The Best Leaders Are Humble Leaders 02-17

The Best Leaders Are Humble Leaders

In a global marketplace where problems are increasingly complex, no one person will ever have all the answers. That’s why Google’s SVP of People Operations, Lazlo Bock, says humility is one of the traits he’s looking for in new hires. “Your end goal,” explained Bock, “is what can we do together to problem-solve. I’ve contributed my piece, and then I step back.” And it is not just humility in creating space for others to contribute, says Bock—it’s “intellectual humility. Without humility, you are unable to learn.”

A recent Catalyst study backs this up, showing that humility is one of four critical leadership factors for creating an environment where employees from different demographic backgrounds feel included. In a survey of more than 1500 workers from Australia, China, Germany, India, Mexico, and the U.S., we found that when employees observed altruistic or selfless behavior in their managers — a style characterized by 1) acts of humility, such as learning from criticism and admitting mistakes); 2) empowering followers to learn and develop; 3) acts of courage, such as taking personal risks for the greater good; and 4) holding employees responsible for results — they were more likely to report feeling included in their work teams. This was true for both women and men.

Employees who perceived altruistic behavior from their managers also reported being more innovative, suggesting new product ideas and ways of doing work better. Moreover, they were more likely to report engaging in team citizenship behavior, going beyond the call of duty, picking up the slack for an absent colleague — all indirect effects of feeling more included in their workgroups.

Our research was also able to isolate the combination of two separate, underlying sentiments that make employees feel included: uniqueness and belongingness. Employees feel unique when they are recognized for the distinct talents and skills they bring to their teams; they feel they belong when they share important commonalities with co-workers.

It’s tricky for leaders to get this balance right, and emphasizing uniqueness too much can diminish employees’ sense of belonging. However, we found that altruism is one of the key attributes of leaders who can coax this balance out of their employees, almost across the board.

Nonetheless, our study raises one common, perhaps universal implication: To promote inclusion and reap its rewards, leaders should embrace a selfless leadership style. Here are some concrete ways to get started based on both our current research and our ongoing study of leadership development practices at one company, Rockwell Automation:

• Share your mistakes as teachable moments. When leaders showcase their own personal growth, they legitimize the growth and learning of others; by admitting to their own imperfections, they make it okay for others to be fallible, too. We also tend to connect with people who share their imperfections and foibles—they appear more “human,” more like us. Particularly in diverse workgroups, displays of humility may help to remind group members of their common humanity and shared objectives.

• Engage in dialogue, not debates. Another way to practice humility is to truly engage with different points of view. Too often leaders are focused on swaying others and “winning” arguments. When people debate in this way, they become so focused on proving the validity of their own views that they miss out on the opportunity to learn about other points of view. Inclusive leaders are humble enough to suspend their own agendas and beliefs In so doing, they not only enhance their own learning but they validate followers’ unique perspectives.

• Embrace uncertainty. Ambiguity and uncertainty are par for the course in today’s business environment. So why not embrace them? When leaders humbly admit that they don’t have all the answers, they create space for others to step forward and offer solutions. They also engender a sense of interdependence. Followers understand that the best bet is to rely on each other to work through complex, ill-defined problems.

• Role model being a “follower.” Inclusive leaders empowerothers to lead.  By reversing roles, leaders not only facilitate employees’ development but they model the act of taking a different perspective, something that is so critical to working effectively in diverse teams.

At Rockwell Automation, a leading provider of manufacturing automation, control, and information solutions, practicing humility in these ways has been essential to promoting an inclusive culture — a culture Rockwell’s leaders see as critical to leveraging the diversity of its global workforce.

At one fishbowl session, shortly after the company introduced same-sex partner benefits in 2007, a devoutly religious employee expressed concerns about the new benefits policy — in front of hundreds of other employees.  Rather than going on the defensive, a senior leader skillfully engaged that employee in dialogue, asking him questions and probing to understand his perspectives.  By responding in this way, the leader validated the perspectives of that employee and others who shared his views.   Other leaders shared their own dilemmas and approaches to holding firm to their own religious beliefs yet embracing the company’s values of treating all employees fairly.   Dialogues such as these have made a palpable difference at Rockwell Automation.  Employees have higher confidence in their leaders, are more engaged, and feel more included — despite their differences.One of the key strategies they’ve adopted to model this leadership style is the fishbowl — a method for facilitating dialogue.  At a typical fishbowl gathering, a small group of employees and leaders sit in circle at the center of the room, while a larger group of employees are seated around the perimeter.   Employees are encouraged to engage with each other and leaders on any topic and are invited into the innermost circle.  In these unscripted conversations, held throughout the year in a variety of venues, leaders routinely demonstrate humility —by admitting to employees that don’t have all the answers and by sharing their own personal journeys of growth and development.

