Everyone has a pet theory about what a leader is, or what a leader does. Jamie Dimon, chairman and chief executive officer at JPMorgan Chase, expressed his thoughts in a recent blog he wrote for LinkedIn titled “The Essential Hallmarks of a Good Leader,” and I recommend reading it. “While we cannot be great at all of these traits — I know I’m not — to be successful, a leader needs to get most of them right,” he wrote. Included on his list were discipline; fortitude; high standards; ability to face facts; openness; setup for success; morale-building; loyalty, meritocracy, and teamwork; fair treatment; and humility.
Dimon speaks plainly, where most leadership quotes leave you wondering. “The task of the leader is to get his people from where they are to where they have not been,” opined Henry Kissinger, while Theodore Roosevelt said, “People ask the difference between a leader and a boss. The leader works in the open and the boss in covert. The leader leads, and the boss drives.” “Management is efficiency in climbing the ladder of success,” Stephen R. Covey said. “Leadership determines whether the ladder is leaning against the right wall.”
That all sounds great and motivating, but what does it really mean? The accepted wiki definition of leadership is this: “Leadership: The process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task.” But how do you do that? What are the behaviors that show discipline, openness, putting the ladder up against the right wall, and influencing others toward a necessary action? What does that mean to incoming middle managers who have risen from a line-staff position to take a first management job?
After you read Dimon’s essay on leadership — which does touch on foundation qualities like integrity, honesty, and fair play — let me add some behaviors that you might not think of so readily because they are the quieter behaviors that support the more visible or obvious habits. They would serve you well, too, in the practical workplace:
Build a network of influencers.Who are the natural influencers in your organization — not by title but by the deference shown for their opinions by their colleagues? They reflect the workplace culture. What do you know about them? Conversely, what do they know about you? An open-door policy will well suit you, but don’t wait for people to seek you out. Reach out and develop relationships across the company.
But … don’t play favorites. You will have favorites, but unless you are in the job of maintaining placeholders, everyone on your staff has something to offer the organization and nothing is more demotivating for quieter, less outgoing employees than feeling less valued than the people sitting beside them. That’s only one of many reasons why socializing with employees individually, rather than as a group, could be a great mistake that may sooner (as well as later) bite you in the butt. It’s hard, when you’ve come up through the ranks and made friends of some co-workers, to effectively manage the larger mixed group of previous supporters and detractors. However, that’s what the job requires if you’re going to be an effective manager.
Understand the concept of duty of care. Once you become a manager, it is actually less about you and more about the team you are trying to influence to assist you in moving the mountain you need moved. Now, in everything you do and say, you are an agent of the company. You are not a union leader or a social director, you are a representative of the business. Promises take on new gravity. Decisions and behaviors have added weight and legal consequence, and they may even expose you to some personal liabilities. Because of that, it’s critical that you keep the right confidences and that you also keep complete and accurate records.
Learn and model (or change) company policy. Too many new managers have to backtrack from a quick answer, so make sure your first decisions are grounded in company policy. What is your reimbursement policy? What is the preferred length of time between a customer complaint and an acceptable resolution? Can employees take unearned paid time off? Do you have the authority to approve pre-payroll loans? Can employees moonlight without permission, or make up time if they are gone for less than an hour on personal business? If you don’t know the answers, take time to check before issuing a knee-jerk judgment that could set precedent or dismay your boss.
Write down five leadership traits you want to be known for and tuck them someplace where you can see them during the workday — maybe under a clear desk-protector pad. Let’s say one of them comes from Dimon’s list: morale-building. What behavior, during the day today, tomorrow, and the next day, will you do to express your desire to build morale in your group? Hold yourself accountable to the list and you will quickly and more reliably model that behavior. If “honest” is one of your words, changing your actions to include behaviors you associate with honesty actually will cause you to become more honest. (Changing behaviors changes attitudes and inclinations — in the same way that changing attitudes changes behavior).
I’d love to hear from other experienced managers what advice they would add to both Dimon’s list and mine for new managers, so chime in! Lifelong learning and mentoring is also part of the job — and the fun!
(Continued)
From Jamie Dimon’s LinkedIn blog:
Discipline: “This means holding regular business reviews, talent reviews, and team meetings and constantly striving for improvement — from having a strong work ethic to making lists and doing real, detailed follow-up.”
Fortitude: “This attribute often is missing in leaders: they need to have a fierce resolve to act. It means driving change, fighting bureaucracy and politics, and taking ownership and responsibility.”
High standards: “Leaders must set high standards of performance all the time, at a detailed level and with a real sense of urgency. Leaders must compare themselves with the best. Huge institutions have a tendency toward slowing things down, which demands that leaders push forward constantly. True leaders must set the highest standards of integrity⨗ those standards are not embedded in the business but require conscious choices. Such standards demand that we treat customersâ¨and employees the way we would want to be treated ourselves or the way we would want our own mother to be treated.”
Ability to face facts: “In a cold-blooded, honest way, leaders emphasize the negatives at management meetings and focus on what can be improved (of course, it’s okay to celebrate the successes, too). All reporting must be accurate, and all relevant facts must be reported, with full disclosure and on one set of books.”
