

• Is the purpose of the meeting clear to everyone?
• Does everyone need to attend the entire meeting?
• Is there a better way of addressing the issues than having a meeting?
• Are there other people who do not usually attend your meetings who might make a useful contribution this time?
• Will the meeting benefit from the use of any visual aids?

Once you’ve answered the above questions then you can decide what kind of meeting you need. Is it an informal meeting, more formal, a 1-1 meeting, etc.? And of course, don’t forget the logistics. In this day and age it is not uncommon to have people conference in or even have a video link of some form. Don’t forget to make sure you remote attendees feel like they are part of the meeting.

The next two tips are near and dear to my heart. Have an agenda and set the time and stick to it. There is nothing worse than having meeting times not honored. Here is a format you might want to use for setting your meeting agenda‘s –

Purpose: describe the purpose of the meeting. Be as specific as you can.

Agenda: describe the agenda. Again, be specific. Sometimes it makes sense to put time blocks by each agenda item, as well as the presenter, if appropriate.

Logistics: this defines where the meeting will be held, what time, conference call-in and video link information as well as reminders to turn off cell phones, etc.

Outcome: this describes what you want to have occur by the end of the meeting. It might be a decision, a set of steps to move something forward, etc. Again, you want people to leave the meeting with a sense of accomplishment. This will also keep people focused on the agenda at hand as it should be all about obtaining the outcome.

As for meeting times, well, set them and honor them. If you have an hour meeting then your agenda needs to be realistic as to what you can cover in an hour.

And last but not least, here are two other quick tips if you are running the meeting.

• If you are running the meeting, then you need to actively listen to others, facilitate the meeting and not talk throughout the entire meeting. You should be taking notes during the meeting which can be disseminated, if appropriate, after the meeting. Most people don’t enjoy meetings where the organizer dominates the conversation.
• When action items are assigned, they need to be S.M.A.R.T –
  
  

Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Resourced
Time-bound

For every action/activity that the meeting attendees feel need to happen, you need to make sure that there the action is clearly defined and measurable, has an owner responsible for it and has a due date. If your actions aren’t S.M.A.R.T they likely won’t get done on time.

There are many books written on effective meetings but these few simple tips will go a long way to improving the overall effectiveness of meetings within you r organization. In short, prepare for the meeting, hold the meeting, and then follow-up by sending out the minutes and making sure people are clear on their actions. If another meeting is required, you may want to think about scheduling it while everyone is there in the room with their calendars in front of them!

Let me know how this helps you save meeting time and money.