How leaders grow talent
Transcription
How leaders grow talent
managing people meeting aspirations Newsletter CPM – October 2012 CPM Insights 07 In this newsletter: Leadership and development 01 02 03 05 06 07 08 Introduction by Christine Van Velthoven: How leaders grow talent Effective leadership programmes This leader is rector Interselect assists Saint-Gobain with Talent Programme Training with a strategic challenge: turning a department into a partner Reading tip: ‘Beyonders. Transcending average leadership’ Reading tip: ‘The five dysfunctions of a team' How leaders grow talent Leaders are like gardeners: they create the best possible habitat for their ‘plants’ that will hopefully develop further, which in the end will help the garden grow. We have a pretty good idea of our own talents, of what we are good at. Sometimes, however, this knowledge has become a bit blurred. Because we have been comparing ourselves too much with others, because we were trying to be good at something more appealing, because we simply went along with the ‘flow’ ... True leaders polish the mirror and hold it up to their ‘plants’: look at all these buds waiting to bloom. Orchid seed has to know that it has everything it needs to become an orchid, because that knowledge will determine what is needed to reach full bloom. What is good for ivy will not always be beneficial to orchids. Every seed deserves the best soil. Some seeds will bloom more easily than others. Some stand out, others are more discrete, which does not mean they are less valuable. Every talent deserves this first care if we are interested in seeing it reach its full potential. Some gardeners live by the principle: we sow and we will see what happens. If nothing grows, we will sow something else. But there are others who invest: they sort the seeds, optimise the climate, check temperature and moist levels every day. The more delicate the plant, the more effort the gardener tends to put in. But before anything else, the gardener should decide what kind of garden he wants: a Japanese Zen garden, an English landscape garden or maybe a vegetable garden? Every strategy asks for different plants, for different talent. Your company as a beautiful garden and CPM as your garden guide, you probably had not looked at it like that before. Dear leaders, we invite you to stroll around our newsletter and discover your green thumb … Christine Van Velthoven Managing Director CPM Insights - October 2012 - page 01 Effective leadership programmes With so many available textbooks, guides and insights about leadership, good leadership must come down to practising what you have read. Wrong. Many companies are not getting sufficient returns despite major investments and well-articulated opinions about leadership. They have to turn to the market hoping to find what their leadership programmes could not provide. Why? The reason is a number of nasty misconceptions. Misconceptions that are nonetheless easy to clear up. Within a company there is not one single person responsible for 'breeding' good leadership. Developing and implementing good leadership is a shared responsibility of different position holders at different levels in the company. In other words, leadership should be part of a vision, and this vision should be integrated throughout the whole organisation. Stimulating leadership is not the same as launching random initiatives, but should be rooted in the organisation’s objectives and mission. Few companies consider the breeding of true leaders as a real part of the corporate culture, as something that will support the strategy. When this is the case, as in many companies, the investment in talent may get lost in favour of politics and personal preferences. At one point, IBM introduced the 'five-minute drill': every executive had to be able to name at least one of their team members with distinct leadership qualities. CPM Insights - October 2012 - page 02 Tracking down, developing and maintaining leadership capacities should be the company’s second nature. There has to be a continued interest in talent. Not only from the CEO or the HR Manager, not only from management in general. It should be present in every single person, at every single level. Everyone should be constantly on the lookout for this kind of talent. And even each individual employee should be stimulated to take his own talents, and with that his career, to the next level. CPM programmes are always in line with the organisation’s strategic vision. Throughout a training course on specific individual or team competencies, there is also room for practical sessions relating to the company goals. In addition to this, our programmes are always tailormade and designed in collaboration with the different stakeholders, ranging from senior management and HR to departmental or functional executives. A leadership programme is not a goal in itself. The leadership programme should lead to more than just another nice graph. Unfortunately, leadership programmes are often the result of fashion trends. Today is all about time management, tomorrow communication rules the day. There are numerous useful books about leadership. There is nothing wrong with the quality of these books, nor with their authors or the research that went into them. The problem lies with the mismatch between theory and practice. As is the case with that other trendy term ‘strategy’, theory is only the tip of the iceberg. Some companies are convinced that they have fulfilled their duty when they provide the obligatory hours of training or coaching, and