12/29/2015
An excerpt from an article on inc.com. Emphasizes the fact that "top down" is an outdated approach to leadership. The " secret sauce " to your success as a leader; you surround yourself with talented, passionate individuals. Your role is to provide them the tools to be successful. Focus on the power of teamwork and collaboration. Empower them to act rather than react, and be sure they are given the credit when credit is do. Empower, Mentor, Praise. Works every time....
Anyone in your organization can be a leader. Here's another one you've heard before. This time, you ought to pay attention, because office cultures are becoming more democratic. Flat organizations and systems like holacracy define employees by their role, rather than prescribed title. Collaborative technologies like Slack prevent the hoarding or siloing of information on the basis of an employee's department or position in the hierarchy. There is even a body of academic research downplaying the CEO's impact on a company's performance.
What's more, leadership is no longer being taught in business schools the way it used to be. The definition of leadership is shifting from what you could call the Steve Jobs model--the veneration of a singular individual who is founder and CEO--to a definition that has almost nothing to do with your name or station.
"We start with a fundamental premise: that leadership is an action," says Jeff Klein, executive director of the Wharton Leadership Program. "Leadership can be contributed by any member of a team or an organization. It's that set of actions that will align, excite, or propel a group toward a common goal. It's not the sole responsibility nor the sole right of those in positions that carry authority."
In other words, you're a leader if you're good at spurring successful collaborations. Simple as that. To explain the difference between old-school leadership and new-school leadership, Klein borrows a metaphor from the Harvard Business Review article "Understanding 'New Power'" by Jeremy Heimans and Henry Timms.
As the authors describe it, old power is like a currency. Held by few. Jealously guarded. Closed, inaccessible, and leader-driven. By contrast, new power is like a current. Made by many. Open, participatory, and peer-driven. Like water or electricity, it's most forceful when it surges. The goal with new power is not to hoard it but to channel it.
"Leadership, if you really think about it, has nothing to do with titles and org charts and everything to do with the ability to influence people," adds Harry Kraemer Jr., clinical professor of strategy at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management and former CEO of Baxter International, a $12 billion global health care company. Kraemer believes that a leader with an understanding of new power will have an edge when it comes to retaining young talent. "The younger generation of employees have the desire and need to feel part of something--and to know what they're doing is worthwhile," he says. "They won't stick around if they don't think the right things are happening."
Where does all of that leave you, if you're a leader with old power but you want to helm an organization that embraces new power? Klein suggests you alter your thinking about hiring, talent assessment, and leadership development. Instead of focusing so much on an employee's individual talents, evaluate the way your employees collaborate with others--especially across departments and hierarchical strata. Also, consider which employees always seem to be a part of successful teams and projects. Who are the teammates everyone else wants to work with? Those are your organization's leaders, regardless of what their titles are.
