Naive Leadership

The presentation below is more a result of a personal self-cleansing process. The roots are to be found in working with a senior manager in a large German global organisation who created his own workshop day with his 130 or so Managers. He has installed an complete organsational structure with the aim of supporting him and all his ides. I am the only outsider in this scenario and tend to play the role of a sparring partner.

The interesting thing here is that while having so called "flat world ideas" he works in an environment which defines itself through hierarchy and power politics. As such, he and his ideas have little support amongst his peers and his relationship to the company's board is a somewhat critical. This is compounded by the fact that although he holds the same hierarchical level as 3 others in his division, he is their superior. Of these 3, only one fully supports him, one is reasonably ambivalent and the third has his loyalties elsewhere and openly displays this. His arguments and wishes for a hierarchical recognition (in form of a formal promotion to align role and position) are not being heard. The rest of the 500 or so people working in the division watch the circus at the top with emotions ranging from contempt to amusement.

My focus in preparing this person for his one day workshop was on a vital 10 minute window. What do you say to your 130 managers when most of them know that their boss is running an isolated show and the question is more "if" than "when" when it comes to his future involvement divisional planning. The question was simple enough: What do I say that will sound authentic, motivating and can create some form of a platform for future dialogue, when in fact, the world around you is vanishing and most people know it?

For 2 hours we tossed ideas around, built in some concepts. I left him with a handful of thoughts and instructions to prepare them over the weekend, thinking that he would do this. When we met again the following Tuesday, the company politics had once again worked against him and 90% of what we had priviously discussed was thrown out. The discussion went negative and all that could be done, given the time constraints was to let events take their course.

In the event, the workshop seems to have gone well. So say the small group of loyalists around him or who had an active role to play that day. How the momentum can be continued is a little unclear to them because the focus has been and will, unfortunately, remain, directed to the top. Looking for guidance at the top is a futile exercise. Seeing the power of the 500 people in the division and using their knowledge and networks is something that has not sunk in yet.

Left are many questions about theory, wishful thinking and corporate reality. Looking at the material available, it seems easy in theory. Tell stories, presentations should be more entertaining than factual. Worst of all, is a complete lack of understanding of corporate politics, power struggles and the realization that the corporte world may be detached but it is still somewhat driven by discussions in the public domain and by politicians and the legislatoin they produce. Corporate leaders are not alone. They are aware of what is going on. Only their viewpoint and interpretation works differently. After the bout of scandals in global organisations, we are moving back to a world where political control is on the increase. In 10 or 15 years, this will change back again.

Who then is naive? Them or those who have a different vision, more idealistic, less policitcal and more human?

Ask a simple question, get a complex answer.