As the Rockwell example suggests, a selfless leader should not be mistaken for a weak one. It takes tremendous courage to practice humility in the ways described above. Yet regrettably, this sort of courage isn’t always rewarded in organizations. Rather than selecting those who excel as self-promotion, as is often the case, more organizations would be wise to follow the lead of companies like Google, Rockwell Automation, and others that are re-imagining what effective leadership looks like.

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Bringing ethics in leadership discourse is imperative: Dr. Himanshu Rai 01-01

Bringing ethics in leadership discourse is imperative: Dr. Himanshu Rai

In this interview, Dr. Himanshu Rai, Dean of MISB Bocconi (the India campus of Bocconi University, Italy) discusses his thoughts on leadership and HR management.

Dr. Himanshu Rai was appointed as the Dean of the Mumbai-based MISB Bocconi, the India campus of Universita Bocconi, Milan, Italy, in September this year. Dr. Rai will drive the strategic development and management of the academic and executive programmes of MISB Bocconi. An alumnus of IIM, Ahmedabad, his core area has been human resource management, wherein he focuses on negotiation, mediation, arbitration, strategic HRM, and leadership.

Before joining the academia, Dr. Rai had been with Tata Steel for more than eight years, where he played a pivotal role in developing quality systems for his departments and the communication policy of the company.

He works on the principle that academics cannot afford to limit its reach and effect on young minds only to the development of skills and training relevant to the demands of the market economy; it must enrich the individual, to the greater aim of serving the society. Dr. Rai has developed a unique, creative approach to teaching, with the introduction of courses such as FIRE (Framing Identities and Roles through Exploration) and JEM (Justice, Ethics, and Morality). These courses are aimed at helping students become more inquisitive, more open, and more aware.

In conversation with Rakesh Rao, Dr. Himanshu Rai discusses growth plans for MISB Bocconi and his thoughts on leadership and HR management.

What are your priorities as the Dean of MISB Bocconi?

At present, I have two important priorities. First, I want to make MISB Bocconi, the India campus of Italy’s Bocconi, one of the leading business schools in India. Bocconi has a history and we want this to be shared with the people of India. Currently, the institute is in the third year of post graduate programmes and we aim to grow this with more students enrolling for these programmes. We will continue our efforts to improve these programmes and make them more attractive for students.

My second focus will be on executive programmes. I see tremendous opportunity as well as a gap in executive programmes in India. There are several areas, such as finance, leadership and negotiations, etc, in which Bocconi has huge strength. In addition, it has lot of competencies in various sectors such as luxury, fashion, family businesses, etc, Here I see a huge gap in India. I intend to plug this gap by providing executive programmes in these areas. Work has already started in this direction with programmes on family business, business analytics, and negotiations to be launched in next 2-4 months.

What are the USPs of MISB Bocconi?

One of the strengths of MISB Bocconi is that our faculty comes from SDA Bocconi, which is one of the well-known business schools globally. SDA Bocconi is ranked third in terms of return on investment (RoI) among the business schools outside the US. Hence, we have world class faculty which spends quality time with students during their visit to the India campus and are always accessible to students throughout the year. Faculty acts as a mentor to the students, which is our biggest strength.

Second, SDA Bocconi has humungous amount of study materials that is available for the students in India. We have huge repository of knowledge that our students get access to.

Third, we give global education through international experts in India. Our students spend about four months in the mother campus, i.e. SDA Bocconi in Milan, where they do their specialisation. While programmes offered are of global standards, students are also presented the Indian perspective during the courses. So, this entire experience gives a unique advantage to our students.

How can the government encourage the growth of business school education in the country?

There are many business schools in India, but very few can match the international standards of business education. Hence, the government should support good institutes, organisations, etc. who are willing to invest in higher education sector. Be it in terms of FDI investment, pre-conditions to open a new school, etc. norms should be pragmatic. Conditions pertaining to the land ownership for the business schools should be flexible. Most of the leading global business schools operate through a location which is on a lease and is at the heart of the commercial hubs or cities. And this is the reason why we started Bocconi’s India campus in Mumbai, the financial capital of the country. The location helps students and executives attending our programmes to feel the pulse of business activities in their vicinity. I believe the best learning happens when you are in the middle of where you are eventually going to work.

