In Praise of the Incomplete Leader - ADAM Global
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www.hbr.org
No leader is perfect. The best
ones don’t try to be—they
concentrate on honing their
In Praise of the
strengths and find others who
can make up for their
Incomplete Leader
limitations.
by Deborah Ancona, Thomas W. Malone,
Wanda J. Orlikowski, and Peter M. Senge
Included with this full-text Harvard Business Review article:
1 Article Summary
The Idea in Brief—the core idea
The Idea in Practice—putting the idea to work
2 In Praise of the Incomplete Leader
10 Further Reading
A list of related materials, with annotations to guide further
exploration of the article’s ideas and applications
Reprint R0702E
Purchased by: MARGARET HEFFERNAN MARGARET_HEFFERNAN@HOTMAIL.COM on December 13, 2013In Praise of the Incomplete Leader
The Idea in Brief The Idea in Practice
Have you ever feigned confidence to Incomplete leaders find people throughout their company who can complement their
superiors or reports? Hidden the fact you strengths and offset their weaknesses. To do this, understand the four leadership capabilities
were confused by the latest business results organizations need. Then diagnose your strength in each:
or blindsided by a competitor’s move? If so,
you’ve bought into the myth of the com-
plete leader: the flawless being at the top Capability What it means Example Look for help in this
capability if you...
who’s got it all figured out.
Sensemaking Constantly under- A CEO asks, “How will new • Feel strongly that you’re
It’s an alluring myth. But in today’s world of standing changes in the technologies reshape always right.
increasingly complex problems, no human business environment our industry?”“How • Frequently get blindsided
and interpreting their does globalization of by changes in your
being can meet this standard. Leaders who
ramifications for your labor markets affect our company or industry.
try only exhaust themselves, endangering industry and company recruitment strategy?” • Feel resentful when
their organizations. things change.
Ancona and her coauthors suggest a better Relating Building trusting Former Southwest Airlines • Blame others for failed
relationships, balancing CEO Herb Kelleher excels projects.
way to lead: Accept that you’re human, with
advocacy (explaining at building trusting • Feel others are constantly
strengths and weaknesses. Understand your viewpoints) with relationships. He wasn’t letting you down or that
the four leadership capabilities all organi- inquiry (listening to afraid to tell employees he they can’t be trusted.
zations need: understand others’ loved them, and reinforced • Frequently experience
viewpoints), and those emotional bonds with unpleasant, frustrating,
• Sensemaking—interpreting develop- cultivating networks of equitable compensation and or argumentative
ments in the business environment supportive confidants profit sharing. interactions with others.
Visioning Creating credible and eBay founder Pierre Omidyar • Often wonder, “Why are
• Relating—building trusting relationships compelling images envisioned a new way of we doing this?” or “Does it
of a desired future doing large-scale retailing: really matter?”
• Visioning—communicating a compelling
that people in the an online community where • Can’t remember the last
image of the future organization want to users took responsibility for time you felt excited
create together what happened and had about your work.
COPYRIGHT © 2008 HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL PUBLISHING CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
• Inventing—coming up with new ways of equal access to information. • Feel you’re lacking sense
doing things of larger purpose.
Then find and work with others who can Inventing Creating new ways of eBay CEO Meg Whitman • Have difficulty relating
provide the capabilities you’re missing. approaching tasks or helped bring Omidyar’s the company’s vision to
overcoming seemingly vision of online retailing to what you’re doing today.
Take this approach, and you promote lead- insurmountable life by inventing ways to • Notice gaps between
problems to turn visions deal with security, vendor your firm’s aspirations
ership throughout your organization, into reality reliability, and product and the way work is
unleashing the expertise, vision, and new diversification. organized.
ideas your company needs to excel. • Find that things tend
to revert to business as
usual.
page 1
Purchased by: MARGARET HEFFERNAN MARGARET_HEFFERNAN@HOTMAIL.COM on December 13, 2013No leader is perfect. The best ones don’t try to be—they concentrate on
honing their strengths and find others who can make up for their
limitations.