then simply return to business as usual. Companies that plan leadership somewhere between 3 and 6 in the afternoon, that think they know everything there is to know because they have read the latest book, that report with pride that this year that number of employees have undergone training, these companies should not be surprised that the stock of people with leadership qualities is drying up. It is not the quantity but the quality that counts. And the continued and consistent implementation. A pro forma leadership programme can do even more harm than good, resulting in random, disconnected and often inconsistent messages the employees get to digest. And, in the worst case, they are left to their own devices. Initiatives like these will only increase cynicism among employees. The CEO of an American company had this to say about the issue of leadership programmes: “Each year we spend $120 million on this stuff, and if we stopped now, we would not even notice the difference.” How to measure the success of leadership development, what is the accountability? The critical question we need to ask the leadership programme is: is it easier now to spot the people within our company that will help take the company forward? If a leadership programme is implemented successfully, the company should have become better at spotting talent among its own ranks. Unfortunately, this is often forgotten and the effectiveness of the training is measured by counting the hours of training, the number of staff that was trained and the cost efficiency. When leadership programmes set out these types of objectives, they will not necessarily result in successful leadership development. Participants tend to see right through these false intentions. And if they are not convinced of the added value, they will not ever put what they have learnt into practice. CPM’s training programmes are often specifically designed to provide the participant with a personal development plan. That way, the training programme will get an internal follow-up within the company and the ‘end behaviour’ will be measurable and visible in the work place. Leadership development can solve certain problems within the organisation. As said before, CPM tries to keep the development of leaders aligned with the company goals and the possible improvements in the dayto-day operations. The assessment of the effectiveness of the training programme should be measured by the degree in which the initial problems have progressed, even if this seems impossible to measure. When, for example, there is insufficient crossfunctional collaboration, we have to develop the competencies and talent of the people involved in order to change this. The success is measured afterwards by examining if there is progress in projects and activities that are by definition cross-functional. Leadership is all about behaviour. Which behaviour will generate successful leadership is strongly dependent on the organisation and the economic and social context the organisation operates in. What works in one situation may be counter-productive in another. Behaviour also has a strong time component: the success of a leader’s behaviour only becomes visible after a period of time and a change in behaviour is a process that is not completed after a one-day training. Leadership programmes: tailor-made – longterm – strategy-aligned. This leader is rector Leading the way When people are asked what makes someone a good leader, they tend to stare off into the distance before coming up with a vague answer like "You either have it, or you don’t” or “When it‘s in there somewhere, it will eventually come out." At least we agree on one thing: we recognise a leader when we meet one, even when it is generally accepted that there are different types of leaders. Our quest for some kind of common denominator finally resulted in this list of characteristic leadership features: will power, conviction, authenticity, a good judge of character, enthusiasm. For some, the following should also be included: (a level of) dominance, having vision (or at least recognise it in others), patience (in the sense of ‘willing to invest’). Specific training courses that cover all of these qualities will be hard to find. Van Cauwenberge. And what about quality? "That is a constant concern. One way to protect the quality is to avoid fragmentation. A nice example is our strategic policy with respect to research: each university has its own research focus. Good co-operation is also of great importance. Co-operation between national and international universities, but also with companies." We wondered what a ‘CEO’ of one of the largest companies in Flanders would have to say about leadership. Why not ask Paul Van Cauwenberge, rector (vice-chancellor) of Ghent University? Not only an experienced leader himself, but also head of an institute that is constantly training future ‘leaders’, which makes him the perfect guest to offer us a ‘double-sided’ view on leadership. Apparently, respect is also essential, bearing in mind that the rector started out as a research assistant. Professor, dean, rector ... he has followed all the steps, just as the rectors preceding him did. Obviously, this makes it easier to empathise with the staff, and it is a good way to facilitate mutual trust. In other words, leadership is something you develop by doing it, by recognising and seizing opportunities to stretch your own talents and skills. Mr Van Cauwenberge’s presentation on ‘his’ UGhent showed many coloured bars and columns, all following the same