Leadership Authenticity: Aligning Words with Values

Strong relationships are all about authenticity.  The gap between what you say and what you do means all the difference between a trusting, positive, healthy relationship and a stagnant, putrid, festering one.  The analogies between individuals’ relationships and leader-follower relationships is often uncanny.

Too many companies place an over-reliance on spinning their image in a positive light, while their leadership practices and decisions increasingly betrays the underlying truth about the values of the organization.  Early in the dating game, people tend to do the same thing.  This may be one reason people feel so duped when they begin to realize who the real person is under the superhero cape or sequestered in a company’s executive suite.

When companies paint themselves as benevolent employers, but fail to fulfill their end of the social-economic contract, their reputations are quickly sullied.  Potential employers quickly turn from eager suitors to reluctant skeptics, only willing to take a job as a last resort.  That’s hardly an enviable situation for any organization, and typically spells the begin of the escalating plunge into obscurity.

So, why is it so hard for organizations to be authentic with employees?  It’s not a message well received by many an executive group, but the answer is quite simple.  Authentic leadership is easy if actions align with executive values.  If that alignment is lacking, it’s quickly and painfully obvious.  The actions and policies of the organization will not match up with the expressed goals.

Some examples may be helpful…..

• If you have a dedicated talent management unit in your organization, but fail to manage talent in a way that retains and develops your best and brightest, employees will rightfully accuse you of being inauthentic.

• If you tout the competitive advantages of your sales unit, but support sales management at the expense of your actual sales people, you will lose credibility with your company’s life blood.

• If you claim the need for layoffs and expense reductions, yet executive bonuses remain at the six and seven figure levels, executive commitment to the “greater good” will surely be questioned (and rightfully so).

Leadership authenticity is easy to achieve.  So much so, that’s it’s baffling when it is lacking in an organization.  It’s not about promising great things to customers and employees.  It’s not about being “good” to employees.  It’s simply about ensuring your words match your actions.  Even if your actions are perceived to be negative or painful given the current economic situations, if they match the words and messages you communicate, you will always be viewed as authentic.  Individuals may disagree with your course of action, but they will respect you for matching your leadership direction with your values.

Leadership direction almost always matches underlying values.  It’s just that the underlying values don’t always mirror value statements.

Anti-Innovation Villains in Organizations

“In 2012, we’re going to be more innovative,” the executive proclaimed, his excitement seemingly brought about by the chance to use this buzzword in conversation.

 

The irony of such blanket statements lies in the repeated flaunting of innovation as a business strategy to be grasped and wielded like a two-handed sword.

 

First, by its very definition, innovation implies a novel idea or method.  So, jumping onto the “innovation bandwagon” is, in fact, not innovative.  And second, innovation is less a strategy than a culture.  Unless leaders are committed to undertaking a cultural revolution in their workplaces, innovation simply becomes the trend du jour, destined to both fail and to further undermine the faith of the workers toward leadership.

 

Rather than unveil a corporate strategy to become “more innovative,” leaders would be better served to simply and quietly take decisive steps toward cultural change.  Look to the underlying organizational norms that inhibit innovative behaviors and attitudes.  Among these, the three most common “anti-innovation” villains include:

 

Distrust (a.k.a., lack of accountability) – If those on the bottom rung do not believe in the actions, motivations, or values of those at the top of the organization, they will not be courageous in seeking out new ways of doing things.  Fix the “say-do gap” in your leadership structure as a first step in any cultural revolution.

 

Employee stagnation (a.k.a. lack of development) – Although development dollars are targeted among the first round of budgetary battles in many companies, those who seek to be truly innovative (in a transformationally competitive way) do the exact opposite.  They invest (and heavily) in the development of their workforce.  They find ways to fund, reward, and encourage employee development at all costs (no pun intended).

 

Transactional vs Transformational Leadership practices – If your organizational is not empowering its employees, driving decision making to the lowest possible level, and moving beyond a quid pro quo exchange of pay for hours worked (just because they are salaried does not mean you avoid this implied exchange system), you are limiting the extent to which your culture will innovate.  Remove barriers to decision making.  Trust in the abilities of the employees you hired (or replace them with ones you DO trust).  Encourage unconventional thinking and problem solving.  And recognize and reward those who do take risks.

 

Clearly, these three villains are not the only hindrances to innovation.  But they stand out as some of the most common barriers to the cultural change necessary for companies to move forward.  So, stop viewing innovation as a strategy.  Stop the proclamations of intent.  And look to making changes that will build sustained financial competitiveness and a truly engaged workforce.

 

Culture drives strategy.  Don’t forget that!