In Praise of the
Incomplete Leader
by Deborah Ancona, Thomas W. Malone,
Wanda J. Orlikowski, and Peter M. Senge
We’ve come to expect a lot of our leaders. Top Corporations have been becoming less
executives, the thinking goes, should have the hierarchical and more collaborative for de-
intellectual capacity to make sense of unfath- cades, of course, as globalization and the
COPYRIGHT © 2007 HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL PUBLISHING CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
omably complex issues, the imaginative powers growing importance of knowledge work
to paint a vision of the future that generates have required that responsibility and initia-
everyone’s enthusiasm, the operational know- tive be distributed more widely. Moreover, it
how to translate strategy into concrete plans, is now possible for large groups of people to
and the interpersonal skills to foster commit- coordinate their actions, not just by bringing
ment to undertakings that could cost people’s lots of information to a few centralized
jobs should they fail. Unfortunately, no single places but also by bringing lots of informa-
person can possibly live up to those standards. tion to lots of places through ever-growing
It’s time to end the myth of the complete networks within and beyond the firm. The
leader: the flawless person at the top who’s sheer complexity and ambiguity of problems
got it all figured out. In fact, the sooner lead- is humbling. More and more decisions are
ers stop trying to be all things to all people, made in the context of global markets and
the better off their organizations will be. In rapidly—sometimes radically—changing fi-
today’s world, the executive’s job is no longer nancial, social, political, technological, and
to command and control but to cultivate and environmental forces. Stakeholders such as
coordinate the actions of others at all levels activists, regulators, and employees all have
of the organization. Only when leaders come claims on organizations.
to see themselves as incomplete—as having No one person could possibly stay on top of
both strengths and weaknesses—will they be everything. But the myth of the complete
able to make up for their missing skills by leader (and the attendant fear of appearing
relying on others. incompetent) makes many executives try to do
harvard business review • february 2007 page 2
Purchased by: MARGARET HEFFERNAN MARGARET_HEFFERNAN@HOTMAIL.COM on December 13, 2013In Praise of the Incomplete Leader
just that, exhausting themselves and damag- to diagnose their strengths and weaknesses
ing their organizations in the process. The and find ways to balance their skill sets.
incomplete leader, by contrast, knows when
to let go: when to let those who know the Sensemaking
local market do the advertising plan or when The term “sensemaking” was coined by orga-
to let the engineering team run with its idea nizational psychologist Karl Weick, and it
of what the customer needs. The incomplete means just what it sounds like: making sense
leader also knows that leadership exists of the world around us. Leaders are constantly
throughout the organizational hierarchy— trying to understand the contexts they are op-
wherever expertise, vision, new ideas, and erating in. How will new technologies reshape
commitment are found. the industry? How will changing cultural ex-
We’ve worked with hundreds of people pectations shift the role of business in society?
who have struggled under the weight of the How does the globalization of labor markets
myth of the complete leader. Over the past six affect recruitment and expansion plans?
years, our work at the MIT Leadership Center Weick likened the process of sensemaking
has included studying leadership in many to cartography. What we map depends on
organizations and teaching the topic to se- where we look, what factors we choose to
nior executives, middle managers, and MBA focus on, and what aspects of the terrain we
students. In our practice-based programs, we decide to represent. Since these choices will
have analyzed numerous accounts of organi- shape the kind of map we produce, there is no
zational change and watched leaders struggle perfect map of a terrain. Therefore, making
to meld top-down strategic initiatives with vi- sense is more than an act of analysis; it’s an
brant ideas from the rest of the organization. act of creativity. (See the exhibit “Engage in
All this work has led us to develop a model Sensemaking.”)
of distributed leadership. This framework, The key for leaders is to determine what
which synthesizes our own research with ideas would be a useful map given their particular
from other leadership scholars, views leader- goals and then to draw one that adequately
ship as a set of four capabilities: sensemaking represents the situation the organization is
(understanding the context in which a com- facing at that moment. Executives who are
pany and its people operate), relating (building strong in this capability know how to quickly
relationships within and across organizations), capture the complexities of their environ-
Deborah Ancona is the Seley Distin- visioning (creating a compelling picture of the ment and explain them to others in simple
guished Professor of Management at future), and inventing (developing new ways to terms. This helps ensure that everyone is
the MIT Sloan School of Management achieve the vision). working from the same map, which makes it
and the faculty director of the MIT While somewhat simplified, these capabili- far easier to discuss and plan for the journey
Leadership Center in Cambridge, ties span the intellectual and interpersonal, ahead. Leaders need to have the courage to
Massachusetts. She is also the coau- the rational and intuitive, and the conceptual present a map that highlights features they
thor (with Henrik Bresman) of X-Teams: and creative capacities required in today’s busi- believe to be critical, even if their map doesn’t
How to Build Teams that Lead, Innovate, ness environment. Rarely, if ever, will someone conform to the dominant perspective.