rising trend: the number of students, the amount of publications by professors, the percentage of secondary school students choosing UGhent, etc. Ghent University has done nothing but grow over the last 30 years. How do you cope with this kind of continuing growth? There is the issue of quantity. "Fortunately, the subsidies we receive have increased along with the number of students", says rector So much for the organisation, the structure ... but why does the university prosper under the leadership of Paul Van Cauwenberge? What makes him the leader that he is? "It always comes down to individuals and personalities. A leader has to be able to listen, to delegate to the most effective level, but also to make decisions when necessary. Empathy for employees and colleagues is of paramount importance." Rectors (and deans) are elected internally. Is there no profile-based selection at all? Paul Van Cauwenberge: "No, there is no strict competency-based selection. Rectors are elected by the members of the faculty boards with a two-thirds majority. These boards consist for the most part of professors, but also of assistants, administrative and technical staff and student representatives. It is a democratic model, completely different from for instance the Netherlands, where a small, non-elected CPM Insights - October 2012 - page 03 level of chauvinism, especially not in East Flanders. I am convinced that there are many more successful UGhent alumni than we might suspect. In fact, we generally have what it takes: we are good diplomats, are ‘human’ and we speak different languages – all of them qualities that are generally appreciated in leaders." I can see how languages fit into this, but are diplomacy or empathy really relevant to this academic context? Paul Van Cauwenberge: "Of course they are, as they are to any other company. Keep in mind that academic employees are typically very highly trained and will need more than just fine words. Five years ago we introduced the ‘Doctoral Schools’, offering support to PhD students relating to their research subject, but also to their communication and presentation skills. In our growth plan for the coming years we have also included a ‘leadership’ action plan." committee decides. Does our system work? I think it does. The rector candidates know the institution very well and have had the time to show what they are made of." And what is rector Van Cauwenberge made of? The rector lists a few characteristics, which he knows are part of the type of rector he wants to be: "Being able to listen, but also acting on what you have heard. Self-knowledge and being aware of your own shortcomings is also crucial. You have to leave space for other people’s talents and creativity. And you should acknowledge that rectors also have expiry dates. When the routine sets in, when there is a lack of new ideas, you need to step down. In all circumstances it is best to remain true to yourself and surround yourself with the right people. You have to be able to put your own needs to the side: it is not about you, you just have a role to fulfil. An absolute no-no for me is abuse of power, that is simply unacceptable. And the fact that I’m not a moody person is probably a welcome bonus for the people I work with." CPM Insights - October 2012 - page 04 People and personality, it always seems to come down to these two. In addition to the colourful graphs, we also noticed a slide about the UGhent growth plan during Mr Van Cauwenberge’s presentation. No graphs on this slide, only a vision statement: ‘A creative community for a changing world’. ‘Community’, which means so much more than for instance ‘scientist’. Only a fifth of those who take a doctor’s degree remain in the academic world. The other four fifths step into the world, as experts in their fields. The academic world is not an island and that is why scientists too need other competencies apart from their expertise. When we ask him about the number of graduates who have moved on into national or international leadership roles, rector Van Cauwenberge says: "We don’t have any statistics on this. However, this does not mean that we are not doing well. Successful Flemish/Belgians often forget (to point out) where they came from, which makes them invisible on the radar of leaders ‘made in Ughent’. We apparently do not have that ‘A creative community for a changing world’, that is what UGhent aspires to be. The constant and rapidly changing world needs leaders who will help decide where we want to take this planet and its people. With respect for facts, and people. Ghent University, some facts and figures: • Since 1817, which means older than Belgium • 1930: first Dutch-speaking university (taking the place of Latin and French) • 3 functions: education, research and service • 37,000 students • 7,100 staff (+ another 6,000 in the Ghent University Hospital) • 130 departments, 11 faculties • Through the foundation AUGent (Association University Ghent) joined forces with Hogeschool Gent, Arteveldehogeschool and Hogeschool West-Vlaanderen HR news from the Netherlands Interselect assists Saint-Gobain with Talent Programme What does Saint-Gobain invest in and why? Saint-Gobain Distribution is a multinational corporation with five business units based in the Netherlands specialising in the distribution of building materials. As we all know, the industry is still under pressure. Nevertheless, Saint-Gobain keeps investing in the development of its employees. Interselect was asked to provide assistance. Interselect is CPM’s Dutch partner within