Chapter 8
Meeting the Leadership Challenge
Chapter Objectives
By the end of this chapter, the reader should be able to discuss:
- the advantages of a shared leadership model over traditional leadership perspectives
- how the shared leadership model supports the b2change philosophy
Built to Change Strategy: Make Leadership a Team Sport
In chapter 1, we challenged the notion of a traditional view of leadership, and we continue that challenge here. This built to change strategy – and the whole chapter – lay out our arguments for a different view and how that view supports the b2change organization. Although we argue that leadership is shared, we are also arguing that a) everyone should be both a good leader and a good manager and b) as a member of a team, sometimes being a good leader means being a good follower.
Chapter Outline
1. Effective Leadership Redefined
- Importance of the Business Environment
- Shared Leadership
Note: We challenge the traditional metaphors of leadership – “captain of the ship,” “hero,” or “savior” – and argue that leadership in a b2change organization must be shared. Leadership should be seen as a “team sport” to borrow the phrase from HP’s current CEO Mark Hurd.
In as much as leadership is one of those concepts about which everyone has an opinion, this chapter challenges much of the commonly accepted assumptions. We worry that viewing only the CEO or senior management as leaders is a big problem that supports a view of promotion as a key reward. We tackle the problems associated with promotion as a reward in the next two chapters.
2. Leadership Talent
- Establish the Leadership Brand
- Plan for Leadership Change
Note: In Chapter 6, we advocated for an “employer brand” that would help people inside the organization as well as potential new hires think about their employment contract. What does is mean to be an “employee” here; what is the nature of the employment contract? In this section, we advocate that the organization develop a “leadership brand” as well. It’s purpose is to provide clear guidelines and expectations about how people will be influenced. As with the employer brand, the leadership brand must honor the organization’s identity – the way people are lead and influenced must reflect the organization’s sense of culture and image.
3. A Company of Leaders
- Leadership Opportunities
- Leadership Development
- Transparency
- Regular Assessment of Managerial Performance and Behavior
4. Conclusion
Leaders are a key component of their organization’s human capital. They contribute significantly to the intangible value of all corporations, but they are particularly important in b2change organizations, where they are needed to lead change as well as to produce good operating results. Moreover, they have the effect of gluing the elements of the designing process together to create dynamic alignment. B2change organizations need to specifically focus on the development of leaders—not just a few, but rather a whole organization of leaders. This is what we mean when we say that an organization must develop a leadership capability.
Fortunately, there are things an organization can do to be sure it will have the leaders it needs. The most important is having senior management focus on the development of leadership in the organization. Companies that have a strong leadership capability all have had CEOs who see developing effective leaders as one of the most, if not the most, important parts of their job. They teach leadership classes, conduct talent reviews, and in many other ways show their commitment to developing leaders in their companies. This kind of support is not optional: it must exist if an organization is to meet the leadership challenge that change creates.
Following a shared leadership model is not only a powerful force toward improving current organizational performance; it helps guarantee that an organization will have a reserve of leaders and, in many cases, a diversity of leaders. As a result, the company will be much better able to cope with change.