LEADERSHIP
This section of the website presents many of my writings about leadership.
Please scroll down to read the first few articles, then click the "next page" button at the bottom of this page or use the dropdown menu at the top of the page to view additional documents.
Leadership Philosophy
Three terms are often used interchangeably to refer to those in positions of responsibility: manager, administrator, and leader. Although similar, these are not synonymous. Management is merely the application of a requisite amount of pressure necessary to ensure that any given workforce will complete a task or accomplish a goal. No more, no less. To administer is to preside over the execution, use, or conduct of an organization or its workforce. Leadership, however, is a personal quality that allows an individual to inspire the members of a workforce to complete a task or accomplish a goal without the requisite pressure applied by managers or administrators.
The following quote by C. S. Lewis provides a delightfully succinct definition of leadership, and although it is actually from a work of children’s literature, it is nonetheless worth examination:
"For this is what it means to be a king: to be first in every desperate attack and last in every desperate retreat, and when there's hunger in the land (as must be now and then in bad years) to wear finer clothes and laugh louder over a scantier meal than any man in your land."[1]
Although I am by no means drawing a parallel between academic leadership and monarchy, Lewis has brilliantly encapsulated my core values of leadership.
Vision and Commitment: to be a leader, one must have followers—people who share in the leader’s vision and are willing to follow based on this shared belief. Indeed, the importance of a contagious vision is impossible to underestimate: no advanced degree, no lengthy resume, no list of impressive accomplishments can substitute for a lack of vision. The leader of any organization must commit to, exhibit, and exemplify the organization’s mission, vision, and core values. By sharing this mission in a way that inspires employee buy-in, and by providing for reasonable planning and prioritization that creates achievable goals, the leader creates an atmosphere of trust that results in accomplishment. Most workplaces need leadership far more than they need management. Leadership involves planning and prioritization, both of which are dependent on a vision, inspiring all stakeholders to work towards a common goal. It’s not enough to know where you’re going: you must also know how to get there and how to motivate others to join you in rowing the ship.
Stewardship: A good leader is a steward of the staff as well as of the organization under his or her leadership. Stewardship means accepting responsibility for that which has been entrusted and to administer that trust responsibly and effectively. A steward recognizes the trust that others have placed upon him or her and seeks to guide rather than mandate in order to maintain that trust. A steward provides guidance and encouragement, serves as a resource, and engenders trust by demonstrating trustworthiness. Another name for this is servant-leadership, and it is a concept to which I am deeply committed.
Listening and Humility: Others tend to look to the leader for answers or to be the person who finds solutions to pressing problems. Although this is often true, the leader should possess enough humility to know that he or she does not, in fact, have all the answers. A leader will recognize that the people on his or her team also possess the expertise and the ability to generate novel solutions to complex problems, to think of new ideas, and to share the wisdom that they might have but that the leader may not. Listening to team members, respecting their knowledge and expertise, and relying on them to handle things when the leader is pulled away, is a powerful demonstration of professional trust. Listening builds trust, and trust is the foundation of relationships. This is true between the leader and his or her employees, and it is also true between the leader and those outside of the organization.
Clarity and Simplicity: Seeking to establish clarity in the workplace goes beyond planning and prioritization to the actual elimination of certain tasks from the scope of employees’ job assignments if possible. This type of decision is difficult for many people to accept—more almost always seems to be better than less—but it is something that I found was necessary when I was an independent entrepreneur. I learned how to judge the amount of work I could handle successfully, and I learned the more difficult lesson of turning down work because I knew that taking it on would ultimately be detrimental not only to my business but to my customers. By limiting the volume of work that my firm could take on at any given time, I did a better job, my business’s reputation was enhanced, and I gained respect in my field. Firms that took on all proffered jobs without exercising similar judgment found themselves buried under unmanageable workloads, performed the work poorly, and suffered the subsequent damage to their reputations and a drop in repeat business. Knowing how and when to say no is an important key to success.
