The Flying V - a mutually beneficial relationship between leader and followers

Chicago finally received its first “real” snow of the season.  Snow gently sifted on us for 20 hours until we woke up today with bright sunshine and "8.”  I live in an urban setting, so it is a social imperative to get out first thing and shove the communal sidewalk.  The next order of business is to get the family dog out for a good run in the snow-covered park.   We were running mid-shin deep in snow when we first heard it.  We stopped and looked.  It was the flying V.

This is not a blog about the classic Gibson rock-n-roll electric guitar that originated in 1957 (http://www.flying-v.ch/).  It is about a gaggle of geese.

These geese were flying south; something they probably regret not doing sooner than a 17° day in January.  What I found fascinating was the honking.  Geese fly in a V formation.  This allows one goose to expend more energy by being the leader at the tip of the V while each successive goose gets the benefit of drafting.  In return, all the following geese honk their encouragement to the leader, thus giving the leader more impetus to fly faster and farther.  It is a mutually beneficial relationship between leader and followers.

From the leader’s perspective, this is a classic example of what can be accomplished when you have encouragement.  Having an advocate can get you through those times when you are tired, stressed, or so deep in the thick of a problem that you cannot see the forest for the trees. We all have had the relief that comes after talking to someone who knows us and our work, who tells us about the success in the bigger picture.  Advocates, cheerleaders if you will, are also a benefit when they acknowledge and celebrate our successes.  They incent us to achieve again and again.  Cheerleaders can give us the extra push that gets us where we want to be. 

Just like the geese, there is a benefit for the cheerleader too.  In the January-February 2012 Harvard Business Review, Shawn Achor authored an article called Positive Intelligence.  In the article, he points out that his research shows that the employees who “score the highest in providing social support are 40% more likely to receive a promotion in the following year.”  In addition, they feel higher job satisfaction.  By being a cheerleader you are not only providing support for others but boosting your own tangible and intangible rewards. 

Whenever you come across an action that has win-win possibilities, try it out!  After all, what is good for the goose, is also good for the gander.

Thought Time

“I wish I had more time to think about my business. I’m so involved in running this place, it’s hard to find time to deeply consider where we're going.”  If this sounds at all too familiar, you're not alone. 

For the senior executive, there never seems to be enough time. 

Business is a contact sport and without action (execution) nothing happens. But opportunities can be missed when you don’t deliberately put aside personal time to think about your business.

The Wall Street Journal ran an article a few years back about Bill Gates describing how he deliberately carved out two weeks each year for this singular purpose. These “Think Weeks” involved seven days of self-imposed seclusion to “ponder the future of technology and then propagate those thoughts across the Microsoft empire.” He devoured journals, papers and most importantly, the many ideas submitted by Microsoft employees. 

This was no vacation.  He worked up to 18 hours each day. “By the week’s end Mr. Gates would read 100 papers, send e-mails to hundreds of people and write a Think Week summary for executives.” The results were impressive.  One Think Week led Microsoft to develop its Internet browser which sealed Netscape’s doom. 

Consider setting aside some dedicated personal time to think about your business’ challenges and opportunities from both your perspective and those of your employees. It will likely pay dividends.

What should you do to ensure your political behavior is channeled positively?

Note: The following is also posted in our LinkedIn Group (as a discussion topic), The Executive Challenge.
 
Politics are a part of the human condition; so, business affairs are rife with political behavior.  This really isn’t good or bad.   What maters is how we manage this reality. As executives, we need to wade through political waters effectively by leveraging the positive aspects and minimizing the negatives ones. 

Webster’s defines politics this way: Political affairs of business: competition between groups or individuals for power and leadership.  Anyone with kids has seen this play out from the earliest years.  My twins were keeping score from the time they were infants.  They watched closely for signs that they were receiving their fair share of attention and competed for power in simple and effective ways.  They learned and developed as they competed with one another. They were being political.