Third, the government should also standardise norms to measure the quality of education. Any institute that does not provide quality education are doing a great disservice to the nation. The biggest challenge that most of the B-schools face is the quality of faculty. The government should take initiative for faculty improvement programmes to enhance the quality of education.

What are the skill-sets required to become a successful leader?

There are two skill-sets very critical for leaders to succeed. One is the ability to read situation and visualise. Second is integrity – means there has to be a consonance between your word and action. Your actions should be for the betterment of the people around and not just for your own gains. If you have these two characteristics you can become a good leader.

The shortest definition of a leader that I have come across is ‘Leader is a good person who speaks well’. To become a good person you have to be a good visionary as well as a good human being. Speaking well means the communication skills (verbal and body language) should be in line with these characteristics of the leader.

Now a days corporates are giving due emphasis on ethics and morality. Why are these two critical today?

Ethics and morality are two distinct words. Morality deals with good or bad. Ethics is morality in action or a given context. By this, I mean it is not necessary that what is good is always right. For example, while speaking truth is good, there may be conditions when it may not be right. So as a corporate leader you have to be concerned about ethics – i.e. what is right or wrong?

Second, as a leader you will always face a situation when you have to pick an option from multiple alternatives. More often than not some of these choices are wrong while others are right. So, to pick the right choice you have to have a sense of ethics. If you make a wrong choice (which may fetch you short-term gain) it will not offer sustainable solution. Also, you are setting a wrong precedence. Hence, bringing in ethics in leadership discourse is imperative.

How has the role of HR department evolved over the years?

The role of HR has changed immensely. Initially, HR personnel were interested in looking at the satisfaction level of the employee because of the notion that if an employee is satisfied then he/she will be extremely productive.

Things began to change a bit when employees started becoming more ambitious. HR started to look at ways to motivate people. So it changed from ‘satisfaction’ to ‘motivation’.

Now, people are becoming more entrepreneurial and they wanted to be part of the decision making processes. Total quality management (TQM) is very good example of it. People started enjoying responsibility and using it gainfully. So the paradigm changed again. Today it is not just motivation, but also about ‘engaging with the employee’ – that is aligning employees’ aspirations with the strategy and vision of the company.

So, the role of HR is now to be a part of the strategy of the organisation. The entire gamut has changed.

Is there a need for companies to re-look at their communication strategy, given the changes taking place in the market?

There is no doubt about it. The question is how. For this, first, language has to change as people today appreciate more personalised communication. Second, the choice of media also matters a lot. For example, routine information can be routed through conventional media like notice board or email, but for non-routine information company should look at interactive media like video conferencing, Skype, YouTube, etc.

So do you believe that increased usage of social media is having an influence on today’s organisations?

Certainly. Brand is created and destroyed on social media. It is a double-edged sword as nothing is verified on social media. For the social media to mature and become self-censoring in nature will take some time. Till that companies will have to find ways to see how best to utilise social media. Companies are doing it, but I do not think they have adopted comprehensive strategy for social media.

With rapid changes taking place around us (in terms of technology, business processes, etc), how can corporates continuously harness the skills of their employees?

Content of knowledge is changing quickly, so continuous training is the only answer. Training and development are the two requirements for employees. While training can be a tool to fill skill-set gap in the short-term, equipping employees to handle new responsibilities in future requires thorough planning and development programme.

Hence, corporates have to engage with employees to figure out training requirements and also development programmes to enhance their skill-sets to make them future ready.

How India can contribute to modern management philosophy?

India can offer a lot. First, it can offer wisdom contained in our literature. In my earlier stint at IIM Lucknow, and even now, I conduct a course on ‘Leadership through literature’. Literature presents myriad situations which can be used for training by visualising and enacting those situations in today’s business environment, and drawing lessons from them, as well as the protagonists therein.

Businesses globally have moved from “intelligence quotient” to “emotional quotient” and now we are talking about “spiritual quotient”. It is believed that spiritual people are more likely to be better negotiators, leaders, etc. More often for spiritual quotient, global leaders and management gurus look towards East, and India, with its vast spiritual knowledge, can be a torchbearer.

Third, India’s vast and varied market not just offers huge business opportunity but also provides an ideal location for carrying out market research studies, which can be a useful teaching tool for businesses across the world.