ACE, Assessment Circle Europe. ACE is a network of organisations in Europe and beyond that are involved in talent and organisational development. The ACE partners share quality standards, knowledge, experience and methodologies, thus enabling successful exchanges of international projects related to assessment, coaching, training and leadership development. Saint-Gobain is committed to the personal development of its employees. With that investment, they aim to get their staff more involved in the company, to keep them interested and stimulate career growth opportunities. What was Interselect’s role? In 2011 Interselect conducted a Talent Programme for 43 Saint-Gobain employees who were either in a managerial role or a professional staff position and had the potential to grow to a more senior position. During this programme, which ran over one year, the participants regularly met to share knowledge and insights. The programme was made up of assessment, training and coaching sessions. What are the results? During the Talent Programme it became obvious that the employees of the five different business units mixed well. This was further enhanced by having them work in ‘mixed groups’, which in turn led to the creation of a network, which is still used today. People started to share knowledge, insights and experiences – the famous synergy story – which the different business units still benefit from. Furthermore, the participants took their assignments very seriously and started to make recommendations for improving the organisation. They came up with short-term actions (‘low-hanging fruit’), but also had longterm ideas. The participants also gained more self-insight through the programme, allowing them to perform more effectively in their role. Some were even granted a new position within the company as a result. The feedback of Rian Mourik, HR Director of Saint Gobain When asked about her EXPERIENCE with regard to the Talent Programme, Rian Mourik, HR Director of Saint-Gobain, mentions two positive outcomes: • Increased insight in the effectiveness of own behaviour • Improvement of the participants’ style flexibility What would HR Director Mourik advise other organisations during a similar process? These are her TIPS. • The programme should be carefully thoughtout and well organised within the company. Treat the external party as a sparring partner. • Attention to communication is a must! This does not only apply to communication with the external partner. Explain in great detail how people get selected for this programme and who has the final say. Within the business units it was clear how many employees could be nominated. The final decision was with the CEO and HR. • Remember that a Talent Programme does not immediately bring about a change in behaviour. There have to be opportunities to put new insights into practice. And revision days are necessary to transform this new behaviour into a second nature. • Make sure there is a good mix. This will help to ensure collaboration, to establish networks and will even optimise the overall performance of the company. Again in 2012 Interselect supports SaintGobain in organising a Talent Programme, albeit with fewer participants this time. This is not only fuelled by financial concerns, SaintGobain is also hoping to guard the exclusive character of this Talent Programme! CPM Insights - October 2012 - page 05 Personnel & Organisation FPS Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment Training with a strategic challenge: turning a department into a partner The Personnel & Organisation (P&O) department of the Federal Public Service Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment (FPS Public Health) plays a vital role in what the FPS Public Health wants to achieve. Its tasks include finding the right people (recruitment) and increasing their commitment by offering them opportunities to develop their competencies and talents (training). The department also tries to optimise structures and processes and align them with the goals, in order to keep the organisation flexible and ready for any possible change. In other words, P&O is an important business partner, the management does not need any more convincing on that. However, to get your employees to carry the load as a team every day is a completely different story. The P&O department is led by Peter Samyn: "Until a few years ago, the P&O department spent a significant amount of energy on the administration and monitoring of HR processes, just like any other classic The leader’s vision Believe in the feasibility of implementing the vision Think Have a rational understanding of the new vision’s added value Do Have the competencies to put the vision into practice on a day-to-day basis Vision in practice CPM Insights - October 2012 - page 06 Employees Feel HR department. Our internal customers can call upon our team’s HR expertise. Usually we receive a call from one or other subdivision of the FPS Public Health, because they have some kind of HR-related problem, ranging from work climate issues, to structure or occupancy problems ... anything. Our department listens, takes notes and probably will send them a form, maybe even organise a training, and that is that. That is ‘providing service’, and that will always remain part of our job. But we wanted to take it a step further, to evolve towards a real partnership. That is why we wanted to do more than just listen, we had our own questions, we wanted to become more proactive, suggest ideas, confer … That is why we organised a management