and Succeed, forthcoming from be equally skilled in all four domains. Thus, When John Reed was CEO of Citibank, the
Harvard Business School Press in June incomplete leaders differ from incompetent company found itself in a real estate crisis. At
2007. Thomas W. Malone is the leaders in that they understand what they’re the time, common wisdom said that Citibank
Patrick J. McGovern Professor of Man- good at and what they’re not and have good would need to take a $2 billion write-off, but
agement at the MIT Sloan School and judgment about how they can work with Reed wasn’t sure. He wanted a better under-
the director of the MIT Center for others to build on their strengths and offset standing of the situation, so to map the prob-
Collective Intelligence. Wanda J. their limitations. lem, he met with federal regulators as well as
Orlikowski is the Eaton-Peabody Sometimes, leaders need to further develop his managers, the board, potential investors,
Professor of Communication Science the capabilities they are weakest in. The exhib- economists, and real estate experts. He kept
and a professor of information technol- its throughout this article provide some sug- asking, “What am I missing here?” After those
ogies and organization studies at the gestions for when and how to do that. Other meetings, he had a much stronger grasp of the
MIT Sloan School. Peter M. Senge is the times, however, it’s more important for leaders problem, and he recalibrated the write-off to
founding chairperson of the Society to find and work with others to compensate for $5 billion—which turned out to be a far more
for Organizational Learning and a se- their weaknesses. Teams and organizations— accurate estimate. Later, three quarters into
nior lecturer at the MIT Sloan School. not just individuals—can use this framework the bank’s eight-quarter program to deal with
harvard business review • february 2007 page 3
Purchased by: MARGARET HEFFERNAN MARGARET_HEFFERNAN@HOTMAIL.COM on December 13, 2013In Praise of the Incomplete Leader
the crisis, Reed realized that progress had a redesign of the ceiling that made it more
stopped. He began talking to other CEOs aesthetically pleasing and able to display
known for their change management skills. important information for patients.
This informal benchmarking process led him
to devise an organizational redesign. Relating
Throughout the crisis, real estate valuations, Many executives who attempt to foster trust,
investors’ requirements, board demands, optimism, and consensus often reap anger,
and management team expectations were all cynicism, and conflict instead. That’s because
changing and constantly needed to be re- they have difficulty relating to others, espe-
assessed. Good leaders understand that sense- cially those who don’t make sense of the world
making is a continuous process; they let the the way they do. Traditional images of leader-
map emerge from a melding of observations, ship didn’t assign much value to relating.
data, experiences, conversations, and analyses. Flawless leaders shouldn’t need to seek coun-
In healthy organizations, this sort of sensemak- sel from anyone outside their tight inner
ing goes on all the time. People have ongoing circle, the thinking went, and they were
dialogues about their interpretations of mar- expected to issue edicts rather than connect
kets and organizational realities. on an emotional level. Times have changed,
At IDEO, a product design firm, sensemak- of course, and in this era of networks, being
ing is step one for all design teams. According able to build trusting relationships is a re-
to founder David Kelley, team members must quirement of effective leadership.
act as anthropologists studying an alien cul- Three key ways to do this are inquiring, advo-
ture to understand the potential product cating, and connecting. The concepts of inquir-
from all points of view. When brainstorming a ing and advocating stem from the work of
new design, IDEO’s teams consider multiple organizational development specialists Chris
perspectives—that is, they build multiple Argyris and Don Schon. Inquiring means lis-
maps to inform their creative process. One tening with the intention of genuinely under-
IDEO team was charged with creating a new standing the thoughts and feelings of the
design for an emergency room. To better un- speaker. Here, the listener suspends judgment
derstand the experience of a key stakeholder— and tries to comprehend how and why the
the patient—team members attached a speaker has moved from the data of his or
camera to a patient’s head and captured his her experiences to particular interpretations
experience in the ER. The result: nearly ten and conclusions.