Let’s look at business executives. A business leader is expected to bring in the best talent, create a high performing organization, and hit the numbers.  In the thrust and parry of competition, there will be winners, losers and a good dose of political behavior.  When managed correctly, politics are healthy.  When ignored, our competitive drives can lead to bad behavior and hurt a business’s ability to execute.  Bad behavior can play out in many ways and most of us can recite our fair share of examples.

So what should the leader do to ensure political behavior is channeled positively?   

In my mind's eye, it’s all about simply and clearly communicating your values. 

Values act as the lighthouse, keeping your team off the rocks, and focusing them on what’s important. Simple values are best and the fewer the better.  

Here is an example of three simple values that during the heat of competition, can keep your team “off the rocks.”

Straight Talk            Lou Gerstner used this effectively at IBM.  

                                    Tell Lou “your truth,” not what you think he wants to hear.

Teamwork                We get there together

Accountability         We must choose to be accountable and not engage in the “Blame Game”.

Values must be communicated simply, concisely, and FREQUENTLY.  In every interaction, you should consciously model them.  With the passage of time, they will become second nature and ever present.  

You may see the rocks, but you won’t hit them.

When you think about politics, think about values. Your team will appreciate it.

Protecting objectivity will increase effectiveness

Webster defines objectivity as “treating or dealing with facts without distortion by personal feelings or prejudices.”  No one can divorce feelings completely from decisions or judgments.  Feelings are part of being human and in fact, having feelings make us human.  However, as a business leader, you need to remain vigilant that feelings don’t over ride facts. 

People issues are fertile ground for distorting objectivity.  When we think about the quality of our people, we often have our favorites.  People we have personally hired are in this category as well as people who have qualities similar to our own.  All of this can lead to a serious leadership trap: overestimating the talent of your organization.

This is a common tendency we often observe, even at the highest levels.  It can seriously impact performance, morale, and succession planning.  One way to avoid this trap is to BE AWARE and honest about your feelings when it comes to people in your organization.  Seek outside evaluations from time to time as well.  A third party can see things that you simply can’t.

Having strong people in the right roles is the surest way to drive high performance.  By accepting your human vulnerabilities, you can protect your objectivity and increase the effectiveness of your team.

Your calendar says a lot……

Time seems to always be in short supply for the senior executive. 

“If I had more time I could spend it with my people.” 

“Of course it would be great to visit that facility, but I just don’t have the time.”  

No doubt, when you are leading an organization, everyone needs you and your time is under constant pressure.

One of the simplest ways to get a handle on your time is to put two documents in front of you: your calendar and your business goals.  

Look closely at every appointment that found its way onto your calendar for the next four weeks.

How well do these meetings, calls, and other obligations match up with achieving your business goals? 

Do they have a close “line of sight” or do you have to talk yourself into making them relevant? 

To be sure, if you don’t have time to develop your people, something is probably out of whack.  

What could be more important? Your calendar is all about your priorities.  

Don’t be a victim by letting others decide what is relevant to your mission.  Continually ask the question, “How does this specific time allocation relate to hitting my business goals?”  

By using this filter and allocating your time accordingly, you’ll be ensuring that time truly is on your side.

Feedback is Fuel

We have all heard broadcasters, media moguls, and actors of every stripe discuss the importance of ratings.  With the proliferation of media options this has become even more important.

For a broadcaster, ratings are the scorecard.  Without constant ratings feedback, there is no way to know how well a show has been received by the audience. Certainly the advertisers who are paying big bucks for a brief commercial want to know about ratings.

As a business leader, you should think about your ratings.  

Are you receiving high quality, regular feedback on your performance?  If not, why not?  Could you be preventing feedback from getting to you by your actions and behavior?   In other words, are the people around you comfortable giving you candid feedback?  Do they feel they can without paying a price? (And by the way, I am really not talking about the typical annual performance appraisal. By the time you get that feedback, it’s often too late.)

