Category Archives: Leadership

Honor for the Game

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“Gentlemen, today is the day we play for the national championship. Today, I want to talk about honor. Honor for the University, honor for each player in this room and honor for the game.

“The university’s role is to be a part of a larger institution that collects intercollegiate athletes like yourself to play the game. We provide the uniforms, the playing field, the referees. It is our honor to create this space for you to play the game.

“And, also to honor you. It is your honor to wear the uniform, not to only to represent the university, but to represent yourself. Honor for yourself. This team did not arrive on this field today because we were good at trick plays. This team arrived here because of its discipline to fundamentals. You catch the ball because you are a half step faster than the defender. You run through a short gap because the linemen hold their blocks a half second longer. You do not get penalized because you are disciplined to focus.

“Finally, to honor the game. For some of you, this will be the last organized game you will play. And, you will remember this day for its joy that allowed you to play. It’s a game that required practice, individually and drills as a team. Mastery in synchronized movement. It is the game that collected these two teams today. The other team traveled the same journey to get here. They are meeting together, just like we are meeting together, huddled in a spirit to honor the game.”

A Day of Gratitude

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I started this blog in November 2004, so, by my count it looks like 21 laps around the circuit. For that longevity, I have to thank you, my readers. It is my hope that, not only do you read, but you shift the way you think about things related to your roles as managers and owners of organizations.

In the United State, this is a holiday week to celebrate gratitude in a day of Thanksgiving. Thank you for the opportunity, for me to think out loud. I raise a toast to you. I think I will have a beer. -Tom

Learned From a Book

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“You know I took three courses in leadership to prepare me for this role,” Rosalyn reminded me. “The company believed in me, committed the tuition to attend, allowed me time off work. I feel like I have let them down.”

“Indeed, you thought you had finished your preparation when you got your certificate from that last program,” I smiled. “But, that was just the beginning. I am also certain there are 20 books on leadership in your library, some for show, some dogeared, full of underlines and highlights.”

“You recommended some of those books,” she protested.

“Yes, I did,” I said in agreement. “But no concert pianist learned to play the piano by reading a book. No elite basketball player learned how to drill a 3-pointer by watching a video. Leadership is a learned sport in the school of experience.”

The Real Manager

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“Build the team sounds like a fine idea,” Ethan nodded. “But, just exactly how do I do that?”

“Look, every team member knows who their manager is, just ask them,” I replied. “And, they will respond with a question. They will ask – Do you mean who they tell me my manager is? Or who is my real manager?”

“On my team, they know I am the manager,” Ethan was quick to say.

“Of course they do. The company called a meeting and announced – Ethan is now your manager!”

“Well, yeah, that’s kinda how it went down.”

“But, ask your team – When you get stuck, on a problem that is really tough, not – where do we sweep up the scrap that falls off the machine, but a really tough problem, who do you go to for help?”

“Do you mean?” Ethan looked puzzled. “Do you mean it’s not the company who decides the manager, it’s the team?”

Who Do You Hang With?

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“Why are you here?” I asked.

Ethan paused, sensing his response could not be casual. He knew I would only ask a more probing question. “I have to provide for my family,” he finally replied.

“But, you could do that with most any job,” I predictably prodded. “Why are you here? At this place? At this time?”

“I don’t know, it just sort of happened. A friend told me I could get a job here and things worked out. I started on the floor seven years ago, was promoted to supervisor, and here I am now, just promoted to manager.”

“Why don’t you leave?” I wanted to know.

Ethan took another pause. “Over time, I got used to working with these people. They’re my best friends. Sometimes, I think I spend more time with them than I do my family. Heck, they are like my family. I have an investment in the other people I work with.”

“You are getting closer,” I suggested. “How does that understanding serve you, as a manager?”

Telling People What to Do

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“So, I may have a better way, but if I don’t get the team behind me, there will be friction in the process?” Roberta wondered out loud.

“Most assuredly,” I replied. “And there is a public persona to a team behind you, which looks high spirited and agreeable, but, there is also a private persona which may be filled with grumbling, victim status or outright mutiny. Behind your back, of course.”

“So, I may not see it coming?” she asked.

