In Nick Triggle’s article of 26 November 23 for the BBC {https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-67514356} he captures the very essence of the challenges of dealing with something complicated, unprecedented and omnipotent. Add into the mix the number of ‘cooks’ involved in the decision making process and you have leadership paralysis waiting to happen. The great cry of “follow the science” seemed appropriate at the time, but with the hindsight being applied by those interviewed thus far, it would appear that the science was not the best leader. Of course letting the science lead gave the Whitehall decision making machine something to hide behind when things didn’t go its way. However, these were unprecedented times; scientists and decision makers had little to fall back on.
good or bad, the example you set will be followed…
even the most sophisticated studies and investigations have yet to make leadership, and its development, more science than art. The four ‘Cs’ – competence, character, creativity, and charisma remain difficult qualities to quantify, let alone cultivate. Growing effective leaders is challenging work.
“Men are moved by two levers only: fear and self interest”
Napoleon Bonaparte
Mutual interest or self interest?
Human nature has been laid bare in the UK over the past few weeks.This, of course, may be the case for the rest of the world gripped by the Covid-19 pandemic, but I’ll confine my thoughts to the UK, after all it’s where I live.
“Tell people what you want doing, not how to achieve it, you will be amazed by their creativity”
Dwight D Eisenhower.
Having spent a long time in the Public Sector (the British Army), I have often thought that it is easier to let go, to let your team ‘crack on’ when the bottom line is not measured in financial terms. After all, if there are no share holders screaming for more profit and no board looking down from the ivory tower expecting you to deliver more £s, $s etc then letting other people make the decisions has to be straight forward, doesn’t it?
The James Bond Effect (also called 007 Effect) is a theory in propaganda and political circles, whereby the first detailed opinion/summary that someone hears or reads on a particular topic, is the one they are most likely to adopt.
bridge][ability is closely involved with Manchester Business School in a number of areas.Over the past 3 years our focus has been delivery of negotiation development training on their Advanced Management Achievement Course (AMAC).
The AMAC:
The Advanced Management Achievement Course is a 3-week highly specialised programme designed for military officers moving into management and executive careers. Through a mix of taught sessions, in-company visits and guest speakers, attendees develop the confidence and management tools to take the next step into a new and unpredictable commercial environment.
Attendance on the programme also includes the award of the Chartered Management Institute Level 8 in strategy and leadership.
Although the AMAC has been running for several years, it has never addressed directly the subject of commercial negotiation.Further, the attendees on the AMAC, whilst senior in their military roles, have not been exposed to the challenges of negotiation in the commercial world.Our remit was to deliver a short and focussed programme within the AMAC, that would equip the attendee with the knowledge to enter a new career and be commercially effective immediately.
The AMAC provided an almost unique challenge.In the vast majority of situations where bridge][ability is presented with ‘new-comers’ to negotiation, they tend to be junior, either in age or time served within their parent organisations; the AMAC delegates are neither of these things.Their lack of knowledge and experience is a product of the environment in which they have worked.
Our knowledge allowed us to craft an impactful day that would give the attendees the ability to influence their negotiations through a thorough understanding of the nature of any negotiation (and environment), the ability to plan any negotiation and an understanding of the impact of their actions on others.Through the use of video feedback we were able to demonstrate to the attendees how they influence, and are influenced by others, in a negotiation situation.Whilst brief, the sessions we deliver on the AMAC expose attendees to transactional and collaborative negotiations – in short, we give them the all the skills they need to by effective in their new roles.
Our relationship with Manchester Business School continues to thrive.
“All leaders are inspired by those they admire. Reading about them and studying their traits inevitably allows an inspiring leader to develop their own traits.”
Rudi Guiliani
Leaders, like the rest of us are all different. That’s a strength, for leaders, followers and of course, their organisations. Although leaders’ personalities will differ, there are certainly traits that they should all hold dear and spend time developing:
You may recall that Gerald Grosvenor, the Duke of Westminster died in August 2016. Like most people I heard of his death via the British media. He was famous for his great wealth generated through his business’s property holdings and investments. Those people who were aware of him would normally refer to him in sentences that included “he’s the richest man in England” or “he makes the Queen look poor”. For most, It was his vast wealth that defined him.
CHANGE; It’s one of the those subjects, everyone has an opinion on it, you are unlikely to meet someone who hasn’t experienced it and, of course, no one has a good word to say about it. Wether we are 18 or 80, stuck in our ways or a self titled ‘free thinker’ we just don’t do change; its irritating and unnecessary.