We can prevent feedback from getting to us simply by sending signals (consciously or unconsciously) that we don’t want to hear it.  Consider facial expressions and other non-verbal ques.  Of course, biting someone’s head off is another way to shut down the feedback pipeline.

What happens? 

You hear little or nothing about how you are doing from those who matter most.  This is like having a TV show without ratings. How can you be effective if you don’t know how your audience is feeling about you?

Frequent high quality feedback is like rocket fuel. 
Feedback enables course corrections, reduces errors in judgment, and stimulates performance.  In other words, it makes you better.  Ultimately, that’s what it’s all about.  


How good is the quality of the feedback you’ve been getting lately?

Accepting fear will allow you to move foward in your business

My father was visiting over the holidays and reminiscing about his days as a Navy pilot. Being eighty eight years old and a WWII veteran, he is part of a small and shrinking group of men and women who came of age during a time of war.

As a carrier pilot in the Pacific theater, my father had to learn how to manage his fear. He describes his first carrier landing as the most terrifying experience of his life; one he recalls vividly today. There are no heroic images in his recollection, only feelings of paralyzing fear and disbelief. Is it really possible to land a plane on what appeared to be a “matchbook bobbing and weaving" on the surface of the ocean?

When his wheels first hit the deck and the arresting wires grabbed the tail hook, he realized it was possible; he had made it. His fear transformed into belief and the elation of accomplishment took over.  He said: “Once I admitted to myself that I was terrified, a sense of relief overcame me and I believed I could do it.”

Many executives don’t like to admit they are afraid. Instead of managing their fear, they pretend it doesn’t exist. Unfortunately, this denial prevents them from taking important and decisive action; they never “land the plane!"

Not landing the plane includes among other things: sticking with a strategy that is successful today, when all indications point to it failing tomorrow, keeping quiet on a point of principle to avoid “ruffling feathers,” waiting too long to admit to a mistake, and delaying action on popular yet poor performing executives. Any of these mistakes can cause your leadership to “crash into the ocean.”

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Admit to yourself that you are afraid. Even better, admit to someone else you trust and respect. Accepting fear is managing fear. It allows you to make the tough calls, move your business forward, and bring the plane in safely.

Happy New Year!

Are Suppy Chain Leaders Ready for the Top?

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Common Sense---a (business) notion that has been around for a long time...

Ben Franklin often spoke of common sense with such notable quotes as "If you would be wealthy, think about saving as well as getting” and “Creditors have better memories than debtors." 

Ben’s practical approach to life was admired by many and certainly has much to teach us about executive leadership.

In business, complexity is the enemy of common sense. When business ideas are allowed to flourish in the form of highly complicated and confusing concepts, common sense is often a casualty. Complexity hides basic truths and we don’t have to look very far to find examples

Senior executives must constantly be on guard for ideas that are too hard to explain, are expressed with emotion rather than logic, and are pitched with certainty, often by individuals convinced of their superior intellect.  “Trust me on this one, I completely understand the issues.”   To ensure common sense prevails you should:
 

o     Ask pointed questions and listen carefully.  Questions are almost always more useful than statements.  Poor listening is behind many bad decisions.

o     Encourage aggressive debate and give your team permission to engage in conflict when considering important decisions.  Let them know it is okay to “get into it”, notwithstanding personal attacks.

o    Seek input from diverse sources both within and external to your organization. Check out your thinking with those you trust to tell you the unvarnished truth. 

o    Recognize the natural role your emotions play in decision making. Emotions can override judgment; learn to question your emotions.

In business, common sense is an important litmus test for good decision making.  By asking questions like, “Does the idea pass the reasonableness test?"  

Would I do this with my own money?  
Can the idea be expressed simply?  
Is it supported by facts? 

These are the kind of questions Ben would likely ask.  

We would all do well to heed his wisdom; it is as relevant today as it was 250 years ago.