A leader must "connect the dots" between what an employee does and why it matters to the organization.
When you assume a position of authority, either formally as a manager
or informally as a team leader, you make the choice to lead. Management
is the discipline of getting things done right. Leadership is the art
of doing what is right for good of the organization. In other words,
management is execution; leadership is inspiration.
Inspiration emerges from purpose, knowing what you do and why you do
it. Organizational purpose emerges from the vision, mission and values
of an organization.
Apple is fine example of a purposeful organization. Its leadership
under Steve Jobs at the helm was focused on producing well-designed
products, easy to use as tools of productivity or means of
entertainment. Everyone in Apple has been focused on this mission. You
could say much the same about the Ritz-Carlton hotel chain. Everyone
from top to bottom, and that includes maids and wait staff, knows how to
deliver a superior guest experience.
Among the ways leaders instill purpose in an organization, according to research conducted my book, Lead With Purpose, Giving Your Organization a Reason to Believe in Itself, is through communicating the vision, tying customer benefits to employee contributions, and linking work to results.
Creating a purposeful organization is not easy. It takes the
commitment of senior leaders who hold themselves accountable for
delivering on the corporate mission. A fine example of this is Vineet
Nayar, CEO of HCL Technologies, a global IT services company
headquartered in Delhi.
As Nayar wrote in his book, Employees First, Customers Second,
"The role of the CEO is to enable people to excel, help them discover
their own wisdom, engage themselves entirely in their work, and accept
responsibility for making change." Toward that end, Nayar regards
himself as a servant of his organization one who holds himself
accountable for putting individuals and teams into positions where they
can excel.
Purpose is especially necessary in tough times. As Roger Webb,
President of the University of Central Oklahoma, told me an in an
interview: "If people don't feel the purpose, and don't feel the goal
and [know] that they are accomplishing things and moving forward, then
depressing news can really bring people down."
While purpose is the spark that sets up the vision -- where an
organization is headed -- and defines its mission, it becomes inert if
not practiced. So a leader must "connect the dots" between what an
employee does and why it matters to the organization.
A key example of this is Ford Motor Company. Under the leadership of
CEO Alan Mulally the organization has transformed itself from a
struggling company to one that has become the most admired automaker.
Key to this has been the One Ford plan, which is the relentless focus on
creating cars and trucks that complement the Ford brand globally. The
beauty of this imperative is not the words; it's the action steps.
Employees throughout Ford understand the responsibility they have to
deliver on One Ford. If you work in manufacturing you understand that
decisions and actions you make complement Ford's ability to build
world-class products. Or if you work in marketing, you know how your
marketing plan for the Focus complement the strategic imperative. Put in
other way, purpose becomes personal.
Specificity is critical to purpose. I have developed two questions
that managers can ask themselves to ensure that they are using purpose
as a lever to effect positive results. The first, is asking oneself if
you are teaching your staff about a purpose. Secondly, ask if you are
ensuring your staff follow through on the shared purpose.
Answers to these questions will enable the leader to provide his team
with a goals. Ways to deliver on this will include briefings from
senior management but it will more importantly involve having
conversations about what the team is doing and why it matters. Stories
about what is working or what is not can greatly contribute to a greater
understanding of purpose.
Leadership is a choice for individuals to make, but the leader must
provide his or her team with clear direction founded on purpose and
understanding.
Editor's note: John Baldoni is an internationally
recognized leadership educator, executive coach, speaker, and author of
10 books, including Lead by Example, The AMA Handbook of Leadership,
Lead Your Boss and his latest, Lead With Purpose, Giving Your Organization a Reason to Believe in Itself.
Learning from Steve Jobs: How to lead with purpose
October 14, 2011 -- Updated 1615 GMT (0015 HKT)
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/10/14/opinion/op-ed-john-baldoni/