full hours of film of the ceiling. The sense- Advocating, as the term implies, means ex-
making provoked by this perspective led to plaining one’s own point of view. It is the flip
side of inquiring, and it’s how leaders make
clear to others how they reached their inter-
pretations and conclusions. Good leaders
Engage in Sensemaking distinguish their observations from their
1. Get data from multiple sources: customers, opinions and judgments and explain their
suppliers, employees, competitors, other depart- reasoning without aggression or defensive-
ments, and investors. ness. People with strong relating skills are
2. Involve others in your sensemaking. Say typically those who’ve found a healthy balance
what you think you are seeing, and check with between inquiring and advocating: They ac-
people who have different perspectives from tively try to understand others’ views but are
yours. able to stand up for their own. (See the exhibit
3. Use early observations to shape small experi- “Build Relationships.”)
ments in order to test your conclusions. Look for We’ve seen countless relationships under-
new ways to articulate alternatives and better mined because people disproportionately
ways to understand options. emphasized advocating over inquiring. Even
4. Do not simply apply existing frameworks but though managers pay lip service to the impor-
instead be open to new possibilities. Try not to tance of mutual understanding and shared
describe the world in stereotypical ways, such as commitment to a course of action, often their
good guys and bad guys, victims and oppressors, real focus is on winning the argument rather
or marketers and engineers. than strengthening the connection. Worse, in
harvard business review • february 2007 page 4
Purchased by: MARGARET HEFFERNAN MARGARET_HEFFERNAN@HOTMAIL.COM on December 13, 2013In Praise of the Incomplete Leader
many organizations, the imbalance goes so far Although they don’t always reach consensus,
that having one’s point of view prevail is what they are able to settle on a course of action.
is understood as leadership. Since this new form of leadership was intro-
Effective relating does not mean avoiding duced, TG has thrived: The company’s profits
interpersonal conflict altogether. Argyris and have doubled, and employee satisfaction
Schon found that “maintaining a smooth sur- levels have improved. What’s more, TG’s lead-
face” of conviviality and apparent agreement is ership structure has served as a model for
one of the most common defensive routines cooperation throughout the organization as
that limits team effectiveness. Balancing in- well as in the firm’s relations with its clients.
quiring and advocating is ultimately about The third aspect of relating, connecting,
showing respect, challenging opinions, asking involves cultivating a network of confidants
tough questions, and taking a stand. who can help a leader accomplish a wide
Consider Twynstra Gudde (TG), one of the range of goals. Leaders who are strong in this
largest independent consulting companies in capability have many people they can turn to
the Netherlands. A few years ago, it replaced who can help them think through difficult
the role of CEO with a team of four managing problems or support them in their initiatives.
directors who share leadership responsibili- They understand that the time spent building
ties. Given this unique structure, it’s vital that and maintaining these connections is time
these directors effectively relate to one an- spent investing in their leadership skills.
other. They’ve adopted simple rules, such as a Because no one person can possibly have all
requirement that each leader give his opinion the answers, or indeed, know all the right
on every issue, majority-rules voting, and veto questions to ask, it’s crucial that leaders be
power for each director. able to tap into a network of people who can
Clearly, for TG’s senior team model to fill in the gaps.
work, members must be skilled at engaging in
dialogue together. They continually practice Visioning
both inquiring and advocating, and because Sensemaking and relating can be called the
each director can veto a decision, each must enabling capabilities of leadership. They
thoroughly explain his reasoning to convince help set the conditions that motivate and
the others’ that his perspective has merit. It’s sustain change. The next two leadership
not easy to reach this level of mutual respect capabilities—what we call “visioning” and
and trust, but over time, the team members’ inventing—are creative and action oriented:
willingness to create honest connections They produce the focus and energy needed to
with one another has paid off handsomely. make change happen.
Visioning involves creating compelling
images of the future. While sensemaking
charts a map of what is, visioning produces a
Build Relationships map of what could be and, more important,
1. Spend time trying to understand others’ what a leader wants the future to be. It consists
perspectives, listening with an open mind and of far more than pinning a vision statement to
without judgment. the wall. Indeed, a shared vision is not a static
2. Encourage others to voice their opinions. thing—it’s an ongoing process. Like sensemak-
What do they care about? How do they interpret ing, visioning is dynamic and collaborative, a
