Today I met with some local CEO’s about upcoming charity events. One meeting in particular stood out as I walked into his office and he was reading about a fellow executive in the New York Times. He said, “It’s amazing how someone can reach such success and then fall apart so quickly.”
When a high-profile leader fails or a leading corporation self-destructs, the repercussions are far-reaching and often leave us asking, “How could that happen?” - These are my thoughts:
#1: A Shift in Focus
A clear focus dictates a leader’s goals and strategies, aligning all activity toward a central mission. Clarity of focus allows a leader with the confidence and sense of purpose to successfully hone in on his mission.
Leaders stumble when their focus drifts or becomes divided. Many leaders flounder when they stray from their strengths and shift focus on opportunities or challenge that they just are flat out ill-equipped to pursue. When a business executive is faced with a variety of business options, they may lack the very decisiveness to commit to any one of them.
During the Vietnam War, the focus of the America’s wartime leaders wavered between two extremes—total military engagement or complete withdrawal. The instability that resulted from lack of choosing a indistinct course of action led to the disastrous consequence of a decade of bloodshed.
#2: Poor Communication
Leaders who lose the ability to articulate their vision and values are doomed to stumble sooner or later. Inconsistency in communication paralyzes an organization.
To translate values and vision into company culture, they must be communicated repeatedly and modeled consistently. Until an organization’s vision and values become a common refrain in the speech, writings, and personal example of leadership, they will remain empty slogans and ineffectual intentions.
The infamous collapse of the energy titan Enron illustrated the destructive results of poor communication. Certainly, Enron’s demise began with a lack of integrity, but a climate of clear and open communication could have exposed this fault. Instead, secrecy and closed door meetings overran Enron’s core value of communication and perpetuated a culture of dishonesty.
“Communication: We have an obligation to communicate. Here, we take the time to talk with one another…and to listen. We believe that information is meant to move and that information moves people.” –Excerpt from Enron’s Statement of Core Values. . . (ha like that happened!)
#3: Risk Aversion
When leaders cling to comfort and forgo change, they are virtually guaranteeing their demise. Businesses and markets are, by nature, in constant motion, and organizations must continuously risk changes in establishing new models and methods in order to succeed.
Embracing risk requires a leader to innovate and evolve. New-found technologies, variable consumer tastes, and alterations in legislation are a sampling of the scores of changes confronting today’s leaders. Leadership demands adaptability. To successfully chart the course of a company, a leader must be forward-thinking and willing to make adjustments on the fly.
Xerox pioneered a plethora of computing and printing inventions at its Palo Alto Research Corporation in the 1970s and 1980s. These inventions should have catapulted the company to record-breaking profits and corporate wealth, but risk aversion and short-sightedness sent Xerox spiraling into a market share freefall.
Lets all learn an important lesson from the mistakes of others.
- Stay Focuced
- Have Integrity and Communicate Effectively
- Take Strategic Risks.
Trackbacks
...... Need cheap generic VIAGRA?...