“If you are unaware, you will always be blindsided,” I smiled. “So, it’s not enough to get public agreement. You have to draw out the discontent. The real issue is not the better of two methods, the real issue is the position for pushback. Until you acknowledge and listen to the team, its reasoning for the way work gets done, its history of frustration, its valiant attempts to make things better that were ultimately stiffarmed by a policy or a silly rule. You have to tease out the real issue before you can deal with the merits of one method over another. Great managers are seldom known for their efficiency in telling people what to do. Great managers are known for their ability to bring value to the work of the team.”

Object in Motion

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“You make it seem like I got promoted to manager was just happenchance,” Roberta said.

“In many ways, your appointment was just because you were standing in the right place at the right time, call it luck,” I replied. “But, luck alone will not sustain you as a manager. You now have the authority to make decisions and solve problems the way you would have them solved, but that does not mean you have the team behind you.”

Roberta turned pensive. “You mean, I might tell the team to do something in a certain way, or at a certain time, and the team might push back?”

“Most assuredly,” I smiled. “The bane of every manager is that the team almost always pushes back. It’s not necessarily out of malice. Or that the team thinks you are a dolt. Most pushback occurs because the team has its own way, its own methods, it own habits that are difficult to break.”

“So, just because I am the manager does not mean it’s my turn and I get my way?” Roberta asked, not as a question, but a statement of reality.

I answered anyway, nodding. “I think you get the picture. Your way may be the best way, but you are fighting momentum, object in motion stays in motion. It is your role to interrogate current methods, gather new methods and solicit input, so you can guide the team to the best decision. It is cumbersome in the short run, but the only way in the long run. If you force the short game, your term as a manager is already on the rocks.”

Earning Followers

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“Well, I’m here,” Roberta replied to the unspoken question. “I’m the manager, now.”

“Yes, you are,” I said. “Tell me how you got here?”

“It’s pretty simple. My manager was out on family leave and decided not to come back. We waited for his return for ten weeks without a manager, limping along. At first, it was okay, we just did what we did the day before. As time went by, the wheels got a little wobbly.”

“And, so they picked you to be the new manager?” I smiled.

“I guess so,” Roberta answered. “So, now it’s my team. I have seven direct reports.”

“Oh, really?” I turned my head a bit to the side. “Why do you think they picked you?”

“That’s easy,” she said, with some awareness of the circumstance. “I have been here the longest.”

“So, it’s not the 10,000 books you read on leadership, or your demonstrated skills at supporting the team through a tough problem? It’s only because you have been here the longest?”

Roberta scrunched her face. “Yes, I guess that’s about it.”

“Don’t feel so bad,” I nodded. “Most managers are appointed to the role in exactly the same way. It’s not your leadership prowess. You were standing in the middle of the scene and there was no one else around with your experience, working here the longest, so you got the job. But, please understand, the team is not yours. You may have been appointed to the role, given the authority, whatever that means, but yours is not an earned position, it was appointed. It is the team that must be earned.”

Can You See What I See?

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Wesley was happy. “I stayed up most of the night last night, couldn’t sleep. I finally figured out a new process for the way we inspect parts coming off the line. It should speed things up and detect almost all the product defects.”

“Congratulations,” I smiled. “How is the team responding to the new process?”

“Oh, they don’t know about it yet,” Wesley replied. “I have a meeting with them in about ten minutes. I am sure they are going to be enthusiastic about the changes.”

“Quite certain, are you?” I continued to smile.

“I can tell by your question that you think I am overoptimistic about the team’s reaction.”

I chuckled. “Yes. You have a new story to tell the team that is different from the old story the team has been living with. You can see things about this new process that your team may struggle with. And, their old story will support their struggle. Do not underestimate the power of the story people tell themselves. Your new story has to pull the team all the way through the struggle so they begin to see what you see.”

More Control or Less

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“It is very difficult to cede my power as a CEO,” Suzanne shook her head from side to side. “It’s my company, my accountability.”

“You are still accountable. All crumbs lead to the CEO,” I said. “And, what changes when you see your company, not as a hierarchy of power, but, a hierarchy of competence?”

“First of all, I cannot promote people into positions because of their seniority, their loyalty or their current position of power,” she was thinking out loud, knowing I was listening.

“Promote people to a position of what?” I asked.

“A position of authority,” Suzanne replied.

“Authority to do what?” I pressed.

“Authority to make decisions,” she relented.

“Now, we are getting somewhere,” I smiled. “You begin to see your organization through the lens of competence. You cannot promote someone to a position of authority, to make decisions, unless they are competent to make those decisions. If they are competent to make those decisions, are you, as the CEO in more control or less control?”