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LeadershipA Dialog on Understanding
and Application
Kelvin K. Droegemeier
CHEM 52138 December 2011
We’re Bombarded with Material on Leadership but do we Really
Understand It?
What Does the Word “Leadership” Mean to You?
Do You See Yourself as a Leader? If so, in What Ways?
What Individuals Have Been Important Leaders in Your Life?
Why?
Leadership: Searching for a Definition
Leadership: Searching for a Definition
Leadership: Searching for a Definition
¨ Powerful/influential¨ Intelligent¨ Mobilize people and resources to work toward
a common goal¨ Effectuate positive change¨ People of high values/standards/ethics – role
models¨ Well known/famous – leave a legacy¨ Operate with a mixture of formal and informal
authority
But What Makes Them Leaders?
¨ Money?¨ Pedigree/education?¨ Beliefs?¨ Actions?¨ Personalities?¨ Looks?¨ Connections?¨ Work ethic?¨ Chance?
¨ "Leadership is a combination of strategy and character. If you must be without one, be without the strategy."
- Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf
Leadership: Searching for a Definition
¨ Powerful/influential¨ Intelligent¨ Mobilize people and resources to work toward
a common goal¨ Effectuate positive change¨ Role models¨ People of high values/standards/ethics¨ Well known/famous¨ Operate exclusively with formal authority,
usually by coercion
Leadership: Searching for a Definition
What Other Adjectives Work?¨ Demagogue¨ Dictator¨ Madman¨ Control Freak¨ Other….?
According to Webster…¨ Leadership is the position, office, or term
of a leader¨ A leader is one who
– Directs– Guides– Is in command– Has influence
That’s Sort of a Useless Working Definition!
¨ It ignores values/ethics¨ It does not describe the work of
leadership¨ It does not distinguish between a shift
worker at a restaurant and 4-star general!
¨ Leadership is inexorably tied to values, morality, and ethics
Key Facts About Leadership
¨ We shape our values early in life, and thereafter our values shape us
¨ Respect cannot be demanded, it must be earned – by giving it away.
Key Facts About Leadership
¨ Look at how long these people have been in power or the influence they have!
¨ Do you think they ultimately will succeed?
Do You Buy This??
What Does History Tell Us?
¨ Leadership seeks positive outcomes to benefit others – a servant viewpoint
Key Facts About Leadership
The Servant Leader - Humility
¨ Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less
¨ “We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give."
- Winston Churchill
Key Facts About Leadership¨ Leadership is called forth by crisis and
challenge and helps shape it, but is not produced by it
LIFE: Is Difficult!!LEADERSHIP: Is Difficult!!¨ “This is a great truth, one of the greatest
truths. Once we truly know that life is difficult – once we truly understand and accept it – then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters.”
- Scott Peck (The Road Less Traveled)
What is our Response?
¨ “…[we] moan…about the enormity of [our] problems…as if life should be easy. [We] voice [our] belief…that [our] difficulties represent a unique kind of affliction...visited upon [our] families, tribe, class, nation, race, or species…and not on others.”
- Scott Peck (The Road Less Traveled)
A Dose of Reality
¨ More than 1 billion people live on less than $1 per day
¨ 6 million children under the age of five die each year from malnutrition
¨ More than 800 million people go to bed hungry every day; 300 million are children
¨ More than 40% of the world’s population does not have basic sanitation or access to clean water
The Good News
¨ …It is in this whole process of meeting and solving problems that life has its meaning. Problems call forth our courage and our wisdom; indeed, they create our courage and wisdom.”
- Scott Peck (The Road Less Traveled)
Leadership¨ In a nutshell, that’s what leaders do –
they solve problems¨ But they do so in a way fundamentally
different than what you might imagine
Two Words that Often are Confused: Leadership and Management¨ Leadership and Management are very
different, though some confuse them as being nearly synonymous
¨ Few people are effective leaders and managers
Leadership and Management
¨ Management– is about coping
with complexity–brings order and
consistency out of potential chaos
–applies knownsolutions andstrategies
“Leader” of a Baseball Team??
Leadership and Management¨ Leadership
– is about coping with or planningchange, especially if it’s sudden
The Generals Managed Our Troops into Battle???
