This week’s Inspirational quote and interpretation comes from a conversation I recently had with my father-in-law, Ron. The discussion focused on techniques leaders use to stay engaged with their organization. One of our many examples was Jack Welch of General Electric fame:
“A leader’s role is not to control people or stay on top of things, but rather to guide, energize, and excite.” - Jack Welch
Depending on your past experience and former duty positions, you may find yourself carefully balanced between agreeing or disagreeing with certain aspects of Mr. Welch’s quote above. Most will agree that “controlling” is very different from “leading.” Some may also argue that you better stay on top of things if you want to ensure you’re prioritizing the right organizational efforts and reading the proper environmental indicators critical for maintaining (or adapting) current vision and mission glide paths. But while I’ve never been much of a cheerleader, I wholeheartedly agree that regardless of your comfort level, one of the most powerful roles you play as a leader is to be that guiding force that excites and inspires the organization to strive to excellence.
This particular challenge becomes more daunting and difficult as said leaders find themselves further removed from the tactical or direct level of leadership. Instead of previous positions which allowed the leader to focus nearly all of their efforts “down and in” for the organization, it’s not surprising that the higher one climbs along the corporate leadership ladder towards more strategic levels, much of your work now requires you to transition to an “up and out” perspective. While this new emphasis on adopting an external viewpoint is a necessary skillset, when combined with how you can best prioritize and utilize your available time, it makes it difficult to maintain a comfortable inward “pulse of the organization.”
Which brings us back to Jack Welch, who had a unique philosophy of business management. In particular, he had a principle that he liked to call “management by walking around.” Jack would dedicate a certain amount of time each day to making unannounced visits to operational areas – not to surprise or catch his subordinate leaders off guard, but rather to get a chance to talk directly with his people who worked the production line. This sacrosanct time on his calendar supported a number of his philosophies: looking for and rewarding talent; reconnecting with his “team” on the front lines; discover/uncover areas for improvement based on their hands-on feedback and his own observations; and to satisfy his insatiable curiosity.
He once told a story of his “open door policy,” which allowed for anyone at any level to schedule time on his calendar (one-on-one) to discuss ideas for continuous improvement or other business opportunities. When asked how much time he devoted to this function during a media interview, Jack replied “anywhere in the area of 40 to 60% of my day.” When the interviewer then asked how a senior executive could devote that much of their time to non-standard meetings, Welch famously responded that “If you're going to teach a bear to dance, you better be damn well prepared to dance until the bear is ready to sit down.” He continued by sharing that many of the ideas that propelled G.E. forward in terms of gathering innovative ideas, suggestions for creating better efficiencies, maintaining its competitive advantage, and creating a more inclusive culture came from these unscheduled and serendipitous meetings.
When I was teaching at both the US Military Academy and National Defense University, students particularly liked Welch’s idea of “management by walking around.” In the military, we call that same concept battlefield circulation. Not only does it allow you to see what's happening across the organization and gain a sense for the strength of the organization’s heartbeat, but it also allows you to be seen and connect with the team that is working their rear-ends off for you. However, it was Welch’s time factor (40-60%) that always started the debate - who can afford to spend that much time away from the command center or key headquarters office? The easy answer for me was always: “those who make it a priority to carve out the time.” If you've created an organization that can't afford to not have access to you every single moment of the day, I'd argue that you haven't built a very resilient organization. This obviously requires a calculated leap of faith by the leader. One in which, you must carefully: create the conditions that allow for thoughtful delegation of authority/responsibility; build and sustain a culture where subordinates feel empowered to take disciplined initiative and make informed decisions - all guided by a well-communicated “intent.”
I’ll be the first to admit that this is all much easier said than done. I also acknowledge that this is even further complicated by our current mass telework policies that limit actual in-person opportunities to connect. “Management by walking around” is a little more difficult on Zoom or Teams, but the opportunities to connect with the front lines are still there if you’re motivated enough to find and prioritize them. Regardless of our environmental constraints, it’s time that remains as one of our most valuable, yet highly finite resources. We rarely get the opportunity to check off all of our seemingly endless “critical” daily tasks, let alone block off a third of that time to just “walk around.” Some of my students were quick to argue that Welch’s principles didn’t reflect the real world. In military parlance, they would exclaim that his story “briefs well,” but fails to live up to reality. In fact, I recall one of my more skeptical students in particular, who brashly announced to our class that he could probably devote 40-60% of his time to circulation if he too was lucky enough to have high powered executives that he could leave the running of the day-to-day operations to... My response was simply, “So what’s preventing you? Isn’t developing those types of subordinates your responsibility?” How are you guiding, energizing, and exciting your organization?
Comments