Openness: “Sharing information all the time is vital —â¨we should debate the issues and alternative approaches, not the facts. The best leaders kill bureaucracy — it can cripple an organization — and watch for signs of politics, like sidebar meetings after the real meeting because people wouldn’t speak their mind at the right time. Equally important, leaders get out in the field regularly so as not to lose touch. Anyone in a meeting should feel free to speak his or her mind without fear of offending anyone else. …â¨If there is just one truth-teller at the table, you’re in trouble — everyone should be a truth-teller.”
Setup for success: “An effective leader makes sure all the right people are in the room — from Legal, Systems and Operations to Human Resources, Finance and Risk. It’s also necessary to set up the right structure. When tri-heads report to co-heads, all decisions become political — a setup for failure, not success.”
Morale-building: “High morale is developed through fixing problems, dealing directly and honestly with issues, earning respect and winning. It does not come from overpaying people or delivering sweet talk, which permits the avoidance of hard decision making and fosters passive-aggressive behaviors.”
Loyalty, meritocracy, and teamwork: “While I deeply believe in loyalty, it often is misused. Loyalty should be to the principles for which someone stands and to the institution: Loyalty to an individual frequently is another form of cronyism. Leaders demand a lot from their employees and should be loyal to them — but loyalty and mutual respect are two-way streets. Loyalty to employees does not mean that a manager owes them a particular job. Loyalty to employees means building a healthy, vibrant company; telling them the truth; and giving them meaningful work, training and opportunities. If employees fall down, we should get them the help they need. Meritocracy and teamwork also are critical but frequently misunderstood. Meritocracy means putting the best person in the job, which promotes a sense of justice in the organization rather than the appearance of cynicism: ‘here they go again, taking care of their friends.’ Finally, while teamwork is important and often code for ‘getting along,’ equally important is an individual’s ability to have the courage to stand alone and do the right thing.”
Fair treatment: “The best leaders treat all people properly and respectfully, from clerks to CEOs. Everyone needs to help everyone else at the company because everyone’s collective purpose is to serve clients. When strong leaders consider promoting people, they pick those who are respected and ask themselves, Would I want to work for him? Would I want my kid to report to her?”
Humility: “Leaders need to acknowledge those who came before them and helped shape the enterprise — it’s not all their own doing. There’s a lot of luck involved in anyone’s success, and a little humility is important. The overall goal must be to help build a great company — then we can do more for our employees, our customers and our communities.”
Successful leaders are hard to find: “There are examples of individuals who have been thrust, wholly unprepared, into positions of leadership and actually perform well⨗ I think of President Harry Truman, among others. I would submit, however, that relying on luck is a risky proposition. History shows that bad or inexperienced leaders can produce disastrous results. While there are possibly innate and genetic parts of leadership (perhaps broad intelligence and natural energy), other parts are deeply embedded in the internal values of an individual; for example, work ethic, integrity, knowledge and good judgment. Many leaders have worked their entire lives to get where they are, and while perhaps some achieved their stature through accident or politics, that is not true for most. Anyone on a sports team, in government or in virtually any other endeavor knows when he or she encounters the rare combination of emotional skill, integrity and knowledge that makes a leader.”
Successful leaders are working to build something: “Most leaders I know are working to build something of which they can be proud. They usually work hard, not because they mustâ¨but because they want to do so; they set high standards because as long as leaders are going to do something, they are going to do the best they can. They believe in things larger than themselves, and the highest obligation is to the team or the organization. Leaders demand loyalty, not to themselves but to the cause for which they stand.”
Nonetheless, compensation does matter: “While I agree that money should not be the primary motivation for leaders, it is not realistic to say that compensation should not count at any level. People have responsibilities to themselves and to their families. They also have a deep sense of ‘compensation justice,’ which means they often are upset when they feel they are not fairly compensated against peers both within and outside the company. There are markets for talent, just like products, and a company must pay a reasonable price to compete.”
Big business needs entrepreneurs, too: “The popular perception is that entrepreneurs — those who believe in free enterprise — exist only in small companies and that entrepreneurs in small companies should be free to pursue happiness or monetary gain as appropriate. Free enterprise, entrepreneurship and the pursuit of happiness also exist in most large enterprises. And you, our shareholders, should insist on it. Without the capacity to innovate, respond to new and rapidly changing markets, and anticipate enormous challenges, large companies would cease to exist. The people who achieve these objectives want to be compensated fairly, just as they would be if they had built a successful start-up.”
Performance isn’t always easy to judge: “Managers responsible for businesses must necessarily evaluate individuals along a spectrum of factors. Did these individuals act with integrity? Did they hire and train good people? Did they build the systems and products that will strengthen the company, not just in the current year but in future years? Did they develop real management teams? In essence, are they building something with sustainable, long-term value? Making these determinations requires courage and judgment.
“One of the reasons I am so proud of our company is because of our great people, our great leaders. These past five years have been a period of turmoil, crisis and stress for our industry and sometimes for our company. What our people have accomplished during these difficult circumstances has been extraordinary — a testament to the critical importance of strong leaders.”
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