©Leadership Pathways, 2000. All rights reserved. The Heart of Leadership Keith Merron Leadership Pathways

©Leadership Pathways, 2000. All rights reserved.

The Heart of Leadership

Keith Merron

Leadership Pathways

© Leadership Pathways, 2000. All rights reserved.

“Think on these things”


The Leadership Crisis?

• Leadership is probably the most talked about subject in business, and one of the most researched.

• Almost every year there is a major story about the crisis of leadership

• We have faced this crisis for hundreds of years. Why?

• Why do we continually blame our political leaders for what ails us?


Where Do You Look For Leadership?

• In others?

• In the people who hold positions of leadership?

• In your boss?


What is the Heart of Leadership?

• Leadership is not a position

• Leadership is not an action

• Leadership is not a skill

• Leadership is an attitude--a place from which to act


Two Leaders

Bob FredBig vision Independent agent

Impeccably honest Manipulates others

Cares about others Needs approval

Accountable Blames others

Sees big picture Acts moment to moment


What is your stance in life?

• Do you hold yourself as a model for others?

• Are you committed to acting with integrity?

• Do you see yourself as a powerful force for change?

• Do you stretch the boundaries of what is possible?

• Do you care about others (deeply)?


Major Study

• In a huge organization, climate of departments was measured

• Climate varied significantly from department to department

• Over 50% of the variation was a direct result of the leader’s style of leadership


Think Back

• Go back in time 50 years

• What were some of the major challenges facing the university?


Mile High Look at the History of Business

• Up until 1950s, organizations were seen as mechanistic– Taylorism

– This worked in predictable

• 1920s study of Hawthorne began sea change– Regardless of physical changes in environment, productivity

went up


Mile High cont’d

•1950s to 1970s, organizations seen as social- Spawned human relations movement- Main emphasis was on managing people-Introduced key concepts like MBO and participative leadership- Principle flaw: happiness leads to productivity


Mile High cont’d

•1970s-90s saw a major sea change


Come to the Present

• What are the key challenges the university system faces today?


Time Taken From Invention to Widespread Use

Steam engine 150-200 Automobile 40-50Vacuum tube 25-30Television about 20Transistor about 15Personal computer about 7

Invention Years


PERCENT

1700 1760 1790 1820 1850 1880 1910 1940 1970 2000 YEAR

50- 40-

30-

20-

10- 0-

Savery(1698)

Watt (1770, 1796)

Newcommon (1712)

Cornish (1830, 1846)

Triple expansion (1890)

Parsons turbine (1910)

High pressure Steam turbine (1950, 1955)

Gas turbine?Fuel cell?

MHD?

Combustion Efficiency

Source: Thirring, H., Energy for Men. Indiana University Press, Harper & Row, Torchbooks, 1958

60-

70-


PERCENT

1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000

YEAR

10-5

10-6 Mach I

Trains

Pony Express

AutosExternal combustion engine

Chemical rocket?

Speed of Travel

10-1

10-2

10-4

10-3

10-7

Reciprocating engineMissiles

Gas turbines

Nuclear rocket

Interplanetary spacecraft

Interstellar spacecraft


MEOMORY

YEAR

256 K-

Technology Rate of Change/ Computer Memory Growth

4 M-

84 K-16 K- 1 K-

1 M-

1970 1980 1990 2000


In 1970, the United States dominated more than 80% of the world market for automobiles. By 1992, this number was less than 40%. Today it is even less.

-Donovan, 1993


In 1970, the steel industry in the United States produced 70% of the steel in the world. Today, it produces less than 12%.


The World Has Changed

• Access to information

• Uncertainty

• Globalization

• Enormous demand for knowledge workers

• Change happening at an ever escalating speed


Conclusion

• The old rules no longer apply

• Logic and prediction are no longer key to success


The Problem in Front of You

• How to attract and retain great people in face of huge opportunities

• How to manage and rise above the pressing challenges facing you


Let’s make two assumptions:

1. “A leader is someone you choose to follow to a place you wouldn’t go by yourself.”

Joel Barker

2. The purpose of a good leader is to create conditions where people achieve high quality results that meet the needs of the organization (and sustain such efforts over time).

Keith Merron


The Solution is You

• Promote a sense of identify

• Articulate a compelling vision

• Create an energizing culture


Organizational ChangeWhy is it important for an organization

to change quickly?

EVE

N

T

Negative consequences

Positive consequences

ANTICIPATE RESPOND


Leadership Point One

Leaders encourage change


Focus of attention

Present Future

BREADTH ofRESPONSIBILITY

HIGH

LO

Followers


Focus of attention

Present Future

BREADTH ofRESPONSIBILITY

HIGH

LO

Followers

Leaders


Leadership Point Two

Leaders encourage change Leaders create the future


Kotters & Hesketts’ Research

• 207 firms from 22 industries

• Measured cultural strength

• Economic performance between 1977-1988

• Interviewed 75 industry analysts

• In-depth analysis of firms that were:– Culturally strong and less effective

– Culturally strong and more effective


CULTURE STRENGTH AND MARKET VALUE GROWTH

-5 5 15 25 35Annual Market Value Growth (percent), 1977-1988

Weak

1

2

3

4

Culture

Strength

5

Strong

Adapted from Kotter & Hesketh Corporate Culture and Performance


Key Findings

• Most effective company’s have:– Strong cultures– Adaptable cultures– Appropriate cultures


