Take Charge (Part IV)

When placed in command – take charge.
-- General H. Norman Schwarzkopf

In this series of posts we have been examining what it means to take charge, to take command, to assume the role of a leader. As we approach the President's 100th day in command, I hope you are able to stop for a second and think about your own transition into your current position and whether you (or the Commander in Chief) have effectively taken charge. In the last post, we looked at what it means to take command. We’ll close with a few final thoughts on how to be successful as a new leader.

Get early wins. Communicate a message to the organization that highlights success yet humbly promotes your proposed agenda. Celebrate with vigor. Champion those who “get it.” Help your team see the greatness you envision through each small victory.

Rudolph Giuliani targeted the “squeegee guys” early during his tenure as New York City mayor. Success in eliminating the relatively small nuisance caused by the actions of that group of unwanted window washers sent an early message that change was possible. The people of New York, the new Giuliani administration, and the “squeegee guys” saw very quickly that this “take charge” mayor had bold plans for the city.

In Detroit, I watched the local news on the evening on which I had taken command of the Corps of Engineers district there. I was shocked to see them blast my organization for allowing a bunch of rebels to party on some island that we “owned” on the Great Lakes. First I was surprised to learn that we actually owned an island! I also learned quickly that this was an important issue to many stakeholders, important enough to be the lead story on the local news, and that I should probably get involved.

It became an early opportunity for my subordinate staff to see how I would operate. I assembled my key leaders, assessed the situation, solicited recommendations, and made a decision. I worked with my public affairs staff to develop a communication plan and contacted local officials to let them know what we were doing. And when we were done, we conducted an After Action Review to see what we could learn from this event. It was an early opportunity to leverage what I had learned in military leadership (far removed from anything having to do with island parties) and to show some level of competence to my new team. It certainly helped my confidence and, I believe, gave my subordinates some confidence in their new leader. I put that in the early win category.

When taking command, leaders must understand from DAY ONE that it is your ship! You have responsibility for the good, the bad, and the ugly. You cannot take credit for successes and blame all shortcomings on your predecessor. You own it all!

Don’t trash your predecessor and his/her accomplishments. Balance professional courtesies with the need to move out on your own path. Don’t lose your team by minimizing all the things they may have done before you arrived. Major course corrections can be misinterpreted as a lack of confidence in the team and their skills. Exercise caution to not portray your new organization as completely broken. If change is required, ensure you have adequately framed, and communicated, the problem. Talk about what “we” need to do to be successful in the current operating environment, versus what “they” must do to address past failures.

Keep your balance. Remember that most leadership opportunities are a marathon, not a sprint. Don’t try to solve all the problems in the first day. Ensure that your personal priorities are consistent and that you initiate a sustainable battle rhythm from the very first day.

Don’t pretend to know everything. You don’t. Solicit input to shape your decision-making and be humble enough to ask for help.

The principal task for new “take charge” leaders is to build trust with their team. Understand that your subordinates will not care what you know until they know that you care. Your early actions will set the tone for the culture you wish to establish. Be positive. Listen, build consensus, and communicate with passion and persistence.

It is a well known fact of leadership that the higher we climb, the more we show our butts! “Take charge” leaders’ actions will be examined under a microscope – from the beginning. Be prepared. Do your homework. Then jump in and start leading. Get a few early wins. Fix what is broken. Make decisions. Shape your organization consistent with your vision. Communicate with passion. You’re in charge. So…be in charge! Your new troops are counting on you. That’s why taking charge is…Leader Business!

Join us on Wednesday for a look at the President’s 100th day and a brief analysis of how he has done in taking command!

Image courtesy of www.wowenergy.wordpress.com

Walnuts and Rice

The Chief of Engineers (and a great leader), Lieutenant General Van Antwerp, tells a wonderful story about walnuts and rice. It goes something like this:

Take a jar, a handful of rice (enough to fill the jar) and a handful of walnuts. If you put the rice in first and then the walnuts, you will find that there is not enough room in the jar for both. You can push as hard as you want -- they won't fit. On the other hand, if you put the walnuts in the jar first and then the rice, the rice will fill around the nuts and they both will fit fine.

What's the message? The walnuts are our priorities. In life they may represent faith, family, and friends. At work, they may represent the truly important, difference-making tasks that must be done. The rice is the ankle biters, the things that really don't contribute to our personal or professional success. They are the easy things that we take on but that prevent us from getting to the difficult yet significant tasks that we know we must do. The rice represents the urgent things that keep us from ever getting to the important.

Think about this little vignette and what it means for how we prioritize our actions. The rice is everywhere. It prevents us from spending quality time with our family. It stops us from transforming our workplace. And you know what? It will ALWAYS be there. We often think that if we can just clear out the rice, we can make space for the walnuts. The rice keeps coming!

I can certainly appreciate this message. It tells me to FOCUS ON THE WALNUTS! Put first things first -- at home, at work, in my personal / professional / physical / spiritual life. Be disciplined about taking on those things -- first -- that truly matter, that will make a difference, that can change the debate, that can change the world!

The rice will always be there. Get after the walnuts! That's Leader Business.

*** See here for the lyrics to the song, Walnuts and Rice, by Kevin Briody.

You're in Charge...Now What?

Hello friends -

This is my first post to this new blog, Leader Business. I hope to provide a forum to share new ideas about the business of leaders. Thanks for joining me.

On the topic of firsts, a colleague recently asked me what were the first things a new CEO should do once on the job. As I am preparing to take command (CEO) duties in a few weeks and have been thinking every day about this very topic, I definitely have an opinion. Here is how I answered:

The three most important "first things" a new CEO should do include the following: 1. Begin a listening tour of your organization. Meet your new teammates in their environment. Assess their strengths and weaknesses. Listen to their ideas. 2. Meet with key customers and constituencies. Understand their issues and concerns. Work from your top customer outward. 3. Know what to do in case of emergency. Crisis situations (bad media, angry customers, etc.) will not wait until you are ready.

When in charge, take charge. Don't pretend to know everything. Be humble, stay balanced.

There is a lot going on at the beginning of any new leadership position. And as things come up they may have to be worked in. But these are what I have found to be the most critical priority actions...and how I plan to start my new leadership position next month.

That's Leader Business.

TM