what’s going on? Why? process of articulating what the members of
3. Before expressing your ideas, try to antici- an organization want to create together.
pate how others will react to them and how you Fundamentally, visioning gives people a
might best explain them. sense of meaning in their work. Leaders who
4. When expressing your ideas, don’t just give are skilled in this capability are able to get
a bottom line; explain your reasoning process. people excited about their view of the future
5. Assess the strengths of your current connec- while inviting others to help crystallize that
tions: How well do you relate to others when image. (See the exhibit “Create a Vision.”) If
receiving advice? When giving advice? When they realize other people aren’t joining in or
thinking through difficult problems? When buying into the vision, they don’t just turn up
asking for help? the volume; they engage in a dialogue about
harvard business review • february 2007 page 5
Purchased by: MARGARET HEFFERNAN MARGARET_HEFFERNAN@HOTMAIL.COM on December 13, 2013In Praise of the Incomplete Leader
the reality they hope to produce. They use Western Cape and facilitated by a white Cana-
stories and metaphors to paint a vivid picture dian from Royal Dutch Shell would be able to
of what the vision will accomplish, even if bring about any sort of change. But they, to-
they don’t have a comprehensive plan for get- gether with members of the African National
ting there. They know that if the vision is Congress (ANC), the radical Pan Africanist
credible and compelling enough, others will Congress (PAC), and the white business com-
generate ideas to advance it. munity, were charged with forging a new path
In South Africa in the early 1990s, a joke was for South Africa.
making the rounds: Given the country’s daunt- When the team members first met, they
ing challenges, people had two options, one focused on collective sensemaking. Their
practical and the other miraculous. The practi- discussions then evolved into a yearlong vi-
cal option was for everyone to pray for a band sioning process. In his book, Solving Tough
of angels to come down from heaven and fix Problems, Adam Kahane, the facilitator, says
things. The miraculous option was for people the group started by telling stories of “left-
to talk with one another until they could find a wing revolution, right-wing revolts, and free
way forward. In F.W. de Klerk’s famous speech market utopias.” Eventually, the leadership
in 1990—his first after assuming leadership— team drafted a set of scenarios that described
he called for a nonracist South Africa and the many paths toward disaster and the one
suggested that negotiation was the only way toward sustainable development.
to achieve a peaceful transition. That speech They used metaphors and clear imagery to
sparked a set of changes that led to Nelson convey the various paths in language that
Mandela’s release from Robben Island prison was easy to understand. One negative sce-
and the return to the country of previously nario, for instance, was dubbed “Ostrich”:
banned political leaders. A nonrepresentative white government sticks
Few of South Africa’s leaders agreed on its head in the sand, trying to avoid a negoti-
much of anything regarding the country’s ated settlement with the black majority. An-
future. It seemed like a long shot, at best, that other negative scenario was labeled “Icarus”:
a scenario-planning process convened by a A constitutionally unconstrained black gov-
black professor from the University of the ernment comes to power with noble inten-
tions and embarks on a huge, unsustainable
public-spending spree that crashes the econ-
omy. This scenario contradicted the popular
Create a Vision belief that the country was rich and could
1. Practice creating a vision in many arenas, simply redistribute wealth from whites to
including your work life, your home life, and in blacks. The Icarus scenario set the stage for
community groups. Ask yourself, “What do I want a fundamental (and controversial) shift in
to create?” economic thinking in the ANC and other
2. Develop a vision about something that in- left-wing parties—a shift that led the ANC
spires you. Your enthusiasm will motivate you government to “strict and consistent fiscal
and others. Listen to what they find exciting and discipline,” according to Kahane.
important. The group’s one positive scenario involved
3. Expect that not all people will share your the government adopting a set of sustainable
passion. Be prepared to explain why people should policies that would put the country on a path
care about your vision and what can be achieved of inclusive growth to successfully rebuild
through it. If people don’t get it, don’t just turn up the economy and establish democracy. This
the volume. Try to construct a shared vision. option was called “Flamingo,” invoking the
4. Don’t worry if you don’t know how to accom- image of a flock of beautiful birds all taking
plish the vision. If it is compelling and credible, flight together.