¨ "Management is efficiency in climbing the ladder of success; leadership determines whether the ladder is leaning against the right wall."
- Stephen R. Covey
¨ "Management is doing things right…
Leadership is doing the right things."
- Peter Drucker
Leadership and Management: Parallel but Not Equal¨ Management
– Creating a plan– Defining steps– Establishing a
structure– Allocating
resources– Executing the plan– Controlling situations
and solving problems
Leadership and Management: Parallel but Not Equal¨ Leadership
–Developing a visionand setting direction
–Defining strategies –Aligning, motivating,
and inspiring people–Testing reality–Delegating work
The Reality of Vision
¨ The crucial feature of visions is that they must serve the interests of the constituency
Important Facts¨ Management controls people by pushing
them in the right direction¨ Leadership motivates people by drawing
them in a way that satisfies the basic human needs for– achievement– recognition– self-esteem– a sense of belonging
Are You a Leader??¨ The role of the leader is to take people on
journeys where they’ve not been before– By definition, you don’t know how to get there!!!
¨ “Never walk the traveled path because it only leads you where the others have been” (Alexander Graham Bell)
¨ Leaders hate, and instinctively challenge, the status quo!
Are You a Leader??¨ You know you’re a leader if you…
– feel you can do things better, and know how to do them better, without offending those in authority
– are comfortable being challenged– are comfortable with being under authority– are comfortable with crediting other people for things
you helped accomplish¨ How many of these fit you?
Major Tenants of Leadership¨ Leadership involves coping with or
producing useful change in response to challenges, problems or opportunities
¨ Leadership can be exercised with or without formal authority
Major Tenants of Leadership¨ Leadership involves coping with or
producing useful change in response to challenges, problems or opportunities
¨ Leadership can be exercised with or without formal authority
Producing Useful Change
¨ Problems -- when circumstances do not conform to the way we think things ought to be
¨ Two solutions– Apply a known technical fix (management)– Develop solutions that previously were
unknown (leadership) – known as adaptive change
Examples
¨ Someone doesn’t show up for work
Examples
¨ Terrorism threat in the United States
Major Tenants of Leadership¨ Leadership involves coping with or
producing useful change in response to challenges, problems or opportunities
¨ Leadership can be exercised with or without formal authority
Leading With Formal Authority¨ Conferred in exchange for protection,
direction, conflict control¨ Based on a set of expectations or a job
description¨ Essentially a formal contract – it can be
revoked or walked away from¨ Pros and cons
– Breadth and completeness of information– Must operate within specific bounds– Must operate at a distance from the front lines
Leading With Formal Authority
Leading With Informal Authority
¨ Based upon trust, reputation, civility, admiration, creativity and availability
¨ It can never be revoked, though the trust relationship can be broken and the reputation damaged
¨ This is the most powerful type of authority– Can deviate from norms of decision making– Can focus on hard issues– Can get closer to the experiences of the stakeholders
down in the trenches, where relationships are developed
Leading With Informal Authority
Authority is ALWAYS Present¨ If you don’t learn to lead “under,” you’ll
have few opportunities to lead “over.”¨ You cannot have authority unless you are
under authority (formal or informal)– President (Constitution, Courts)– Policemen/policewomen (Laws)– Professors (Chairs, Deans)– Students (Professors)– Children (Parents)
Is Leadership “A Part of Who You Are,” or Can it be
Learned?
The Key is Intelligence!¨ Part I: Intellect
– Intellectual capacity (IQ)– Technical expertise– Knowledge and experience
The Key is Intelligence!¨ Part I: Intellect
– Intellectual capacity (IQ)– Technical expertise– Knowledge and experience
¨ Part II: Emotions– 90% of the difference between outstanding
and average leaders is due to emotional intelligence (EI)
– It’s twice as important as IQ and technical expertise combined
– It is THE differentiating factor in leadership
You’ve Experienced This!¨ Have you been around people that don’t
have a clue when they offend others?¨ What instructors did you enjoy or value
the most?– The really brilliant one who cared nothing
about you individually? or …– The one who was really smart (can’t be a
professor otherwise) but made an effort to learn about your plans and dreams?
