Jossey-Bass on Leadership

#12 - What should a new leader do to establish his/her style and make an impact - without rocking the boat?

We had to take an unexpected break in our blog posting yesterday, but we are finishing our March series up today with a bang! For those of you unfamiliar with our March blog series, it's based on news that Jack Griffin, Time Inc.'s CEO, left his post after an extremely short 6-month stint. Our final response comes from Jim Kouzes, whom you know (along with co-author Barry Posner) from The Leadership Challenge. Even though this is our last series post of the month, we'd love to hear your take on the topic, which you can leave in the comments here and on Facebook and Twitter.

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Jim Kouzes:

"Leadership is a relationship—a relationship between those who aspire to lead and those who choose to follow. And the foundation of that relationship, the bedrock upon which it is built, is personal credibility. If you don’t believe in the messenger, you won’t believe the message. One of the powerful lessons from the short tenure of Jack Griffin at Time is that a long and successful track record at one organization does not instantly translate into immediate credibility at a new one. That’s because the most important contributor to personal credibility—trustworthiness—can only be developed over time and through direct contact with those you’re going to lead. My guess is that in his haste to bring about some needed changes at Time, he relied too much on prior successes and not enough on building the relationships needed to support those changes. When you first join a new organization you have to make a conscious effort to answer the most fundamental questions people want to ask a new leader: Who are you? Where are we headed? What’s going to happen to me? And, Why should we follow you?"

Jim Kouzes is the coauthor with Barry Posner of the award-winning and best-selling The Leadership Challenge, and over a dozen other books on leadership including their most recent, The Truth About Leadership. They are also the developers of the world's bestselling off-the-shelf leadership assessment, The Leadership Practices Inventory. Jim is also the Dean's Executive Fellow of Leadership at the Leavey School of Business, Santa Clara University. Among his many awards and honors, The Wall Street Journal has cited Jim as one of the top twelve executive educators in the United States.

Visit the website of Jim and Barry's latest book, "The Truth About Leadership: The No Fads, Heart-of-the-Matter Facts You Need to Know": http://www.truthaboutleadership.com
Follow them on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TruthAboutLeadership 
And on Twitter:  http://twitter.com/KouzesPosner
View a brief video discussion on Amazon.com:  http://amzn.com/0470633549
Visit the website for all products: http://www.leadershipchallenge.com
View their online product brochure: http://lp.wileypub.com/TLCProduct/index.html
Read their blog at: http://leadershipchallenge.typepad.com

*Don't miss "Credibility: How Leaders Gain and Lose It, Why People Demand It" - available wherever books and ebooks are sold, Summer 2011!

#11 - What should a new leader do to establish his/her style and make an impact - without rocking the boat?

It's the Saturday edition of the series - and today we're featuring a response from JBbiz author Seth Kahan (Getting Change Right: How Leaders Transform Organizations from the Inside Out). For those of you unfamiliar with our March blog series, it's based on news that Jack Griffin, Time Inc.'s CEO, left his post after an extremely short 6-month stint. The series will continue into next week so don't forget to check back and let us know your own thoughts, in the comments and on Facebook and Twitter.

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Seth Kahan:

"Why would a leader want to avoid rocking the boat? Avoid sinking the boat, avoid generating churn—yes. But avoid rocking the boat? Absolutely not, unless your goal is the status quo, which is counter to true leadership. The goal for every new leader is to move as effectively as possible to a higher level of performance, both personally and organizationally. Performance improvement is the primary driver. The new leader needs to be laser focused on generating results. That means (a) fixing what's broken, and (b) raising the bar. Nothing else matters."

Seth Kahan is the author of Getting Change Right: How Leaders Transform Organizations from the Inside Out (Jossey-Bass, 2010), a Washington Post bestseller and named by the American Express OPEN Forum as a Top 20 of 2010. Seth writes for Fast Company online at SethFast.com. He is an executive strategy consultant, working with CEOs and Executive Directors on organizational transformation.

You can reach Seth on the web at www.VisionaryLeadership.com and download an excerpt of his book at www.GettingChangeRight.com.

#10 - What should a new leader do to establish his/her style and make an impact - without rocking the boat?