other people will discover all sorts of ways to make This process of visioning unearthed an
it real—ways you never could have imagined on extraordinary collective sense of possibility
your own. in South Africa. Instead of talking about what
5. Use images, metaphors, and stories to other people should do to advance some
convey complex situations that will enable others agenda, the leaders spoke about what they
to act. could do to create a better future for every-
harvard business review • february 2007 page 6
Purchased by: MARGARET HEFFERNAN MARGARET_HEFFERNAN@HOTMAIL.COM on December 13, 2013In Praise of the Incomplete Leader
one. They didn’t have an exact implementa- moves a business from the abstract world of
tion plan at the ready, but by creating a credible ideas to the concrete world of implementa-
vision, they paved the way for others to join tion. In fact, inventing is similar to execution,
in and help make their vision a reality. but the label “inventing” emphasizes that this
Leaders who excel in visioning walk the process often requires creativity to help peo-
walk; they work to embody the core values and ple figure out new ways of working together.
ideas contained in the vision. Darcy Winslow, To realize a new vision, people usually can’t
Nike’s global director for women’s footwear, keep doing the same things they’ve been do-
is a good example. A 14-year veteran at Nike, ing. They need to conceive, design, and put
Winslow previously held the position of gen- into practice new ways of interacting and orga-
eral manager of sustainable business opportu- nizing. Some of the most famous examples
nities at the shoe and apparel giant. Her work of large-scale organizational innovation come
in that role reflected her own core values, in- from the automotive industry: Henry Ford’s
cluding her passion for the environment. “We conception of the assembly-line factory and
had come to see that our customers’ health Toyota’s famed integrated production system.
and our own ability to compete were insepara- More recently, Pierre Omidyar, the founder
ble from the health of the environment,” of eBay, invented through his company a
she says. So she initiated the concept of eco- new way of doing large-scale retailing. His
logically intelligent product design. Winslow’s vision was of an online community where
team worked at determining the chemical users would take responsibility for what hap-
composition and environmental effects of pened. In a 2001 BusinessWeek Online inter-
every material and process Nike used. They view, Omidyar explained, “I had the idea that
visited factories in China and collected samples I wanted to create an efficient market and a
of rubber, leather, nylon, polyester, and foams level playing field where everyone had equal
to determine their chemical makeup. This access to information. I wanted to give the
led Winslow and her team to develop a list of power of the market back to individuals, not
“positive” materials—those that weren’t harm- just large corporations. That was the driving
ful to the environment—that they hoped to motivation for creating eBay at the start.”
use in more Nike products. “Environmental Consequently, eBay outsources most of the
sustainability” was no longer just an abstract functions of traditional retailing—purchasing,
term on a vision statement; the team now felt order fulfillment, and customer service, for
a mandate to realize the vision. example—to independent sellers worldwide.
The company estimates that more than
Inventing 430,000 people make their primary living
Even the most compelling vision will lose from selling wares on eBay. If those individu-
its power if it floats, unconnected, above the als were all employees of eBay, it would be
everyday reality of organizational life. To the second largest private employer in the
transform a vision of the future into a present- United States after Wal-Mart.
day reality, leaders need to devise processes The people who work through eBay are
that will give it life. This inventing is what essentially independent store owners, and, as
such, they have a huge amount of autonomy
in how they do their work. They decide what
to sell, when to sell it, how to price, and how
Cultivate Inventiveness to advertise. Coupled with this individual
1. Don’t assume that the way things have al- freedom is global scale. EBay’s infrastructure
ways been done is the best way to do them. enables them to sell their goods all over the
2. When a new task or change effort emerges, world. What makes eBay’s inventing so radi-
encourage creative ways of getting it done. cal is that it represents a new relationship
3. Experiment with different ways of organiz- between an organization and its parts. Unlike
ing work. Find alternative methods for grouping typical outsourcing, eBay doesn’t pay its
and linking people. retailers—they pay the company.
4. When working to understand your current Inventing doesn’t have to occur on such a
environment, ask yourself, “What other options grand scale. It happens every time a person
are possible?” creates a way of approaching a task or figures
harvard business review • february 2007 page 7
Purchased by: MARGARET HEFFERNAN MARGARET_HEFFERNAN@HOTMAIL.COM on December 13, 2013In Praise of the Incomplete Leader
out how to overcome a previously insur- In sum, leaders must be able to succeed at
mountable obstacle. In their book Car Launch, inventing, and this requires both attention to
George Roth and Art Kleiner describe a highly detail and creativity. (See the exhibit “Cultivate
successful product development team in the Inventiveness.”)
