Digital Digressions

The Lessons of Great Followership

Followership? Doesn't have that sexy ring to it like leadership has. I'm ready to bet there are more blogs and posts out there (including on mine) devoted to what constitutes great leadership, than there is celebrating and pinpointing what makes good followership. Why could this be? Perhaps it is, because leading is what many people aspire to? It is also usually a surefire way to get paid more for potentially knowing less, as you rely on specialists in your team to deliver the stuff you don't know yourself. Not to say leaders don't know anything, it is more to say that there tends to be more established routes for career progression and rewards for leaders than there are for assessing specialists and quantifying their expertise and thus rewarding them accordingly. Just an observation, but an interesting one nevertheless and perhaps something worth delving into in a subsequent post..

Back to followership. Perhaps rather than focus on the term followership, it is worth focusing on what makes a team work really well. Followership has some negative connotations to it such as the notion of sheep, a herd, not thinking for yourself, being dependent on others, not taking initiative and so on. Those, albeit unfortunate elements of crowd mentality should not be confused with what makes a team function well. A well-functioning team needs a good or several good leaders. In fact team members themselves need to be as well versed in the skills of great leadership (see post on the lessons of great leadership) as these skills are called upon not just by the leader, but should be ones that the team adhere to, when taking initiative. Moreover, in addition to great leadership, the team needs to function well as a team, which means sharing a set of values or behaviours that make it easy for team members to work with one another, be lead effectively by the leader and support each other in getting the job done. It is those qualities that are the focus of this post.

Humphrey Walters, a great leadership coach, has assembled this list of lessons for Followership, which work very well in conjunction with a leader that follows the lessons of great leadership (see link above). Thus the two compliment one another and the team itself accomplishes something greater than the sum of its parts. What are those lessons? Here we go:

1. Behaving in a Team
Low performing teams tend to have passive team members who rely on the leadership for their energy, excitement and commitment. High performing teams realise that it is their duty to support the leadership with a clear code of ethics and behaviours. They see it as a two-way street. This is something Tom Bailey alludes to in his comment to my post on Great Leadership - it is very important that this point is clear and it made everyone's responsibility, because otherwise the team will become competitive and feel like not everyone is pulling their weight.

2. Punctuality
Lateness for any meeting or event is deemed as unacceptable. Realising that most relationships are built on trust and reliability and understanding that punctuality is one of the main indicators of trust. Understanding that it is difficult to trust someone who can't even be bothered to turn up on time.

3. Courtesy
Having an ethos of good manners and general courtesy. Recognising people for their help and effort, and not taking them for granted.

4. Apologising
Learning to apologise early, and having the courage and good grace to accept responsibility, even though it may not be entirely your fault.

5. Second Effort
Having the attitude of doing more than you think you should do to help the performance of the team. Going the extra mile and not leaving it to others with an attitude that "it's not my problem".

6. Bullying
Not putting people in situations that they can't handle. Refraining from saying "It's easy" when clearly for someone new to the task it definitely is not easy. Not allowing people to make a fool of themselves needlessly.

This to me is a good list, but in terms of making followership smooth, I would also like to add a few bits from the great leadership lessons list to further bolster this one, because to be a great follower/team member you also have to be a leader - even if you only lead yourself! Thus:

• Be interested in people, get to know your colleagues and team mates - build empathy.
• If you are not sure what you should be doing, ask and take responsibility for finding out rather than floating!
• Be bold, help decision making by figuring out what the options are yourself, list the pros and cons and recommend the best one.
• Don't blame others. If there is something you can do about the problem, do it and if you don't, you can blame yourself. Blaming others will not solve the problem.
• Have the balls to clear out your own mess and clear up things with people face to face, griping about stuff to others and moaning about people behind their back doesn't do anything for the situation and least of all you.

Welcome to the new Wikiality!

