鲍威尔的领导学经典(1).pptx
General Colin PowellChairman(Ret),Joint Chiefs of StaffA Leadership Primer Being responsible sometimes means pissing people off.Being responsible sometimes means pissing people off.Good leadership involves responsibility to the welfare of the group,whichmeans that some people will get angry at your actions and decisions.Itsinevitable,if youre honorable.Trying to get everyone to like you is a signof mediocrity:youll avoid the tough decisions,youll avoid confronting thepeople who need to be confronted,and youll avoid offering differentialrewards based on differential performance because some people mightget upset.Ironically,by procrastinating on the difficult choices,by tryingnot to get anyone mad,and by treating everyone equally nicely regardlessof their contributions,youll simply ensure that the only people youll windup angering are the most creative and productive people in the organization.The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is theThe day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is theday you have stopped leading them.They have either lostday you have stopped leading them.They have either lostconfidence that you can help them or concluded that youconfidence that you can help them or concluded that youdo not care.Either case is a failure of leadership.do not care.Either case is a failure of leadership.If this were a litmus test,the majority of CEOs would fail.One,they build somany barriers to upward communication that the very idea of someone lowerin the hierarchy looking up to the leader for help is ludicrous.Two,thecorporate culture they foster often defines asking for help as weakness orfailure,so people cover up their gaps,and the organization suffers accordingly.Real leaders make themselves accessible and available.They show concernfor the efforts and challenges faced by underlings,even as they demand highstandards.Accordingly,they are more likely to create an environment whereproblem analysis replaces blame.Dont be buffaloed by experts and elites.Experts oftenDont be buffaloed by experts and elites.Experts oftenpossess more data than judgment.Elites can become sopossess more data than judgment.Elites can become soinbred that they produce hemophiliacs who bleed to deathinbred that they produce hemophiliacs who bleed to deathas soon as they are nicked by the real world.as soon as they are nicked by the real world.Small companies and start-ups dont have the time for analytically detachedexperts.They dont have the money to subsidize lofty elites,either.Thepresident answers the phone and drives the truck when necessary;everyoneon the payroll visibly produces and contributes to bottom-line results or theyrehistory.But as companies get bigger,they often forget who brought them tothe dance:things like all-hands involvement,egalitarianism,informality,market intimacy,daring,risk,speed,agility.Policies that emanate fromivory towers often have an adverse impact on the people out in the fieldwho are fighting the wars or bringing in the revenues.Real leaders arevigilant,and combative,in the face of these trends.Dont be afraid to challenge the pros,Dont be afraid to challenge the pros,even in their own backyard.even in their own backyard.Learn from the pros,observe them,seek them out as mentors and partners.But remember that even the pros may have leveled out in terms of theirlearning and skills.Sometimes even the pros can become complacent andlazy.Leadership does not emerge from blind obedience to anyone.XeroxsBarry Rand was right on target when he warned his people that if you havea yes-man working for you,one of you is redundant.Good leadershipencourages everyones evolution.Never neglect details.When everyones mind is dulledNever neglect details.When everyones mind is dulledor distracted the leader must be doubly vigilant.or distracted the leader must be doubly vigilant.Strategy equals execution.All the great ideas and visions in the world areworthless if they cant be implemented rapidly and efficiently.Good leadersdelegate and empower others liberally,but they pay attention to details,everyday.(Think about supreme athletic coaches like Jimmy Johnson,Pat Rileyand Tony La Russa).Bad ones,even those who fancy themselves as progressive visionaries,think theyre somehow above operational details.Paradoxically,good leaders understand something else:an obsessive routinein carrying out the details begets conformity and complacency,which in turndulls everyones mind.That is why even as they pay attention to details,theycontinually encourage people to challenge the process.They implicitlyunderstand the sentiment of CEO leaders like Quad Graphics HarryQuadracchi,Oticons Lars Kolind and the late Bill McGowan of MCI,who allindependently asserted that the Job of a leader is not to be the chief organizer,but the chief dis-organizer.You dont know what you can get away with until you try.You dont know what you can get away with until you try.You know the expression,its easier to get forgiveness than