The more I read about leadership and as I observe leaders in organisations I’ve come to believe the Russian proverb that “A fish rots from the head.” as true and found that it applies equally to organisations. An organisation is the shadow of the top leader. An organisation and a team is only as successful as it’s leader. John Maxwell calls this “The Law of the Lid“, which states that:
“Leadership ability determines a person’s level of effectiveness…… Leadership ability is always the lid on personal and organisational effectiveness.”
Show me a frustrated team and I’ll show you a weak leader.
Show me an under performing organisation and I’ll show you a weak leader.
Show me an apathetic church and I’ll show you a weak leader.
Show me a losing team and I’ll show you a weak leader.
But…..
Show me a focused team and I’ll show you a great leader.
Show me a high performing organisation and I’ll show you a great leader.
Show me a passionate church and I’ll show you a great leader.
Show me a winning team and I’ll show you a great leader.
“The spirit of the organisation is created from the top” – Peter Drucker
Organisations and teams require great leadership to thrive and succeed. It seems that far too often organisations are over-managed and under-led. The leadership at the top of an organisation is of paramount importance. I’m still amazed at the lack of focus on an organisations top leadership and what truly astonishes me is the lack of urgency when it comes to removing poor performing leaders. All too often poor leaders are left to destroy customer relationships and staff morale. Leadership has be held to a higher standard, especially when is comes to their character.
I cannot over-emphasise the importance of selecting the best people for top leadership positions. How do we ensure that we select the righ people for top leadership positions? Peter Drucker in his book “The Daily Drucker” gives the following advice, “I always ask myself, would I want one of my sons to work under that person? if he is successful, then young people will imitate him. Would I want my son to look like this?”
“I am convinced that nothing we do is more important than hiring and developing people. At the end of the day you bet on people, not on strategies.” – Larry Bossidy, Former CEO, Allied Signal
Mark Howell of Strategy Central blog posted a set of questions for selecting team leaders, from the book Mavericks at Work (I have modified the origional questions to make them specific for leaders). When looking to appoint leaders in your organisation, can you answer the following questions:
- Why should great leaders join your organization?
- Do you know a great leader when you see one? Here it is. Do you have a clear idea of how a great leader acts? What they do when under pressure? How they respond to a challenge? Can you describe it?
- Can you find great leaders who aren’t looking for you?
- Are your leaders great at teaching great people how your organization works and wins?
My advice to organisations is firstly, act swiftly to remove poor performing leadership, do not wait until low staff morale or poor performance forces your hand. Secondly, spend the time necessary to select the right leadership properly, placing character first.
Technorati Tags: Leadership, Management, Character, Business, People
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Great article from Mark Howell another voice in the wilderness! I suggest reading, “160 Degrees of Deviation: The Case for the Corporate Cynic.” I wrote this thin volume of management common sense several years ago when these views were treated as heresy and blasphemy by a reviewer of business books who did not want to offend the corporate elite.