The truth is ever the elusive subject. Always the enemy of the totalitarian state, this fragile basis for any successful democracy is under threat from many directions these days. Things are indeed odd when it is completely possible for Tony Blair to appear on Al Jazeera and answer David Frost that the efforts in Iraq are a disaster, only to have a spokesperson appear only hours later to contradict the statement and claim that it was taken out of context and that the Prime Minister did not admit to any disasters in Iraq. Similar events are quite the norm and it seems that the spin has gone so far that leaders like Blair and Bush believe their own hype - the only way they can still remain in power.

Equally, the truth is under threat from another completely different phenomenon - Wikipedia. While I think Wikipedia is a marvellous initiative and would like to support it in every way I can, it also exposes some less pleasant facts about how we as people relate to the notion of truth. The truth is no longer neutral, or objective, but in Wikipedia it has to undergo public scrutiny and become a compromise agreement between many parties who fight battles over the wording of text.

There used to be a time when we blamed the United Nations for this. An institution marred by the conflicting interests of nations who refuse to agree on anything and who regularly amend texts and truths to appear in a more favourable light on the international arena. We used to say this is the reason why things like the food-for-oil programme could exist despite the apparent corruption, why UN troops have regularly been embroiled in scandals and so forth. It is, because no one guards the hairy, uncomfortable truth and everything is open to spin, even reality.

So enter Wikiality - the reality as defined collectively in Wikipedia, not actually necessarily what happened. What are the complex interests that are served here? Wikipedia being open to all, this is increasingly hard to keep track of and be aware of. As the saying goes - don't believe everything you read.

The Lessons of Great Leadership

There used to be a time when I was suspecting that I had a problem with authority. I didn't have much respect for my boss at the time, and in general I was feeling very disillusioned. This is not a nice frame of mind to be in so one invariably begins wondering why things are the way they are - is it because of me? Is it because of the other person? Is it a combination of both?

I've come to the conclusion that I'm just not very good at putting up with what I call the 'Mushroom Management Method' or M3 for short... What's that you may wonder and it is a joke which someone once mentioned, but it stuck with me, because it summarised so well all things I felt really sucked with the situation this person was putting me in. The Mushroom method plain and simple is to be kept in the dark and covered with Sh*t. Your leader likes to keep you in the dark (never telling you the bigger picture or the reasons why decisions are made the way they are - so invariably you are faced with two options: a) there is no bigger picture, because no one has a clue or b) people aren't actually making these decisions for the greater good of the company, but to serve their own ends and thus one cannot state this openly) and cover you with Sh*t (i.e if you do ask questions you get a random combination of Bull Shiitake in reply such as, 'you are a great, talented blah blah and don't you worry about these things.. or.. we've got it under control.. or this a decision by higher management, and doesn't have to be justified to people like you..(what so now you are saying they don't have a clue?) and so on and so forth).

Anyway - you get my drift. All this is incredibly corrosive to a team and very demotivating to individuals, because yes, you do stop respecting your leader pretty much instantly when you get treated like this and secondly: you never learn to get better either, which results in the same mistakes being repeated over and over again. Again very discouraging and nothing makes you feel more stuck in a job than not having any opportunities to learn.

There is hope though - for every bad leader there are many good ones out there. I am blessed with one at the moment and I have realised that no, I have absolutely no problem with authority as long as it is vested in someone I have a lot of respect for. In fact: I welcome it!  Trying to pick apart what makes a great leader, someone stuck this list under my nose the other day, but sadly it is devoid of the credits of the original author! Thus my request to all of you - if you recognise this list, please let me know who to credit, because credit needs to be given where credit is due and this: my friends is a pretty exhaustive list, which defines in my opinion so well what makes a great leader. Here we go:

1. Clear Strategic Intent
The ability of the leadership to set and continually reinforce the vision for the Organisation. Having the courage to outline what is possible to achieve and getting the people to understand the exciting future. Getting motivation through continually reminding people of the importance of taking the Organisation forward and giving inspiration on achieving extraordinary results.