Our 10th post of the series is brought to you by Andy Stefanovich, author of "Look At More: A Proven Approach to Innovation, Growth, and Change," which will be available April 19th (but you can preorder it now). For those of you unfamiliar with our March blog series, it's based on news that Jack Griffin, Time Inc.'s CEO, left his post after an extremely short 6-month stint. The series will continue into next week so don't forget to check back and let us know your own thoughts, in the comments and on Facebook and Twitter.

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Andy Stefanovich:

"Its all about empathy and energy--two words that define leadership, especially in the early moments in the role. Empathy in that you appreciate that you don't immediate play "boss." Instead, view yourself as a new associate and want to learn and listen aggressively. Energy is the qualitative magic that helps give people the needed inspiration. Important to remember, the most intangible is the most tangible in leadership."

Andy Stefanovich, chief curator and provocateur at Prophet, has spent the past twenty years helping the world's leading companies drive innovation from the inside out. In 1990, Andy cofounded Play, a creativity and innovation company, which changed the way business does business. Play and Prophet joined forces in 2009. A popular and dynamic speaker, Stefanovich frequently delivers keynote addresses to leading international organizations and has been featured on CNBC and MSNBC.

For more information, please visit www.prophet.com/lookatmore

And here to preorder your copy 

#9 - What should a new leader do to establish his/her style and make an impact - without rocking the boat?

Did you see our Jossey-Bass March blog series was feautured on Forbes.com today? A big thanks to Steve Denning for the mention and "hello" to all of our new followers! As Steve mentioned, this series is based on news that Jack Griffin, Time Inc.'s CEO, left his post after an extremely short 6-month stint. Be sure to check back in every day as we still have a stellar author line-up of authors yet to share their opinions, including Andy Stefanovich, Seth Kahan, and Jim Kouzes! 

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Gary Burnison:

"The job of a new leader is to talk often, but to listen far more. Some people will seek to be heard, others will be threatened by change, but all will have something to teach the leader about the organization. A leader creates nothing from whole cloth. Rather, he or she accumulates pieces from across the organization to set a strategy, establish a vision, and align people to a common purpose. Building unity will always remain a cornerstone of leadership."

Gary Burnison is author of No Fear of Failure: Real Stories of How Leaders Deal with Risk and Change (in stores this May). He is CEO of Korn/Ferry International,headquartered in the firm’s Los Angeles office. He is also a member of the firm’s Board of Directors. Leading Korn/Ferry’s transformation as a talent management organization, Burnison spearheads the firm’s evolution as a diversified provider of human capital solutions.  Prior to being CEO, he served as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer from 2003 to 2007.

Read about Gary's forthcoming Jossey-Bass business book "No Fear of Failure" and preorder your copy now.

 

#8 - What should a new leader do to establish his/her style and make an impact - without rocking the boat?

For those who didn't know, this March author series is based on the recent news that Time Inc. CEO Jack Griffin left his post at the company after only 6 months in the job. You can read the full article in BusinessWeek here. We'll have plenty more author insights to share every day this week - we have yet to hear from Andy Stefanovich, Gary Burnison, Seth Kahan, and Jim Kouzes! We encourage you to chime in, in the blog comments or on Twitter and Facebook.

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Steve Denning:

I have to start by saying that I have some concerns about the apparent premises that underlie the question. At a time when the rate of return on US companies is 25% of what it was in 1965, and when the life expectancy of a firm in the Fortune 500 has declined from 75 years in 1965 to less than 15 years today (and heading towards 5 years if nothing is done), and when only one in five workers is fully engaged in his or her work, a preoccupation with "leadership style" and  "not rocking the boat" needs to be replaced (in most cases) with a preooccupation with ascertaining why the boat is sinking, identifying those who understand this, selecting the future champions who have the smarts and leadership skills to create the future of "the boat," and quickly getting them in positions where they can get to work. I agree with those authors who have already spoken to the effect that the focus in this endeavor must initially be on listening. I would add however that there should be less emphasis on "establishing a leadership style" and a more single-minded focus on the *substance* of finding those who understand the real situation and have practical ideas and talents to refloat the boat and getting it moving forward. The focus needs to be less on "you" as a leader and your "style" and more on "the boat."

