LEADERSHIP: HOW MUCH DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE?

Published: 2009-07-26   please add a comment below

We often speak of some part of our organisation running "like a well-oiled machine".  But, we all know business lacks that precise and reliable machine-like character.  It's organic, changeable and often unstable.  Unlike an engine, it's not bolted to a chassis or floor.  It floats in a larger organic pool of economic, competitive and regulatory influences.  No wonder, therefore, people find it hard to measure (and justify) leadership investment.  But, if you've found some good metrics or trustworthy business-performance stats., please let me know (timothy@vectorleadership.com).  In the meantime, here are some arguments to consider.

There are studies showing leadership is an important reason employees stay or leave an organisation.  And, when a business or division loses money, a frequent response is to change its leader.  All that's fine.  But it's not the same as saying: add two ounces of leadership per tank of fuel in your organisation's engine, and you increase output 20%.

But, what organisational supplement, other than leadership, ticks all these five boxes:

1. Reach: leaders exist at every level of an organisation - from the C-suite team to the front-line.  In a local organisation of 100 people, that might mean 10 leaders.  In a large multi-national with 100,000 employees, possibly 10,000.
2. Influence: these leaders impact every area - across functions and levels into the most distant outpost.  The CEO needs to reach them all; and, the local leader, his or her team.
3. Leverage: leaders control key performance drivers - clarifying the vision, goals and strategies, allocating resources and motivating people.
4. Decisions: leaders manage key trade-offs across: stakeholders such as customers, staff, and communities; delivery demands of quality, timeliness and cost; and, financial and other performance imperatives like margins, productivity, staff retention and profits.
5. Representation: leaders negotiate with a wide constituency of both internal customer and supplier groups as well as outsiders, like contractors, regulators and professional advisers.

If ticking those boxes isn't enough, then try this perspective.  Few people object to spending on areas such as sales, production, marketing or logistics.  Even, on finance, planning and training.  And, if you use these words to quiz Amazon, it offers over 700,000 "sales" books and almost as many "planning" ones, grading down to 100,000 "logistics" titles.

"Leadership" shows 300,000, which is well within the range above.  And, well ahead of "HR" (200,000) and "budgeting" (50,000).  So, assuming publishers and book sellers know what they're up to, "leadership" clearly has something to offer.

And, if you really want your area to run "like a well oiled machine", my advice is simple.  Combine "leadership" AND "planning".  This synergises your leadership reach, influence and leverage with planning's pragmatism and traction.  That's a real tiger in the tank.  And, exactly what V|E|C|T|O|R offers.

Dr. Timothy Pascoe AM
PhD (Cambridge), MBA (Harvard), BE & BEc (Adelaide)
Creator, V|E|C|T|O|R Leadership^®