2. Assembling the Team

• Get to know each other: Understanding how important it is to know what the team members are like. Knowing what their attitudes, opinions and objectives are as well as their style of working. Realising it is important to devote time to 'the team' as opposed to 'the task'.
• Job allocation: Having clear roles and responsibilities and encouraging each team member to become an expert in their field. Having the trust that each team member knows what they are doing and ensuring that their contribution is valued.
• Information: High performing teams rely on plenty of information. They want to know what is happening and how their contributions affect the performance of the team as a whole.
• Goal Setting: Having a clear process for setting and monitoring short-term and long-term goals. Ensuring that these goals are reviewed and adjusted dependant on the performance of the team, and making sure they are challenging without being impossible.
• Boldness and Decisiveness: Having the inspiration to make decisions even though there may not be complete information available. Not playing it safe, which is usually too late. Having the courage to admit to a poor decision, and adapting quickly without huge recriminations and postmortems
• Follower or Pioneer? Being  prepared to take a risk and being a pioneer. There are times when good 'Followship' is essential. However, most winning teams have to take a chance and pioneer at times.

3. Running the Team

• Clear Briefing: Spending time briefing the team clearly on a specific task, or project, before it is started. Not relying on 'seat of the pants' management. Ensuring that most actions are worked out before the task is attempted rather than playing it by the ear as it goes along.
• Performance Review: Reviewing performance regularly to see where improvements should be made. Having an ethos that the team themselves review performance as a matter of discipline, and not relying on the leadership to suggest this happens.
• Avoid 'Blame Culture': The attitude of learning from mistakes, but not having a witch hunt. 'Leaving it on the wave behind' rather than indulging in personal witch hunts to find out not whether it was right or wrong, but rather whose fault it was.
• Empathy: Having an ethos of genuine caring for the well-being of others. Helping the less experienced or skilled in the team so that they feel they have people who they are able to look to for help.
• Scuttlebutt: Making sure there is no malicious gossip. Having the culture that says clearly that gossip is unacceptable and if the person has a gripe with another team member then their duty is to sort it out face to face, or keep quiet.

4. Maintaining the team

• Not all are heroes: Understand that not all team members are in the limelight. Finding people who support the performance of the team and realise that some of the less noticeable actions contribute hugely to the overall performance. Finding these unsung heroes and giving them the recognition they deserve.
• Continuous improvement: Making sure there is an ethos of looking for ways to improve performance and that these ideas are encouraged and recognised.
• Coaching: Making sure that team members realise that they are expected to learn new skills and are relied upon to keep themselves up-to-date. Also to realise that teaching and coaching others is the responsibility of all, and that they must spend time helping others to improve their skill levels.
• Quiet word: Spending time giving words of encouragement and congratulation to team members. The ability to notice the little things that people contribute and acknowledging this contribution by having a quiet word.
• Formal Briefings: Giving time to organise formal briefings which run efficiently with a proper agenda and clear starting and finishing times. Making sure that these times are kept to and no waffle is allowed.

Here we go. Next on the agenda is what are the Lessons of Great Followership... stay tuned!

Robots on Candid Camera

Ever wondered just how much havoc you could cause by rigging up a robot in a shopping mall with a shouting challenge? This brilliant 'you've been framed' is simply hilarious.

Or how about trying to guard a bowl of sweets in a Supermarket - harder than selling ice cream to eskimos? Another hilarious candid camera feast with some finger-licking fun :)

The 7 Must-Do's of Innovators

Having spent the last five years in front-end innovation and now moving into a new role managing an innovation process I have come across a few must-do's when it comes to enabling innovation in companies. Innovation is one of those hip words that is back on the agenda after everyone has cost-cut their way out of trouble and Total Quality Managed themselves until even the morning coffee making adheres to a strict Six Sigma process. There is a lot of expectation on Innovation to deliver prosperity for all. The trouble with innovation is that it is a delicate thing and there are more ways of doing it wrong that there are for doing it right. To keep things simple I have tried to gather some fundamentals into this post, the must-do's if you like - so the thinking is that if you manage to do these you are already halfway there to being a successful innovator.