Stephen Denning is the author of The Leader’s Guide to Radical Management: Reinventing the Workplace for the 21st Century (Jossey-Bass, 2010), which has been selected by 800-CEO-READ as one of the best five books on management in 2010. He is also the author of The Leader’s Guide to Storytelling and The Secret Language of Leadership . A long-time executive at the World Bank, he now advises organizations around the world on leadership, storytelling and reinventing management.

Steve's website is: http://stevedenning.com
Visit his book page: http://www.stevedenning.com/Books/radical-management.aspx
Find him on Twitter: http://twitter.com/stevedenning
Read his Blog: http://stevedenning.typepad.com/steve_denning/
Contact him by Email: [email protected]

#7 - What should a new leader do to establish his/her style and make an impact - without rocking the boat?

For those who didn't know, this March author series is based on the recent news that Time Inc. CEO Jack Griffin left his post at the company after only 6 months in the job. You can read the full article in BusinessWeek here. We'll have plenty more author insights to share every day this week - from Bob Herbold (today), Steve Denning, Andy Stefanovich, Gary Burnison, Seth Kahan, and Jim Kouzes! We encourage you to chime in, in the blog comments or on Twitter and Facebook.

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Bob Herbold:

"First, have sessions with each of the people who are in key positions, and some who report to those people, and listen carefully to their perspectives on how their part of the business operates, and what they view as the strengths, weaknesses and opportunities.  Second, develop a plan to tackle the highest priority items and provide it to your direct reports and a select group of others and get feedback and modify the plan as you see appropriate.  Third, do one last, quick iteration of the plan with your people and then launch the plan, and the rationale behind it, and continually ask for ways to improve it as it is being pursued."

Robert Herbold is the author of What's Holding You Back: 10 Bold Steps that Define Gutsy Leaders. Herbold was executive vice president and chief operating officer of Microsoft Corporation from 1994 until retiring in 2001 and is currently the Managing Director of The Herbold Group, LLC, a consulting business focused on profitability, strategic, and operational issues.

Visit Bob's website at: www.bobherbold.com

He is also on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Bob-Herbold/154170271298178?ref=ts

 

#6 - What should a new leader do to establish his/her style and make an impact - without rocking the boat?

We're back this Monday after Daylight Savings with a new response from JBbiz author Sylvia Lafair. For those who didn't know, this March author series is based on the recent news that Time Inc. CEO Jack Griffin left his post at the company after only 6 months in the job. You can read the full article in BusinessWeek here. We'll have plenty more author insights to share every day this week and hope you'll chime in, in the blog comments or on Twitter and Facebook.

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Sylvia Lafair:

"Leadership without boat-rocking begins with learning the art and craft of truth telling without blame, judgment, or attack. This is a high discipline not taught well in our culture. Most important is remembering that telling the truth is not spilling your guts. It requires a deep understanding of how systems are connected, sprinkled with a large amount of tact and compassion."

Sylvia Lafair is the author of “Don’t Bring it to Work: Breaking the Family Patterns that Limit Success” and is an expert on leadership, workplace behaviour, and relationships. Having begun her career as a family therapist, she went on to serve as an executive coach to senior executives and leadership teams. Lafair is Co-Founder and President of Creative Energy Options (CEO), a consulting firm with retreat centres in Pennsylvania and New Mexico, USA.

Find Sylvia on Twitter: www.twitter.com/sylvialafair

Facebook: www.facebook.com/sylvia.lafair

The Web: www.sylvialafair.com and www.ceoptions.com

 

#5 - What should a new leader do to establish his/her style and make an impact - without rocking the boat?

We hope you are having a relaxing Saturday morning. What goes better with your weekend cup of coffee than a little leadership blog reading? Enjoy today's installment of our March blog series, based on the recent news that Time Inc. CEO Jack Griffin left his post at the company after only 6 months in the job. You can read the full article in BusinessWeek here. Today's response comes from one half of the duo that gave us "From Bud to Boss," Guy Harris. We'll have more compelling insights to share next week and hope you'll chime in, in the blog comments or on Twitter and Facebook.

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Guy Harris:

"As a Naval officer, I had the opportunity to see several changes of command. I noticed that the most successful “new” commanding officers watched how things happened, listened to people on the crew, and asked about history before making significant changes to roles, responsibilities, and processes. When I entered the business world, I saw the same pattern – leaders who acted first alienated others while leaders who listened and learned first built alignment and made a difference."