seminar to tackle this. We agreed that we could be of so much more value." From vision to daily habit The fact that the management team has a clear objective is a good thing, but not good enough. The real challenge is in making this goal crystal-clear to each and every team member, saying ‘look, this is what we’re going for’. This will help to get the most out of every team member in order to realise this goal. However, there is often a gap between the people involved and the goal that was presented to them. Often enough the failure of success is the result of a sense of uneasiness: the team is not familiar with the objective. The goal remains alien to them, because they cannot see how they could possibly get there. They lack the skills or think they lack them and they will simply avoid the goal. They will look in the opposite direction and be sure to continue what they were doing (comfort behaviour). You need to manage change. Building trust with all people involved is an essential part of ‘change management’, people need to believe in the successful realisation of the change. "When people are given the chance to discover and develop their skills, their confidence will grow automatically: ‘I can do this’. Then they will embrace the change, which in turn will inspire them with new energy and motivation. A good specific training course is often the first step in putting a new vision into practice." And that is exactly where CPM stepped in. The training programme turning service providers into partners In collaboration with OFO, the Training Institute of the Belgian Federal Government, CPM created a training programme designed to get the whole team behind this idea of an HR partnership, turning the P&O employees from service providers into real business partners. Now, in September 2012, the programme has reached its conclusion. Sofie Martens, Head of the FPS’s Talent Department, sums up the ingredients that made this project successful: Inside information of the trainers Speaking of partners, that is exactly what CPM is to the FPS Public Health. The CPM trainers know the ins and outs of this fairly complex organisation and have a good grasp of its sensitivities. This enables them to include practical realistic examples in the training, which makes the theory so much more concrete. Self-directed training The programme started off with a clear description of its goal and how to get there. This ‘kick-off’ session was meant to inform the team and to get them on board. This gave each participant the tools to decide how they could benefit from this fairly intensive training programme. He/she also knew that the specific content of the programme would be further shaped by the participants themselves. In short, a sense of ownership about the programme was created. Step 1 Kick-off Step 2 Intake Measurable from intake to output The subsequent individual ‘intake sessions’ were aimed at identifying the learning goals and tailoring them to the actual specific needs. During a simulation (role play), the participants were confronted with a typical ‘service-related question’, which was taped on video and discussed afterwards. This resulted in the definition of a set of sub-skills. This exercise was at the same time a good basis for a final measurement after the training programme. During three training days with the whole group, the sub-skills were put into practice. With this, the participants had all they needed to return to their jobs; in two peer-review Step 3 Training programme Step 4 & 5 Peer review sessions afterwards they got to share their experiences. The last phase consisted of a second individual simulation with again a practical assignment, where they had to look for the ‘question behind the question’. Now armed with the ‘SPOCK model’, the participants adopted a very different approach. They noticed that they had learnt to place customer questions in a broader context, to consider the business implications, to get an idea of possible resistance and/ or sensitivities, etc. But most of all they had learnt to place the question in a strategic perspective: thinking about the structure, the processes/systems, the leadership necessary to respond adequately and thoroughly to the question. Step 6 Evaluation & conclusion Theory in practice A training programme like this requires an investment from the organisation as well as the team. It is only logical that people get to put their knew knowledge into practice as soon as possible. P&O certainly did not waste any time. Normally, P&O will have the training schedules ready for all departments in September. Mapping out the challenges of the different departments is traditionally the task of a few senior consultants. This year, however, it will be up to the programme participants to decide. This is an acknowledgement of their newly acquired competencies and at the same time a confirmation of the programme’s success. READING TIP ‘Beyonders. Transcending average leadership’ Herman Van den Broeck en David Venter “People shouldn’t be made Manager of the Year for the things they’ve done today. They should be honoured for the things they did three years ago that still prove to be beneficial.” and “Beyonders want to be the best FOR this world, not IN this world", say the authors of “Beyonders”. This is a book about sustainable leadership. Not every leader distinguishes himself as a true leader. Beyonders, that is how authors Van den Broeck and Venter call the real, positive leaders. Beyonders are leaders with a strong (future) vision based on values. To them problems