1) None of us are as smart as all of us
Many companies leave the 'innovating' to a group of select few, thinking that only this way there will be someone dedicated to the pursuit of innovation. There is nothing inherently wrong with this thinking, it is more the attitude and role people play in this situation. Innovators are at best facilitators, great listeners and connectors who bring together people from many parts of the company to distill the best thinking from around and turn it into bankable opportunities. This is the best case scenario, however more often than not these experts are easily be tempted to withdraw from the greater hustle and bustle of the organisation to concentrate on 'innovating' in peace.

For innovation to happen and make it to the market you need everyone and even more importantly, you need everyone's support and insights, because you cannot afford to alienate people from the process of innovation by creating two classes of citizens: those who get to have fun and think of ideas all day long and those, whose job it remains to get on with the daily grind and put food on the table for everyone else. If this is the case you will find that magically, most ideas will get killed before they ever get to market. Why? Because the rest of the organisation became bent on ensuring the ideas from this select crew would never make it further than the Ivory tower. Why? Because by not involving anyone else, there is no reason for anyone else to champion the ideas in the absence of this 'special' group. And ideas get killed. Over and over again.

2) Let a thousand flowers bloom
Unfortunately this rather useful title was first mentioned by Chairman Mao and with very unfortunate consequences. Here appropriated to explaining that not every idea has to be a blockbuster. Sufficient numbers of small or incremental innovations can lead to big profits. And many apparently blockbusting innovations are in fact several clever smaller ideas combined together in an unbeatable package. So you never know where that tiny idea might lead, so let it out!

3) Innovation is everywhere
Don't just stare yourself blind at the next product innovation, innovation can come from anywhere: marketing, production, finance, supply chain, distribution or even the famous janitor who no one ever thinks of asking except in films. And I'm not kidding. It was in fact a janitor who thought of the way to fix a textile company's problem with thread snapping and made the company fortunes. The only reason his idea was heard was because a new executive joined who was committed to hearing out any idea regardless of where it came and his openness and affability encouraged the janitor to speak up. When asked how long the janitor had had the idea he replied '30 years', which goes some way to explaining how much hackneyed focus on a select few 'problem-solvers' alone can cost a business in the long run.

4) Don't strangle the baby before it's born
The random serendipitous nature of innovation is what usually freaks out anyone whose job it is to stare at a spreadsheet and far too often the rigid controls applied to established product lines and businesses are hurriedly applied to things that are only half-baked and with devastating consequences. The planning, budgeting and reviews just end up strangling the life out of any innovation efforts. Here different approaches need to be put into place and rather than focusing on how much the idea will make when launched, focus efforts on understanding who will want it, why, for what, how often etc. A detailed understanding of the insights to consumers or customers not only benefit the development process, but also highlight mismatches early on.

5) It takes effort to develop an idea, but it takes courage to change it once it has been defined.
It's hard to get things right the first time, particularly if you are truly trailblazing in a new field. Rather than let this get you down, plan to test things often and with real users - why not involve your potential users in developing the idea, this way you are making sure things don't get lost in Chinese whispers, but stay customer-focused at all times. Moreover, on another level, companies need to encourage employees to challenge the status quo, if people are rewarded simply for doing what they committed to do, rather than acting as circumstances would suggest, you end up creating a band of yes-men rather than budding entrepreneurs.

6) Lay off the financials, lay on the love instead
Interpersonal skills, connections, sharing the love - whatever you call it, it is what makes companies go around. Albeit loosening the financial measures on innovation, companies should absolutely demand that interpersonal connections between innovation and the rest of the business are there. No more navel-gazing, innovation is a shared responsibility!

7) Communicate don't procrastinate
The temptation is always to stick the boffins together and assume that as long as they knock their heads together something bankable will emerge. The trouble is that experts and specialists in narrow fields aren't always the natural connectors and communicators, patient and willing to explain in lay-man's terms what the latest great invention is all about. Collaboration is a great lever and connectors are great at unleashing this, so never set up innovation without someone like this on-board. They are worth their gold in building support, connections for the team, bringing people on-board, mobilising help, input and ensuring that there is broad buy-in for the innovation. Moreover, they are great at keeping the team together, it is hard to innovate if no one's in for the long haul, building trust and team spirit takes time and communication.