Consistency: The greatest obligation in any organization falls upon the leader, because all of these characteristics and responsibilities must be continuously repeated on a daily basis. This requires consistency, which then cuts down on or eliminates confusion. The speed at which tasks are accomplished matters very little if the tasks are not done well; the volume of tasks accomplished is similarly valueless if the tasks are done poorly. If employees are frustrated, resentful, overwhelmed, overtaxed, exhausted, or discouraged as the direct result of inconsistent leadership, they will not function effectively in the workplace. The organization’s mission, vision, and core values should not change from day to day, nor should the leader’s expectations for employees or his or her personal comportment. When employees enter the workplace each day, it should be with a sense of security in knowing what they must do, how they should do it, and what they can expect from their leaders. Consistency engenders trust, which enhances performance.
Growth: Growth proceeds naturally from high-quality leadership. Well-led organizations are dynamic, a quality that prevents the organization from becoming stale and static, thus encouraging the accomplishment and professional growth of the staff and advancement of the organization’s mission, vision and core values. Growth, however, must be tempered by realism: the organization must possess the ability to do the work undertaken, to be certain of their capabilities and resources, and to make growth decisions with deliberation, wisdom, and foresight. A leader must be poised to take advantage of emerging opportunities decisively, but to weigh those decisions wisely rather than acting indiscriminately. By working together, keeping realistic expectations, open minds, and a willingness to engage in the process to come, it’s possible to move forward in order to contribute something valuable to the world.
The key to organizational accomplishment, indeed, the pivot upon which success and failure balance, is leadership. A successful leader will demonstrate these qualities and characteristics, communicating a contagious vision, exercising stewardship, remaining consistent, promoting the organization’s mission, vision, and core values, providing clarity, and effectively planning, prioritizing, and simplifying the tasks that must be accomplished. It is a tall order, to be sure, and not everyone is able to take on this kind of challenge. When such a person does take up the mantle of responsibility, however, amazing things can happen.
[1] C.S. Lewis (1954). The Horse and His Boy (Book 5 in the Chronicles of Narnia). Scholastic, Inc. New York, NY. p. 215
The following quote by C. S. Lewis provides a delightfully succinct definition of leadership, and although it is actually from a work of children’s literature, it is nonetheless worth examination:
"For this is what it means to be a king: to be first in every desperate attack and last in every desperate retreat, and when there's hunger in the land (as must be now and then in bad years) to wear finer clothes and laugh louder over a scantier meal than any man in your land."[1]
Although I am by no means drawing a parallel between academic leadership and monarchy, Lewis has brilliantly encapsulated my core values of leadership.
- Leaders are in the forefront of any new venture, not only providing inspiration to those who follow but working as hard as anyone to accomplish the shared goal.
- Leaders protect and guard their employees when things become difficult, making sacrifices themselves rather than sacrificing those they lead.
- Leaders exemplify the behavioral standards they want their employees to demonstrate and regulate the emotional climate of the organization through their responsible actions and positive demeanor.
Vision and Commitment: to be a leader, one must have followers—people who share in the leader’s vision and are willing to follow based on this shared belief. Indeed, the importance of a contagious vision is impossible to underestimate: no advanced degree, no lengthy resume, no list of impressive accomplishments can substitute for a lack of vision. The leader of any organization must commit to, exhibit, and exemplify the organization’s mission, vision, and core values. By sharing this mission in a way that inspires employee buy-in, and by providing for reasonable planning and prioritization that creates achievable goals, the leader creates an atmosphere of trust that results in accomplishment. Most workplaces need leadership far more than they need management. Leadership involves planning and prioritization, both of which are dependent on a vision, inspiring all stakeholders to work towards a common goal. It’s not enough to know where you’re going: you must also know how to get there and how to motivate others to join you in rowing the ship.