Guy Harris is the coauthor of From Bud to Boss (available now), the owner of Principal Driven Consulting, and a master trainer and coach with The Kevin Eikenberry Group. Previously, he was a nuclear engineering officer in the US Navy, a manager in the chemical industry, an entrepreneur. He is a Certified Human Behavior Specialist, a Master trainer in the DISC Model of Human Behavior, and a Conflict Resolution Subject Matter Expert. He is co-author of several books, publisher of an e-newsletter, and blogger.

"Like" the book on Facebook: http://facebook.com/frombudtoboss

And on Twitter:  @recovengineer and @budtoboss

Don't forget to visit Kevin's Blog:  http://recoveringengineer.com/

 

#4 - What should a new leader do to establish his/her style and make an impact - without rocking the boat?

Happy Friday! A new day means a new entry in this, our 3rd author series of the year! This blog series is based on the recent news that Time Inc. CEO Jack Griffin left his post at the company after only 6 months in the job. You can read the full article in BusinessWeek here. Today's response comes from one half of the duo that gave us "From Bud to Boss," Kevin Eikenberry. Catch his response in full below. We'll have more compelling insights to share this week and next and hope you'll chime in, in the blog comments or on Twitter and Facebook.

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Kevin Eikenberry:

"One great strategy for a new leader is to go on a listening/learning tour.  Start by listening to everyone, and learning about the past, the present and other’s goals for the future.  Once you have done your tour, then you can begin to make decisions and if appropriate, changes.  Doing this builds relationships, trust and improves the decisions you will make."

Kevin Eikenberry is the coauthor of From Bud to Boss (available now) and author of Remarkable Leadership. He is the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group, a learning consulting company that provides a wide range of services including training delivery and design, facilitation, performance coaching, organizational consulting, and speaking services. He has worked with Fortune 500 companies, smaller firms, universities, and government agencies including the American Red Cross, Aramark, Chevron Phillips Chemical Company, Invesco, John Deere, Nexen, OPTI Canada, Purdue University, Sears Canada, Shell, Southwest Airlines, the U.S. Marine Corp, the U.S. Mint, and Verizon.

"Like" the book on Facebook: http://facebook.com/frombudtoboss

And on Twitter:  @kevineikenberry and @budtoboss

Don't forget to visit Kevin's Blog:  http://blog.kevineikenberry.com

 Stay tuned for Guy Harris' take on this topic in tomorrow's installment of the March blog series!

#3 - What should a new leader do to establish his/her style and make an impact - without rocking the boat?

We took a day off but today we are back with a new entry in our 3rd author series of the year! This series is based on the recent news that Time Inc. CEO Jack Griffin left his post at the company after only 6 months in the job. You can read the full article in BusinessWeek here. Today's response comes from Cy Wakeman, and you can read it in full below. We'll have more compelling insights to share this week and next and hope you'll chime in, in the blog comments or on Twitter and Facebook.

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Cy Wakeman:

"Change is not an event to be managed but a psychological transition to be led. To be successful in making an impact, a leader needs to establish a willing group of supporters by creating a compelling vision and capturing the hearts and minds of a core group of people. A leader fails when he or she tries to implement a great plan with an average team of uninspired and unwilling participants.  Great leaders tend to the talent first, sorting out the team going forward not by their skills but by their willingness to buy into the overall plan for change. Griffin over-managed and under-led his team, focusing on redesigning organizational structures, cost-cutting measures, and the details of the business rather than on the people. More than anything else, even pleasing people, a leader needs to bring together a group of talented and willing participants."

Cy Wakeman is a dynamic, well-respected, national keynote speaker, workshop facilitator, and trainer who helps individuals and organizations achieve stellar results. Cy's background combines four successfulbusiness start-ups with 18 years working and consulting in manufacturing, banking, government, high-tech,and healthcare. She is the author of "Reality-Based Leadership: Ditch the Drama, Restore Sanity to the Workplace, and Turn Excuses into Results" and isalso an expert blogger forFastCompany.com.

Buy the book here

Visit Cy's book page at www.realitybasedleadership.com

And her website at www.cywakeman.com

Follow her on twitter @cywakeman

Her facebook page is at www.facebook.com/cywakeman