Mission Critical Principles

...common leadership threads included an exceptional ability to define a compelling vision for change, devise a strategy for achieving it, and honor those followers who were being asked to achieve it.

Multiple sources affirm the importance of the 15 core principles, including studies of the qualities of leadership by academic investigators, reviews of leadership development programs among well-established organizations, consideration of what leaders report has served them well.   Here is a brief sampling of of sources for principles 1 (Articulate a Vision), 2 (Think and Act Strategically), and 3 (Honor the Room).

Two well-informed observers, educator Howard Gardner and researcher Emma Laskin, explored historical sources on twentieth-century luminaries ranging from Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi to Margaret Thatcher and George C. Marshall, and concluded that their common leadership threads included an exceptional ability to define a compelling vision for change, devise a strategy for achieving it, and honor those followers who were being asked to achieve it.

ACTION POINT: Define your vision and devise the strategy to achieve it and then honor those that embrace it.

Addressing Skill Shortages

It is predicted that talent shortages will return over the long term

An additional concern is the growing shortage of individuals with specific skills required in the distribution business.  It is predicted that talent shortages will return over the long term and some of the hardest jobs to fill include:

• Skilled trades
• Sales representatives
• Engineering, technical, operations, or maintenance technicians
• Truck drivers
• Engineers
• Customer service representatives

ACTION POINT: Competition for people with these and other desirable skills will be intense, with a wide range of companies looking to bolster their analytical capabilities, their IT-related skills, and their business acumen.

Shifting Workforce Demographics

A new generation of employees entering the workforce brings a very different set of expectations in terms of available technology, communication styles, compensations plans, available benefits, and advancement opportunities.  Striking a balance between new and existing employees will require agility and flexibility.

In addition to acquiring new skills and raising the overall profile of human capital, companies must deal with new opportunities and challenges brought about by the country's changing demographic makeup and trends within the distribution industry itself.  Some specific trends to consider are:

• The graying of the workforce.  As an increasing number of knowledgeable and seasoned employees near retirement age, distributors face the potential loss of valuable relationships, product knowledge, and market insights.
• Managing a new generation of employees. A new generation of employees entering the workforce brings a very different set of expectations in terms of available technology, communication styles, compensations plans, available benefits, and advancement opportunities.  Striking a balance between new and existing employees will require agility and flexibility.
• New kinds of workers.  A growing number of ex-service personnel (from the Army, Navy, Air Force, and so on) are entering or re-entering the workforce--bringing with them unique leadership, teamwork, and management skills as well as insights about critical areas such as logistics, communications, information technology and collaboration.
• Gender dynamics. More women are entering the distribution workforce--assuming leadership roles and bringing a new dynamic to what was traditionally a male dominated industry.
• Ownership and management succession at many distributors.  This is exacerbated by the limited interest of some second-and third- generation owners to assume the responsibility of running the family business (especially after an exceptionally challenging economic environment and an extended period of uncertainty ahead.)

ACTION POINT: Understand the challenges and embrace the opportunities you are facing with the workforce of today.

Human Capital

over the next five years, the skills needed to support these attributes will be very different from what they were even three years ago.

Going forward, there are numerous factors that distributors of all types must take into account when developing their human capital strength, including competing for individuals with high-value skills and capabilities.  Wholesaler-distributors should assess and prioritize each of these issues in the context of driving business performance.

Technologies such as e-commerce, e-mail, and electronic data interchange (EDI) play an increasingly important role in facilitating and automating communication and transactions.  Yet for the most part distribution remains a relationship driven industry.  Face-to-face transactions and interactions continue to play an important and differentiating role in this industry.  Employers, customers, and suppliers place a high value on trust, personal connections, and ongoing relationships.  However, over the next five years, the skills needed to support these attributes will be very different from what they were even three years ago.

ACTION POINT: The ability to think analytically, deal with more ambiguity and uncertainty, embrace complexity, and communicate value and service (in addition to price and product) will be essential for both customer-facing and internal personnel.

The Leaders Checklist

Friday's DD's for the near term future will be dedicated to the topic of leadership based on Michael Useem's recently published book, The Leaders Checklist.  

The Leaders Checklist is composed of 15 core principles applicable to most leaders, in most endeavors, in most circumstances.  A checklist is only as good as its underlying foundation, and the foundation is only as solid as the materials and engineering that go into it.

From development work with hundreds of managers and executives in leadership programs in Asia, Europe, North American and South America, from research interviews with many managers in the United States and abroad, and from witnessing managers  facing a range of critical moments, the Leaders Checklist points to a core of 15 mission-critical leadership principles that vary surprisingly little between companies or countries.

These principles constitute the vital foundation of universally applicable Leaders Checklist.

1. Articulate a Vision.  Formulate a clear and persuasive vision and communicate it to all members of the enterprise.
2. Think and Act Strategically.  Set forth a pragmatic strategy for achieving that vision both short and long-term, and ensure that it is widely understood; consider all the players, and anticipate reactions and resistance before they are manifest.
3. Honor the Room.  Frequently express your confidence and support for those who work with and for you.
4. Take Charge. Embrace a bias for action, or taking responsibility even if it is not formally delegated, particularly if you are well positioned to make a difference.
5. Act Decisively.  Make good and timely decision and ensure that they are executed.
6. Communicate Persuasively.  Communicate in ways that people will not forget; simplicity and clarity of expression help.
7. Motivate the Troops.  Appreciate the distinctive intentions that people bring, and then build on those diverse motives to draw the best from each.  
8. Embrace the Front Lines. Delegate authority except for strategic decisions, and stay close to those most directly engaged with the work of the enterprise. 
9. Build Leadership in Others.  Develop leadership throughout the organization.
10. Manage Relations.  Build enduring personal ties with those who look to you, and work to harness the feelings and passions of the workplace.
11. Identify Personal Implication.  Help everybody appreciate the impact that the vision and strategy are likely to have on their own work and future with the firm.
12. Convey Your Character.  Through gesture, commentary, and accounts, ensure that others appreciate that you are a person of integrity. 
13. Dampen Over-Optimism.  Counter the hubris of success, focus attention on latent threats and unresolved problems, and protect against the tendency for managers to engage in unwarranted risk.
14. Build a Diverse Top Team.  Leaders need to take final responsibility, but leadership is also a team sport best played with an able roster of those collectively capable of resolving all the key challenges. 
15. Place Common Interest First.  In setting strategy, communicate vision, and reaching decisions, common purpose comes first, personal self-interest last.

ACTION POINT:  Print the list and refer to it often.