automobile industry that struggled with com-
pleting its designs on time. Much of the source Balancing the Four Capabilities
of the problem, the team members concluded, Sensemaking, relating, visioning, and invent-
came from the stovepipe organizational struc- ing are interdependent. Without sensemak-
ture found in the product development divi- ing, there’s no common view of reality from
sion. Even though they were a “colocated” which to start. Without relating, people work
team dedicated to designing a common new in isolation or, worse, strive toward different
car, members were divided by their different aims. Without visioning, there’s no shared di-
technical expertise, experience, jargon, and rection. And without inventing, a vision re-
norms of working. mains illusory. No one leader, however, will
When the team invented a mechanical excel at all four capabilities in equal measure.
prototyping device that complemented its Typically, leaders are strong in one or two
computer-aided design tools, the group mem- capabilities. Intel chairman Andy Grove is the
bers found that it facilitated a whole new way quintessential sensemaker, for instance, with
of collaborating. Multiple groups within the a gift for recognizing strategic inflection
team could quickly create physical mock-ups points that can be exploited for competitive
of design ideas to be tested by the various en- advantage. Herb Kelleher, the former CEO of
gineers from different specialties in the team. Southwest Airlines, excels at relating. He
The group called the device “the harmony remarked in the journal Leader to Leader that
buck,” because it helped people break out of “We are not afraid to talk to our people
their comfortable engineering specialties with emotion. We’re not afraid to tell them,
and solve interdependent design problems to- ‘We love you.’ Because we do.” With this
gether. Development of a “full body” physical emotional connection comes equitable com-
mock-up of the new car allowed engineers to pensation and profit sharing.
hang around the prototype, providing a cen- Apple CEO Steve Jobs is a visionary whose
tral focal point for their interactions. It en- ambitious dreams and persuasiveness have cat-
abled them to more easily identify and raise alyzed remarkable successes for Apple, Next,
cross-functional issues, and it facilitated mu- and Pixar. Meg Whitman, the CEO of eBay,
tual problem solving and coordination. helped bring Pierre Omidyar’s vision of online
Examining Your Leadership Capabilities
Few people wake up in the morning and say, 4. When things change, you typically feel to post with no sense of larger purpose.
“I’m a poor sensemaker” or “I just can’t relate resentful. (That’s not the way it should be!) 3. You often wonder, “Why are we doing
to others.” They tend to experience their own this?” or “Does it really matter?”
weaknesses more as chronic or inexplicable Signs of Weak Relating 4. You can’t remember the last time you
failures in the organization or in those 1. You blame others for failed projects. talked to your family or a friend with excite-
around them. The following descriptions will 2. You feel others are constantly letting you ment about your work.
help you recognize opportunities to develop down or failing to live up to your expectations.
your leadership capabilities and identify 3. You find that many of your interactions Signs of Weak Inventing
openings for working with others. at work are unpleasant, frustrating, or argu- 1. Your organization’s vision seems abstract
mentative. to you.
Signs of Weak Sensemaking 4. You find many of the people you work 2. You have difficulty relating your com-
1. You feel strongly that you are usually right with untrustworthy. pany’s vision to what you are doing today.
and others are often wrong. 3. You notice dysfunctional gaps between
2. You feel your views describe reality Signs of Weak Visioning your organization’s aspirations and the way
correctly, but others’ views do not. 1. You feel your work involves managing an work is organized.
3. You find you are often blindsided by endless series of crises. 4. You find that things tend to revert to busi-
changes in your organization or industry. 2. You feel like you’re bouncing from pillar ness as usual.
harvard business review • february 2007 page 8
Purchased by: MARGARET HEFFERNAN MARGARET_HEFFERNAN@HOTMAIL.COM on December 13, 2013In Praise of the Incomplete Leader
retailing to life by inventing ways to deal what he projected to the outside world: It was
with security, vendor reliability, and product a large, intimidating face holding up a huge
diversification. fist. The image on the right represented how
Once leaders diagnose their own capabili- he saw himself: a small face with wide eyes,
ties, identifying their unique set of strengths hair standing on end, and an expression of
and weaknesses, they must search for others sheer terror.