permission.Well,its true.Good leaders dont wait for official blessing to try things out.Theyreprudent,not reckless.But they also realize a fact of life in most organizations:if you ask enough people for permission,youll inevitably come up againstsomeone who believes his job is to say no.So the moral is,dont ask.Lesseffective middle managers endorsed the sentiment,If I havent explicitly beentold yes,I cant do it,whereas the good ones believed,If I havent explicitlybeen told no,I can.Theres a world of difference between these two pointsof view.Keep looking below surface appearances.Keep looking below surface appearances.Dont shrink from doing so(just)because youDont shrink from doing so(just)because youmight not like what you find.might not like what you find.If it aint broke,dont fix it is the slogan of the complacent,the arrogant or thescared.Its an excuse for inaction,a call to non-arms.Its a mind-set thatassumes(or hopes)that todays realities will continue tomorrow in a tidy,linearand predictable fashion.Pure fantasy.In this sort of culture,you wont findpeople who pro-actively take steps to solve problems as they emerge.Heresa little tip:dont invest in these companies.Organization doesnt really accomplish anything.PlansOrganization doesnt really accomplish anything.Plansdont accomplish anything,either.Theories of managementdont accomplish anything,either.Theories of managementdont much matter.Endeavors succeed or fail because ofdont much matter.Endeavors succeed or fail because ofthe people involved.Only by attracting the best people willthe people involved.Only by attracting the best people willyou accomplish great deeds.you accomplish great deeds.In a brain-based economy,your best assets are people.Weve heard this expression so often that its become trite.But how many leaders really walkthe talk with this stuff?Too often,people are assumed to be empty chesspieces to be moved around by grand viziers,which may explain why so manytop managers immerse their calendar time in deal making,restructuring andthe latest management fad.How many immerse themselves in the goal ofcreating an environment where the best,the brightest,the most creative areattracted,retained and,most importantly,unleashed?Organization charts and fancy titles count for next to nothing.Organization charts and fancy titles count for next to nothing.Organization charts are frozen,anachronistic photos in a work place that oughtto be as dynamic as the external environment around you.If people reallyfollowed organization charts,companies would collapse.In well-runorganizations,titles are also pretty meaningless.At best,they advertisesome authority,an official status conferring the ability to give orders andinduce obedience.But titles mean little in terms of real power,which is thecapacity to influence and inspire.Have you ever noticed that people willpersonally commit to certain individuals who on paper(or on the organizationchart)possess little authority,but instead possess pizzazz,drive,expertise,and genuine caring for teammates and products?On the flip side,non-leadersin management may be formally anointed with all the perks and frillsassociated with high positions,but they have little influence on others,apartfrom their ability to extract minimal compliance to minimal standards.Never let your ego get so close to your position thatNever let your ego get so close to your position thatwhen your position goes,your ego goes with it.when your position goes,your ego goes with it.Too often,change is stifled by people who cling to familiar turfs and jobdescriptions.One reason that even large organizations wither is thatmanagers wont challenge old,comfortable ways of doing things.But real leaders understand that,nowadays,every one of our jobs is becomingobsolete.The proper response is to obsolete our activities before someoneelse does.Effective leaders create a climate where peoples worth is determined by their willingness to learn new skills and grab newresponsibilities,thus perpetually reinventing their jobs.The mostimportant question in performance evaluation becomes not,How welldid you perform your job since the last time we met?but,How muchdid you change it?Fit no stereotypes.Dont chase the latest managementFit no stereotypes.Dont chase the latest managementfads.The situation dictates which approach bestfads.The situation dictates which approach bestaccomplishes the teams mission.accomplishes the teams mission.Flitting from fad to fad creates team confusion,reduces the leaders credibility,and drains organizational coffers.Blindly following a particular fad generatesrigidity in thought and action.Sometimes speed to market is more importantthan total quality.Sometimes an unapologetic directive is more appropriatethan participatory discussion.Some situations require the leader to hoverclosely;others require long,loose leashes.Leaders honor their core values,but they are flexible in how they execute them.They understand thatmanagement techniques are not magic mantras but simply tools to bereached for at the right times.Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier.Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier.The ripple effect of a leaders enthusiasm and optimism is awesome.So is theimpact of cynicism and pessimism.Leaders who whine and blame engender those same behaviors among their colleagues.I am not talking about stoicallyaccepting organizational stupidity and performance incompetence with a what,me worry?smile.I am talking about a gung-ho attitude that says we canchange things here,we can achieve awesome goals,we can be the best.Spare me the grim litany of the realist,give me the unrealistic aspirationsof the optimist any day.Powells Rules for Picking People:”Powells Rules for Picking People:”Look for intelligence and judgment,and most critically,Look for intelligence and judgment,and most critically,a capacity to anticipate,to see around corners.Alsoa capacity to anticipate,to see around corners.Alsolook for loyalty,integrity,a high energy drive,a balancedlook for loyalty,integrity,a high energy drive,a balancedego,and the drive to get things done.ego,and the drive to get things done.How often do our recruitment and hiring processes tap into these attributes?More often than not,we ignore them in favor of length of resume,degrees andprior titles.A string of job descriptions a recruit held yesterday seem to bemore important than who one is today,what they can contribute tomorrow,orhow well their values mesh with those of the organization.You can train abright,willing novice in the fundamentals of your business fairly readily,butits a lot harder to train someone to have integrity,judgment,energy,balance,and the drive to get things done.Good leaders stack the deck in their favorright in the recruitment phase.Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers,Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers,who can cut through argument,debate and doubt,who can cut through argument,debate and doubt,to offer a solution everybody can understand.to offer a solution everybody can understand.Effective leaders understand the KISS principle,Keep It Simple,Stupid.Theyarticulate vivid,over-arching goals and values,which they use to drive dailybehaviors and choices among competing alternatives.Their visions andpriorities are lean and compelling,not cluttered and buzzword-laden.Theirdecisions are crisp and clear,not tentative and ambiguous.They convey anunwavering firmness and consistency in their actions,aligned with the pictureof the future they paint.The result:clarity of purpose,credibility of leadership,and integrity in organization.Part I:Use the formula P=40 to 70,in which P standsPart I:Use the formula P=40 to 70,in which P standsfor the probability of success and the numbers indicatefor the probability of success and the numbers indicatethe percentage of information acquired.”the percentage of information acquired.”Part II:Once the information is in the 40 to 70 range,Part II:Once the information is in the 40 to 70 range,go with your gut.go with your gut.Dont take action if you have only enough information to give you less than a40 percent chance of being right,but dont wait until you have enough facts tobe 100 percent sure,because by then it is almost always too late.Today,excessive delays in the name of information-gathering breeds analysisparalysis.Procrastination in the name of reducing risk actually increases risk.The commander in the field is always right and theThe commander in the field is always right and therear echelon is wrong,unless proved otherwise.rear echelon is wrong,unless proved otherwise.Too often,the reverse defines corporate culture.This is one of the mainreasons why leaders like Ken Iverson of Nucor Steel,Percy Barnevik of AseaBrown Boveri,and Richard Branson of Virgin have kept their corporate staffsto a bare-bones minimum-how about fewer than 100 central corporatestaffers for global$30 billion-plus ABB?Or around 25 and 3 for multi-billionNucor and Virgin,respectively?Shift the power and the financial accountabilityto the folks who are bringing in the beans,not the ones who are countingor analyzing them.Have fun in your command.Dont always run atHave fun in your command.Dont always run ata breakneck pace.Take leave when youve earned it:a breakneck pace.Take leave when youve earned it:Spend time with your families.Spend time with your families.Corollary:surround yourself with people who take theirCorollary:surround yourself with people who take theirwork seriously,but not themselves,those who workwork seriously,but not themselves,those who workhard and play hard.hard and play hard.Herb Kelleher of Southwest Air and Anita Roddick of The Body Shop wouldagree:seek people who have some balance in their lives,who are fun to hangout with,who like to laugh(at themselves,too)and who have some non-jobpriorities which they approach with the same passion that they do their work.Spare me the grim workaholic or the pompous pretentious professional;”Ill help them find j