Collins and Porras: Built to Last

• Visionary Company Criteria– Premier in industry– Widely admired– Made an indelible imprint on the world in which

we live– Generations of CEO’s– Multiple product (or service) life cycles– Founded before 1950


The Companies in Collins & Porras’ Research Study

• VISIONARY COMPANY

– 3M

– American Express

– Boeing

– Citicorp

– Ford

– General Electric

– Hewlett-Packard

– IBM

– Johnson & Johnson

– Marriott

– Merck

– Motorola

– Nordstrom

– Philip Morris

– Procter & Gamble

– Sony

– Wal-Mart

– Walt Disney

• COMPARISON COMPANY

– Norton

– Wells Fargo

– McDonnell Douglas

– Chase Manhattan

– GM

– Westinghouse

– Texas Instruments

– Burroughs

– Bristol-Myers Squibb

– Howard Johnson

– Pfizer

– Zenith

– Melville

– RJR Nabisco

– Colgate

– Kenwood

– Ames

– Columbia


Chart 1.BRatio of Cumulative Stock Returns to General Market 1926-1990

16.00

15.00

14.00

13.00

12.00

11.00

10.00

9.00

8.00

7.00

6.00

5.00

4.00

3.00

2.00

1.00

193

6 194

6 195

6 196

6 197

6 198

6192

6 199

0

VISIONARY

COMPANIES

COMPARISON

COMPANIES

General Market

Built to Last ; Successful Habits of Visionary Companies James C. Collins, Jerry I. Porras 1994, Harper Collins


Collins & Porras’ Findings

• Leaders are organizational builders• Establish a core ideology (e.g., The HP Way)• Preserve their core ideology while encouraging

innovation and progress• Set challenging goals for people to accomplish• Build cultures that are strong, integrated, focused and

consistent• Keep trying to do things better; keep experimenting


The Power of Culture

• Culture’s influence appears to be “more powerful than anything else,” including:– Strategy

– Structure

– Leadership

– Financial analysis

– Management systems


Don’t Ignore the Culture

• 1993 study by McKinsey of 100 companies: 5 of 6 failed reengineering efforts due to cultural problems

• Deloitte-Touche study of 400 companies: similar findings


Leadership Point Three

Leaders encourage change Leaders create the future Leaders create culture


Let’s Make an Assumption

The Purpose of any Business Organization:

To add value by creating products and services that meet or exceed present, emerging, and future needs of customers


Implications

• Efficiency is not the primary cause of success in business organizations

Instead, success is determined by:


Implications

• Speed to market

• Customer responsiveness


This Requires that Organizations are:

• Focused

• Aligned

• Anticipative and responsive

• Brilliant in their execution of strategy


VisionLeadership Team

1

Managing Change

From the Inside Out


Managing Change

Vision

Leadership Team

1

4 O

rganizational

Competencies

3

Cultur

e Typ

e

From the Inside Out


Managing Change: From the Inside-Out

Structu

re

5

Communication

System

6

Critical Success Factors7

Measures8

3

Cultur

e Typ

e

4Organizational

Competencies

13Benefits System

12Training and

Development 11

Compensation System

10 Performance Management

System

9Selection & Assessment

VisionLeadership Team

1


Leadership Point Four

Leaders encourage change Leaders create the future Leaders create culture Leaders focus on the system


Key Research on Organizations

The cost of turnover of one professional in an organization is roughly $100,000

There is more turnover in organizations today than ever before


Key Research on Organizations

In most organizations, the most critical asset is the human capital of the organization.

The organization that is able to retain its key knowledge workers has a significant competitive advantage in today’s marketplace


Key Research on Leaders

The most critical ingredient to successful leadership is the ability to build trust.*

Trust requires the ability to beauthentic.

*sources:Korn/Ferry study, Bennis, Kouzes and Posner


Leadership Point Five

Leaders encourage change Leaders create the future Leaders create culture Leaders focus on the system Leaders build trust


Conscious Leadership

• Great leadership is a conscious act



• Visionary (charisma)• articulates compelling vision• demonstrates strong conviction• takes risks• sets clear direction• demonstrates enthusiasm



• Your supervisor has left on a two-year journey• There will be no replacement• Person at the highest level you interact with says he/she needs you to handle it• It is all up to you



• What do you stand for?• What do you intend to create?


Barriers to Visionary Leadership

• Feeling small• Dependency• Allowing fear to overcome you• Playing it safe• Self-criticism



• Accountable (large)• makes conscious choices• sees self as causal agent• demonstrates a “can-do” attitude



CIRCME



CIRCME



• Systemic thinker (big picture)• aims for win-win solutions• takes the long term view• sees how things connect with one another



• Authentic (inspires trust)• communicates authentically• reliable--does what one says• tells the truth



• Connecting (cares deeply)• listens with intent to understand• responds flexibly to needs of others• includes others in decisions• encouraging

Documents

©Leadership Pathways, 2000. All rights reserved. The Heart of Leadership Keith Merron Leadership Pathways