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Which Behaviors Must Leaders Avoid? 05-29

Which Behaviors Must Leaders Avoid?

by Amy Jen Su and Muriel Maignan Wilkins

If you want to empower, engage, or motivate others, don't just focus on increasing your positive behaviors. Pay attention to what you need to stop doing as well. Why? Because people remember the bad more than the good. To quote from a previous HBR article, How to Play to Your Strengths, "Multiple studies have shown that people pay keen attention to negative information. For example, when asked to recall important emotional events; people remember four negative memories to every positive one." So, which behaviors do leaders most need to avoid? Drawing on thousands of 360 qualitative interviews, here are our top three:

Judgmental, non-verbal body language. No one, especially your successful colleagues, can tolerate perceived condescension. Research studies show that somewhere between 75 to 90 percent of our impact comes from our non-verbal communication, and tone is a key ingredient of this. Do you make comments to others in a way that sounds evaluative, harsh, or condescending? Often, this is not our intention but an in-the- moment reaction. Other non-verbal offenders include scowling, furrowed brows, quizzical looks (as if to say, 'are you stupid?'), rigidity, and sarcasm. While seemingly small, each of these subtle darts creates a considerable amount of relationship damage.

Interrupting and interrogating. There's been a lot of buzz recently around how to have "conversations that drive innovation" and how to "create safe environments for employees to bring their ideas forward."

 It's almost impossible for people to feel safe if the boss takes up most of the airtime, cuts people off, or interrogates half-baked ideas. Yes, employees have a responsibility to communicate with clarity, but if you expect every idea to be buttoned up, fully thought out, or structured before someone speaks, your colleagues will assume that you're not willing to invest the time to be a thought partner.

Being inconsistent. Peers and staff often comment on how discouraging it is to see a colleague act in two very different ways — absolutely charming with the executive team and external clients while being disrespectful to those they work with every day. This inconsistency makes these behaviors even more memorable and egregious. Others have shared a different impact — the feeling of walking on eggshells at work, wondering who is going to show up: "smiling, charming, funny person" or "judgmental, intense, snapping person." Over time, this drives passive aggressive responses from others in their attempt to avoid confrontation.

Ultimately, loyalty and followership are the two things we cannot demand or set as an expectation. What is perceived as fear-based motivation, belittlement, or power play can yield real short-term compliance from others. But negative behaviors ultimately diminish the legacy we leave. Consider what behaviors you might need to stop doing so that you can have a positive, lasting impact.

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Why MBA Programs Don't Produce Leaders 11-25

Why MBA Programs Don't Produce Leaders

Drew Hansen

According to theNational Center for Education Statistics(NCES), over 150,000 students graduate with their MBA in the United States every year. That’s a whopping 25% of all Master’s recipients (compared to Computer & Information Science at only 3%).

Two years ago I contemplated joining their ranks. I remember sitting at a kitchen table editing drafts of myHarvard Business School essays. Despite the impending deadline, I couldn’t find the motivation to complete my application. In my head, I reviewed reasons why my Bain colleagues encouraged me to go to business school. “The network,” they said. “A two-year vacation,” I heard from some. But I wanted to learn, grow, and develop as a leader. Could business school offer that?

Business Schools Have An Identity Crisis

Business schools have always juggled two missions: educating practitioners and creating knowledge through research. Fifty years ago, as explained in the 2005 HBR article How Business Schools Lost Their Way, business schools shifted their focus from the former to the latter. Management became a science rather than a profession.

This shift had profound implications. Business schools rewarded professors for publishing their research in academic journals, and their curriculum began to reflect the narrow focus of the faculty. Business school professors became increasingly disconnected from practicing managers and leaders. By the mid 2000s, it became clear that business schools had swung too far in one direction.

A Change In Image, Not Substance

Critics called for a re-emphasis on organizational leadership as a distinct profession and prescribed a number of curriculum changes to restore balance between academic rigor and everyday usefulness.

In response, business schools re-positioned themselves in the educational marketplace. For years they had touted the MBA degree as a sure path to career advancement and higher salaries, but they started to change their tune. Now, the mission statements of the nation’s top business schools claim to convert today’s students into tomorrow’s leaders. Chicago Booth is pretty representative of the rest:

Since 1898, we have produced ideas and leaders that shape the world of business. Our rigorous, discipline-based approach to business education transforms our students into confident, effective, respected business leaders prepared to face the toughest challenges

This new rhetoric was just that: rhetoric. A 2008 study of the top 50 U.S. business schools found that the “ideal curriculum remains far more of a normative construct than a positive reality.” In 2009, Joel Podolny, dean and VP of Apple University,promoted the same solutions that had been advanced earlier in the decade. MBA programs were failing to change.

When I sat there, questioning my business school plans, I was unaware of these criticisms. Yet, the inner conflict I felt was real, and I abandoned my application. I’ve since learned that business school, despite its good intentions, makes little difference in molding leadership potential. Its very nature is at odds with its purported mission.

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