¨ People are persuaded by reason, but moved by emotion; [the leader] must both persuade them and move them."
- Richard M. Nixon
Emotional Intelligence (EI)¨ The capacity for recognizing our feelings
and those of others; for motivating ourselves and others; for managing emotions in ourselves and in our relationships– #1a: Understanding yourself (self-awareness)– #1b: Managing yourself (self-regulation)– #2a: Understanding others (empathy)– #2b: Managing others (motivation, social skills)
Self-Awareness/Self-Perception¨ This is a key aspect of being a leader¨ The ability to recognize and understand
your moods, emotions, and drives, as well as their effect on others– Self-confidence (but not arrogance)– Self-assessment– Self-deprecating sense of humor (rolling with
the punches)¨ What are my strengths and weaknesses?
Knowing Yourself¨ “Good timber does not grow with ease;
the stronger the wind, the stronger the trees” - J. Willard Marriott
Knowing Yourself¨ Taking criticism – tough medicine to
swallow, but usually always valuable
Knowing Yourself¨ Giving criticism -- kindly?¨ Leaders have to bring correction, but
HOW it’s brought can make or literally break someone
Knowing Yourself
¨ Being aware of how people respond to you
Self-Regulation
¨ This is another key aspect of being a leader¨ Self-regulation is the ability to manage your
emotions and reactions– Creates an environment of trust, safety, and fairness– Discourages those around you from losing control or
reacting impulsively¨ Bad scenes stick in people’s minds¨ Others can and should be understanding, but
SELF-regulation -- is up to YOU!
Social Awareness/Skills¨ Empathy – do you understand others and
take an interest in their concerns?¨ Are you concerned with serving the needs
of others – do you put others ahead of yourself?
¨ Do you encourage others, inspire, and communicate well?
¨ Do you foster relationships?
¨ This requires that you see the difference between you and your role . . .
¨ . . . and that you put yourself in another person’s shoes – empathy
The Other Side of Leadership¨ Leaders are under pressure to
restore equilibrium and produce solutions
¨ Emotions usually suggest squashing those who raise disturbing questions
¨ Annoyance is often a signal of opportunity
¨ Deviants are a leader’s best friend!
¨ Power abusers over-value themselves and under-value or de-value others–The “I owe this to myself” syndrome
¨ Power abusers use people, often without realizing it
¨ Power abusers often don’t take the time to deal with the root cause of problems
¨ Power abusers often are blind to counsel because of their “positional ego”
Beware of Power!
Key Characteristics of Leaders¨ A true leader is likely to be one who has no
desire to lead, but is forced into a position of leadership by the press of the external situation.
¨ I believe it might be accepted as a fairly reliable rule of thumb that the man who is ambitious to lead is disqualified as a leader. (A.W. Tozer)
¨ The true leader will be as ready to follow as to lead, and when a wiser and more gifted man than himself appears, he will step aside.
As a Leader, You’re Going to Make Mistakes!! How to Deal With Them?
¨ "I've missed over 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times I've been trusted to take the game-winning shot . . . and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."
- Michael Jordan
It’s a Fact of Life
¨ Cover it up, quickly!– Totally a protection of our ego– We put the focus on ourselves rather than
others
What is Our Usual Response to Having Made a Mistake?
¨ “Never let them see you sweat”¨ This is the worst advice in the world¨ Remember about acknowledging our
strengths and weaknesses?¨ Think how others will respond to
your mistakes if you come across as perfect and full of infinite wisdom!
Being Human
Being Human
¨ "It is necessary for us to learn from others' mistakes. You will not live long enough to make them all yourself."
-- Adm. Hyman G. Rickover
Ethics in Leadership/Science¨ From the Greek “ethos,” ethics is the
critical inquiry about the adequacy of any morality
¨ Morality is group norms for acceptable behavior that give the possibility for continued membership
¨ You must know where you stand because this determines your actions
Values
Values
Beliefs
Values
Beliefs
Attitudes
Values
Beliefs
Attitudes
Behaviors
Values
Beliefs
Attitudes
Behaviors
Credibility is lost when behavior is inconsistent with values
¨ Character and virtue are inseparable from leadership and ethics
¨ The true judge of character is what one would do if no one could find out!