who can provide the things they’re missing. We believe that most leaders experience that
(See the sidebar “Examining Your Leadership profound dichotomy every day, and it’s a heavy
Capabilities.”) Leaders who choose only peo- burden. How many times have you feigned
ple who mirror themselves are likely to find confidence to superiors or reports when you
Most leaders experience
their organizations tilting in one direction, were really unsure? Have you ever felt com-
a profound dichotomy missing one or more essential capabilities fortable conceding that you were confused by
needed to survive in a changing, complex the latest business results or caught off guard
every day, and it’s a world. That’s why it’s important to examine by a competitor’s move? Would you ever admit
heavy burden. They are the whole organization to make sure it is to feeling inadequate to cope with the complex
appropriately balanced as well. It’s the issues your firm was facing? Anyone who can
trapped in the myth of leader’s responsibility to create an environ- identify with these situations knows firsthand
the complete leader —the ment that lets people complement one what it’s like to be trapped in the myth of the
another’s strengths and offset one another’s complete leader—the person at the top with-
person at the top without weaknesses. In this way, leadership is dis- out flaws. It’s time to put that myth to rest, not
tributed across multiple people throughout only for the sake of frustrated leaders but also
flaws. the organization. for the health of organizations. Even the most
••• talented leaders require the input and leader-
Years ago, one of us attended a three-day ship of others, constructively solicited and
meeting on leadership with 15 top managers creatively applied. It’s time to celebrate the
from different companies. At the close of it, incomplete—that is, the human—leader.
participants were asked to reflect on their ex-
perience as leaders. One executive, responsi- Reprint R0702E
ble for more than 50,000 people in his division To order, see the next page
of a manufacturing corporation, drew two pic- or call 800-988-0886 or 617-783-7500
tures on a flip chart. The image on the left was or go to www.hbr.org
harvard business review • february 2007 page 9
Purchased by: MARGARET HEFFERNAN MARGARET_HEFFERNAN@HOTMAIL.COM on December 13, 2013In Praise of the Incomplete Leader
Further Reading
ARTICLES
What to Ask the Person in the Mirror Primal Leadership: The Hidden Driver of
by Robert S. Kaplan Great Performance
Harvard Business Review by Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis, and
January 2007 Annie McKee
Product no. R0701H Harvard Business Review
December 2001
Diagnosing your own strengths and weak-
Product no. R0111C
nesses isn’t easy, so you may seek feedback
from others in the organization. But the This article focuses on the relating capability.
higher you climb on the corporate ladder, Relating hinges on your ability to manage
the less likely people are to give you candid your own emotional state so it exerts a posi-
feedback. So ask yourself some specific hard tive impact on others’ emotions. Depressed,
questions. For example, to assess your sense- ruthless bosses create toxic organizations
making capability, ask, “Am I attuned to filled with negative underachievers. Upbeat,
business changes that may require shifts in inspirational leaders cultivate positive em-
how we run the company?” To assess your re- ployees who embrace and surmount even the
lating capability, ask, “How do I behave under toughest challenges. One way to manage
pressure?” To assess your visioning capability, your emotional state effectively is to repeat-
ask, “How often do I communicate a vision edly rehearse productive behaviors. For
and key priorities to achieve that vision?” example, Tom wanted to learn how to coach
rather than castigate struggling employees.
Discovering Your Authentic Leadership
Using his commuting time to visualize a
by Bill George, Peter Sims,
difficult meeting with one employee, he envi-
Andrew N. McLean, and Diana Mayer
sioned asking questions and listening. And he
Harvard Business Review
mentally rehearsed how he’d handle feeling
February 2007
impatient. The exercise prepared him to adopt
Product no. R0702H
new behaviors during the actual meeting.
No leader has all the answers, but authen-
tic leaders—those who generate long-term
results—have the self-awareness critical to
making the best use of their strengths and
capitalizing on others’ strengths. Denial can
be the greatest hurdle that leaders face in
becoming self-aware. Rather than falling vic-
tim to denial, authentic leaders work hard at
developing self-awareness through persistent
To Order and often courageous self-exploration. They
ask for, and listen to, honest feedback. And
For Harvard Business Review reprints and they use formal and informal support net-
subscriptions, call 800-988-0886 or works to help them stay grounded and lead
617-783-7500. Go to www.hbr.org integrated lives.
For customized and quantity orders of
Harvard Business Review article reprints,
call 617-783-7626, or e-mail
customizations@hbsp.harvard.edu
page 10
Purchased by: MARGARET HEFFERNAN MARGARET_HEFFERNAN@HOTMAIL.COM on December 13, 2013You can also read