Stewardship: A good leader is a steward of the staff as well as of the organization under his or her leadership. Stewardship means accepting responsibility for that which has been entrusted and to administer that trust responsibly and effectively. A steward recognizes the trust that others have placed upon him or her and seeks to guide rather than mandate in order to maintain that trust. A steward provides guidance and encouragement, serves as a resource, and engenders trust by demonstrating trustworthiness. Another name for this is servant-leadership, and it is a concept to which I am deeply committed.
Listening and Humility: Others tend to look to the leader for answers or to be the person who finds solutions to pressing problems. Although this is often true, the leader should possess enough humility to know that he or she does not, in fact, have all the answers. A leader will recognize that the people on his or her team also possess the expertise and the ability to generate novel solutions to complex problems, to think of new ideas, and to share the wisdom that they might have but that the leader may not. Listening to team members, respecting their knowledge and expertise, and relying on them to handle things when the leader is pulled away, is a powerful demonstration of professional trust. Listening builds trust, and trust is the foundation of relationships. This is true between the leader and his or her employees, and it is also true between the leader and those outside of the organization.
Clarity and Simplicity: Seeking to establish clarity in the workplace goes beyond planning and prioritization to the actual elimination of certain tasks from the scope of employees’ job assignments if possible. This type of decision is difficult for many people to accept—more almost always seems to be better than less—but it is something that I found was necessary when I was an independent entrepreneur. I learned how to judge the amount of work I could handle successfully, and I learned the more difficult lesson of turning down work because I knew that taking it on would ultimately be detrimental not only to my business but to my customers. By limiting the volume of work that my firm could take on at any given time, I did a better job, my business’s reputation was enhanced, and I gained respect in my field. Firms that took on all proffered jobs without exercising similar judgment found themselves buried under unmanageable workloads, performed the work poorly, and suffered the subsequent damage to their reputations and a drop in repeat business. Knowing how and when to say no is an important key to success.
Consistency: The greatest obligation in any organization falls upon the leader, because all of these characteristics and responsibilities must be continuously repeated on a daily basis. This requires consistency, which then cuts down on or eliminates confusion. The speed at which tasks are accomplished matters very little if the tasks are not done well; the volume of tasks accomplished is similarly valueless if the tasks are done poorly. If employees are frustrated, resentful, overwhelmed, overtaxed, exhausted, or discouraged as the direct result of inconsistent leadership, they will not function effectively in the workplace. The organization’s mission, vision, and core values should not change from day to day, nor should the leader’s expectations for employees or his or her personal comportment. When employees enter the workplace each day, it should be with a sense of security in knowing what they must do, how they should do it, and what they can expect from their leaders. Consistency engenders trust, which enhances performance.
Growth: Growth proceeds naturally from high-quality leadership. Well-led organizations are dynamic, a quality that prevents the organization from becoming stale and static, thus encouraging the accomplishment and professional growth of the staff and advancement of the organization’s mission, vision and core values. Growth, however, must be tempered by realism: the organization must possess the ability to do the work undertaken, to be certain of their capabilities and resources, and to make growth decisions with deliberation, wisdom, and foresight. A leader must be poised to take advantage of emerging opportunities decisively, but to weigh those decisions wisely rather than acting indiscriminately. By working together, keeping realistic expectations, open minds, and a willingness to engage in the process to come, it’s possible to move forward in order to contribute something valuable to the world.
The key to organizational accomplishment, indeed, the pivot upon which success and failure balance, is leadership. A successful leader will demonstrate these qualities and characteristics, communicating a contagious vision, exercising stewardship, remaining consistent, promoting the organization’s mission, vision, and core values, providing clarity, and effectively planning, prioritizing, and simplifying the tasks that must be accomplished. It is a tall order, to be sure, and not everyone is able to take on this kind of challenge. When such a person does take up the mantle of responsibility, however, amazing things can happen.
[1] C.S. Lewis (1954). The Horse and His Boy (Book 5 in the Chronicles of Narnia). Scholastic, Inc. New York, NY. p. 215