GET YOUR SHIP TOGETHER!
(Leader-SHIP that is…)
Kenneth Miller | July 2015 | Updated November 2023
“The only thing of real importance that leaders do is to create and manage culture”
–Edgar Schein
As the nature of the workplace evolves–driven in part by the lingering and/or permanent effects of the pandemic, the increasing focus of companies and their investors on ESG, and the recognition that productivity is an essential element of performance growth and sustainability–a rapidly growing number of organizations are jumping onto the workforce engagement/culture transformation bandwagon.
We think it might be well to pause here a moment to consider just how well-prepared for such an endeavor most organizations are—or are not. With Gallup annually reporting US employee engagement rates mired in the low-to-mid-30s% range–while estimating that the impact of low engagement on performance costs the global economy nearly $8 trillion–can anyone disagree that there’s much yet to be done about the disengaged two-thirds of the US workforce if organizational performance is to reach its potential?
The critical first step—without which there can be no effective next—is to assure the existence of organizational will sufficient to enable genuine and enduring commitment to a process requiring honest introspection and consistent effort—a process guaranteed to be at once discomforting, arduous and perpetual. And properly done, well worth the effort.
The reality is that extant in every enterprise is a palpable inertia militating against fundamental culture change. The status quo is the default option absent the informed undertaking of conscious and consistent change initiatives affecting behavior at every level of the organization, including—no, especially—the very top.
To paraphrase Peter Drucker, ‘rank confers neither power nor privilege—it imposes responsibility’. But we cannot suffer the delusion that those perched atop the hierarchal heap can or will enthusiastically cede the power and perks to which they have become accustomed. Those possessed of power like it—a lot. There are still some among us to whom the corner office and the reserved parking slot are important symbols of their power and status—really. The tipping point must be an embrace of the reality that all stakeholders are the beneficiaries of an organizational culture that recognizes and rewards leadership and initiative at all levels. As Einstein admonishes,
“Setting an example is not the main means of influencing others,
it is the only means.”
Herb Kelleher, co-founder and long-time CEO of Southwest Airlines puts it a bit more bluntly than Drucker:
“I forgive all personal weaknesses except egomania and pretension…power should be reserved for weightlifting and [speed] boats; leadership is about responsibility…the only thing your competitors can’t eventually duplicate is your culture.”
Further, MIT’s Edgar Schein—a genuine icon of organizational culture—reminds us that though organizations may overtly espouse the virtues of teamwork, empowerment, communication, consensus, flat structures, etc, the harsh reality is that these practices don’t exist in most corporate cultures because such cultures are built upon solidly embedded assumptions of hierarchy, control, privilege and prerogative, limited communication and the presumption that ‘management’ and ‘employees’ exist in a perpetual state of tension and conflict.
Dr Schein goes on to observe that in most cases these values are so deeply entrenched that they can only be changed through a “…major organizational transformation effort”. We agree—managed transformation it must be. But as Richard Barrett, of the UK-based Barrett Values Centre, points out:
“Simply put, the culture of an organization is a reflection of the values
and beliefs of the leaders. Who you are as a leader determines the corporate culture. Therefore, if you want to change the culture, either you must change, or you must change the leader. Cultural transformation
begins with the personal transformation of the leaders; organizations do
not transform [unless] people do.”
There’s more, but we think the point is—however painfully—clear: organizational culture should be the foundation of the business model—not a nicety condemned to afterthought status; not poster-on-the wall window-dressing or a one-off project for HR. And it’s prerequisite that the commitment of the organization’s leadership be genuine, absolute and irrevocable. If not, don’t try it—full stop. Further, our approach to leadership and culture must go hand-in-hand. It’s that simple. And that difficult.
Pause here for reflection.
If culture is not the result of conscious design and careful deliberation, it will assuredly evolve organically by itself—and that’s almost never a good thing. Once a culture has developed on its own, it’s stubbornly difficult to change. Likewise, an ill-conceived effort within an ill-prepared organization will likely have unintended adverse consequences that will most certainly be something quite worse than merely unproductive—and similarly intractable. Since, in the end, culture is the only attribute differentiating a company from its competition, it should be worthy of constant doting care and nurturing.
In a recent report released by The Conference Board, ‘human capital’ was cited as the number one challenge for CEO’s around the world, and ‘employee engagement’ was further identified as a key priority and strategy to address that challenge. Make no mistake—successful workforce engagement and the alignment of individual and organizational goals require strong and adaptive leadership skills and unwavering commitment.
An Amazon search yields over 60,000 hits under ‘leadership books’, and if one Googles the same term, the number–absurdly–is well over 500 million. It seems this leadership thing is fairly widely perceived as an important topic. But it’s time to rethink what leadership is all about here in the third millennium.
Unless you happen to be an emerging Herb Kelleher or Richard Branson, or a budding Tony Hsieh or Reed Hastings, you might do yourself—and your organization—a big favor by consulting an expert (insert shameless plug here). This stuff can, after all, be a bit arcane at first—a translator/guide can be helpful.
But above all, remember this:
Culture happens—make it your own or suffer the consequences…If you don’t have culture by design, you have culture by default.
And that ain’t good.
#Think About It