¨ Where does character arise in science?– Collaborative research and sharing– Factual reporting – negative and positive– Reproducibility of results– Balanced reporting of negative and post– Stance on “moral” issues, even if not meteorological
(cloning, etc)
Ethics in Leadership/Science
Some of Today’s Leadership Challenges…
¨ Global climate change¨ The economy¨ Health care¨ Terrorism¨ Proliferation of nuclear weapons (e.g.,
North Korea and Iran)¨ Same-sex marriage¨ Abortion
Climate Change: A Classic Leadership Challenge?¨ Two pathways:
– Technical/technological solutions – Adaptive Change
¨ Technological solutions– Develop and implement technical fixes, e.g., scrubbers for coal
fired plants, alternative energy vehicles, non-fossil fuel energy sources (wind, solar, geothermal, nuclear)
¨ Adaptation involves modifying behavior to changing circumstances and norms (research, technology, human behavior, proper role of government)– Adaptive work is needed when
• Deeply held beliefs are challenged• Legitimate yet competing views emerge
A Classic Leadership Challenge¨ Adaptive work consists of
– The learning required to address conflicts in the values people hold, or to diminish the gap between the values they stand for and the reality they face
¨ Adaptive work requires a change in values, beliefs, or behavior
¨ It does not mean passively “giving in” to the circumstances or compromising moral stands
¨ It does require that one clarify what matters most in balance with trade-offs– People want clean air but also the economic benefits
of heavy industry
Applying Leadership¨ Step 1: Get on the balcony and see the big picture,
from all sides¨ Step 2: Identify the challenge: technical fix or
adaptive¨ Step 3: Sequence and pace the work, regulating
distress and providing direction/orientation¨ Step 4: Ask tough questions and challenge traditional
thinking – expose contradictions¨ Step 5: Give the work back to the people involved; get
advice from those on the front lines. This is part of the buy-in
¨ Step 6: Protect the voices of everyone and provide cover to all sides
As a True Leader
¨ You WILL…– Disappoint– Receive unjust criticism– Be misunderstood, misquoted, mistreated– Be viewed as other than you really are– Be unappreciated
As a True Leader
¨ You WILL…– Receive incredible satisfaction– Make an impact on people– Not be forgotten
¨ Life is difficult, leadership is difficult, and nothing will change that fact!
¨ One of the most important factors that define great leaders is perseverance
But You Have to PERSEVERE
¨ His brother died when he was 7¨ His mother died when he was 9¨ His fiancée died¨ His eventual wife had 4 sons, only 1 of whom
made it to adulthood¨ He suffered deep depression and was
hospitalized for a nervous breakdown¨ He started two businesses and both failed¨ He was defeated multiple times in runs for the
state legislature, US Congress, and US Senate
A Man I Personally Admire
But He Persevered….
¨ Had Lincoln lived an easier life, would he have become a great man?
¨ He accepted the difficulty of life and refused to let obstacles dissuade him
¨ He used them to build his character and impacted the world in profound ways
¨ That’s a hope for all of us as leaders
The Takeaway Message?
The Payoff of Leadership¨ This is not about getting people to buy into
your own ideas!¨ It’s about teaching people to
– Recognize and embrace their unique abilities and limitations
– Relate effectively to people having different views– Deal with situations they’ve never faced and that
have no known solutions– Work for a broader purpose while fulfilling their
own specific goals and needs– Draw the best out of others by motivating and
inspiring
¨ There are NO UNIMPORTANT people or positions
¨ Everyone is a leader to some extent because everyone has a set of followers
¨ Leadership isn’t a task but rather a way of life!¨ Find out what you’re good at both technically
and emotionally¨ Walk in those things and try to shore up other
weaknesses¨ History may not recognize you as a “leader,”
but you’ll be a history-maker if you mobilize people to do something that’s socially useful
Summary
¨ Don’t waste your time looking around to see what the world needs. Rather, look inside to see what makes you come alive, and do those things…for the world needs people who are alive, walking in their passions.
One Piece of Advice…
