TALENT: GET WHAT YOU NEED

“Money or not, it still comes down to your ability to evaluate talent.”

—Brian Sabean, San Francisco Giants general manager

BUILD ON YOUR STRENGTHS

A fan asked Yankee coach Don Zimmer, “What makes Joe Torre such a good manager?” Zimmer replied, “Good players.”2 He was only half-serious. Zimmer knows you can’t win without the right players, but he thinks Torre’s a terrific manager. Still, not every coach wins with great talent.

The upside of our mobile economy is that talent will move in good times or bad. People will come to work for you when you offer the right inducements. One huge inducement is the opportunity to win.

Ernie Accorsi, general manager of the New York Giants said, “Because of free agency, players are here because they want to be here. It’s not like you draft them, and they have no choice. They don’t come here . . . if they don’t think they have a chance to win.”3 Highly skilled employees are just like free agents in sports. Your critical tasks are to know what you need to win and pick the best people who fit your team.

ENGAGING LEADERSHIP

“He thinks group, but he always sees individuals.”

—Former Senator Bill Bradley, describing his friend Phil Jackson’s coaching style1

THE THRILL OF VICTORY

Ever wonder why some teams just keep winning? Consider this:

• In October 2000, the majestic New York Yankees won the World Series against their hated crosstown rivals, the Mets. This was the Yanks’ 26th championship, far more than any other baseball team, and more than any pro team in any sport. It was also the 4th time in five years that the Yankees won the Series, all under the calm and responsive leadership of manager Joe Torre. In 2001, an aging Yankees team made it to the World Series again, defeating powerful Oakland and Seattle teams before falling to a tremendously tough Arizona team in seven incredible games. The Yankees had the best record in baseball and made the playoffs again in 2002, losing in the first round. Torre’s streak ranked with the best of the great New York teams throughout baseball history.

WHAT ARE LEADERSHIP STYLES?

Leadership styles are reflected in behaviors and attitudes, but these in turn are the outcome of complex interactions between the way we think and feel. looks at what this means by:

» explaining how these interactions work;

» providing a definition of leadership style; and

» looking at how far we can adapt our styles, without acting out of character.

‘‘Effective leadership is the only competitive advantage that will endure. That’s because leadership has two sides – what a person is (character) and what a person does (competence).’’

Stephen Covey, author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

At one level, the concept of ‘‘leadership style’’ is simple to define: it is the style that a leader adopts in their dealings with those who follow them. Clearly, underlying this is an assumption that there is a ‘‘right’’ and a ‘‘wrong’’ style.

IN PRACTICE – SUCCESSFUL LEADERSHIP STYLES

What makes for effective leadership style? looks at three very different forms of successful leadership style. It explains and draws lessons from:

» David Simon of BP – the diplomatic transformer;

» KonosukeMatsushita ofMatsushita Electric – the leader-philosopher; and

» Herb Kelleher of Southwest Airlines – the servant leader.

‘‘People with different personalities, different approaches, different values succeed not because one set of values or practices is superior, but because their values and practices are genuine.’’

Herb Kelleher, CEO Southwest Airlines

LEADERSHOCK, RULE 8: DEMAND THE TRUTH

I’ve watched leaders on three continents suffer needlessly as they tried to sidestep embarrassment, conflict; and hurting others’ feelings by avoiding the truth. Instead, they embrace a subtle, discreet, and withholding posture that sometimes parades as politeness, in an attempt to protect themselves and others. Unfortunately, their efforts only backfire and they end up with a loss of credibility, cynical employees, and a colossal case of LeaderShock. The trap in Rule No. 8 is the Well-Meaning Withholder, a vestige of a more naïve era in management history, held over at great expense. We must usher in a

new era.

LEADERSHOCK, RULE 7: GIVE, DON’T TAKE!

‘Tis better to give than to receive. Everyone supports the theory, but few put it to work when times turn turbulent. Under the sway of LeaderShock, managers tend to take, rather than give. And at first glance there appears to be logic to their strategy.

LEADERSHOCK, RULE 6: FOCUS ON YOUR PEOPLE FIRST

The devoutly held belief that customers come first turns out to be one of the most surprising LeaderShock traps. Rule 6 replaces conventional wisdom with this basic premise: Focus on your people before anything else. When you take care of them, they take care of the customers. And when you don’t, they disengage and you’re left with even more pressure on your shoulders. Imagine what would happen if the conductor of a symphony orchestra, in an earnest desire to please the paying public, turned around and conducted the concerto while facing the audience leaving the hard-working musicians to fend for themselves.

LEADERSHOCK, RULE 5: REPLACE PLANS WITH POSSIBILITIES

Rule 5 can best be illustrated by two equations:

Rigidity = LeaderShock

and

Flexibility = Leadership

In terms of their immediate impact on you, consider two more equations:

Rigidity = Disappointment

and

Flexibility = Exhilaration

In this era of widespread LeaderShock, the Rigidity Trap is everywhere. Why do we become unbending in our beliefs and why are our plans seemingly etched in stone? The causes are threefold.

LEADERSHOCK, RULE 4: RECAST STRESS INTO STRENGTH

Every leader knows that despite Herculean efforts things can go terribly wrong. Just when you least expect it, something explodes a key employee quits and blames you, you’re passed over for a promotion in favor of someone less qualified, the boss blows up after you lose a key account and fail to make your numbers. There’s no way around the fact that the leadership role brings with it a certain amount of emotional pain and anxiety.

LEADERSHOCK, RULE 3: REFUSE TO CONFORM

“How will I get everything done?” is one of the most frequent and most baffling questions managers ask. Overwhelmed by the sheer volume of work, the proliferation of meetings, and suffering from information overload, disheartened managers turn to the only solution modern business culture prescribes: Better time management! The grand illusion suggests it’s all about better prioritizing of those meetings, better planning of the workflow, and better organizing of all that information. It isn’t.