are no longer obstacles, but challenging opportunities. They persist until they have achieved their objectives and succeed in creating a stimulating and inspiring environment. Van den Broeck and Venter set out seven unique features that – when they are in balance – characterise the good leader: deep-seated vision, positive bias, humble daring, the courage to be a minority of one, startle to blossom, the dance of your shadow, flow through passion & discipline. specialises in negotiation. He came into contact with a number of world leaders. (source: www.vlerick.be) This may only give you a vague idea of the book’s central message, but hopefully will spark your interest to dive into this captivating book. Herman Van den Broeck is a professor at Ghent University and at the Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School. He specialises in change management and emotional intelligence. He has been analysing the behaviour or world leaders for many years. David Venter is a professor at the Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School and CPM Insights - October 2012 - page 07 Once upon a time … there was a team READING TIP Patrick Lencioni “It is teamwork that remains the ultimate competitive advantage, both because it is so powerful and so rare. It remains a rather intangible phenomenon within organisations. Teams often tend to not work properly”, says American consultant Patrick Lencioni. In 'The five dysfunctions of a team'' Lencioni draws upon his extensive experience in management consulting. The book starts off with a story that is set in a realistic but fictional organisation. The main character of this leadership fable is faced with the job of getting a dysfunctional team, which has been negatively affecting the organisation, back on track. This book makes for an interesting and pleasant read – like a novel –, cleverly wrapping a theoretic model into a business fable. This and the fact that everyone, expect maybe for hermits, is faced with teamwork sooner or later turned ‘The five dysfunctions of a team’ into a bestseller. In ‘The five temptations of a CEO’ Lencioni had already analysed the behaviour of leaders. It is no accident that the five dysfunctions are mirrored in the five temptations: valuing invulnerability over trust, harmony over conflict, accuracy over clarity, popularity over accountability and status over results. Leaders are only human The fable centres on main character Kathryn, the newly-appointed CEO, in her attempt to turn a dysfunctional staff into a real team. On paper, Kathryn is not the ideal manager. However, she does have the ability to ‘read’ people. Her mission is to achieve success for the company. Her tactics: make her team perform as effectively and efficiently as possible. Without losing time (time is money) and with results in the end. She does this by challenging her managers, by asking them critical questions. Not because she thinks there is nothing left to learn for her, but because she is convinced that a team of good managers knows more than the managers on their own. In his fable, Lencioni reveals the following five dysfunctions: • Absence of trust and the fear of being vulnerable with team members. • Fear of conflict and preferring artificial harmony above constructive discussions that result in actual decisions. • Lack of commitment and thus only vague contributions to group decisions. • Avoidance of accountability, which means that bad results do not get any explanation, which results in low standards. • Inattention to results: individuals are more concerned with status and ego than achieving results as a team. To keep people sharp in £their performance as a team is a constant challenge for a leader. He/she must stand firm: whatever does not contribute to the overall success should be dismissed. He/she inspires every team member to be vulnerable, to show no fear of conflict, make decisions and fully commit to them without avoiding In the Dutch translation, ‘dysfunctions’ become ‘frustrations’, which reflects even better how this all comes down to human nature and its emotional imperfections. CPM Ghent Brusselsesteenweg 74a 9090 Melle-Gent T +32 9 231 42 42 ghent@cpm-hrm.be www.cpm-hrm.be accountability and with a clear focus on the company results. Every action should be in the company’s interest. And apparently, this is hard to maintain. The ambition of one’s own department or of the individual may get in the way. Ideally, individual managers will feel personally challenged to attain the group goals. When a manager does not find personal motivation in being of service to the company, then he/she should draw the conclusion that this company may not be the right employer for him/her. The leader ensures that everyone is able to perform their best in the interest of the collective goal. This requires focus, empathy, social skills and also the will to commit day after day. After all, leadership is tiring, as markets as well as people are constantly evolving. And as the saying goes: to stand still is to go backwards. CPM Antwerp Elisabethlaan 1 b4 2600 Berchem-Antwerpen T +32 3 218 69 27 antwerp@cpm-hrm.be CPM Brussels Mechelsesteenweg 468 1930 Zaventem-Brussel T +32 2 756 08 10 brussels@cpm-hrm.be CPM Hasselt Diestersteenweg 239 3510 Kermt-Hasselt T +32 11 20 18 52 hasselt@cpm-hrm.be Registered offices: Brusselsesteenweg 115 9090 Melle-Gent - T +32 9 252 63 58 R.P.R Gent 0420 050 976 B.T.W/.T.V.A. BE 0420 050 976 Registration no.: B-AB05.023 - W.R.S.239 CPM is the Belgian branch of the CFR Global Executive Search Alliance and ACE