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This warning came from Bob Gandossy, Leadership Consulting Practice Leader for Hewitt Associates, speaking in the session ‘Developing a New Standard of Leadership’. “In today’s world you can’t afford to leave growing leaders to chance. The world is too complex, too fast, too global and too diverse,” he added.
Yvan Legris, Global Consulting President for Hewitt agreed: “At a time like this conventional thinking is not enough,” he said. “HR needs to make sure they have the right leadership to bring people together in a way that encourages the kind of collective thinking that can challenge convention.”
As part of the session, Bob shared some of the secrets from Hewitt’s 2007 Top Companies for Leaders research - the most comprehensive research on leadership in the market today. Since its inception in 2002, the study has examined how organisations choose and develop leaders, and the links between leadership practices and financial results.
Four leadership disciplines
In the 2007 Top Companies for Leaders research, Hewitt identified four leadership disciplines which separate the 2007 Top Companies for Leaders from the rest. Bob explained how these disciplines serve as the differentiating ‘truths’ for what it takes to be a great company for leaders, and together constitute a winning leadership ‘culture’. They include:
1. Leaders lead the way
Without the passionate and visible commitment of senior leaders, developing great leaders is not possible. This may seem obvious but there is a difference between what many leaders say and what the leaders at Top Companies actually do. The latter devotes a significant amount of time to this, approaching it in a systematic way.
2. They have a maniacal focus on talent
They believe that talent is their lifeblood and will not give up on hiring great talent whatever the economic circumstances may be. They want people that fit with their organisation and they know exactly what qualities they are looking for.
3. They use practical and aligned programmes and practices
Executives often say ‘people don’t get it, they don’t know what matters’. But leaders have to realise that they must lead by example. If you don’t pay attention to talent, customers or building capability, and approach it in a defined, systematic way, neither will your people. It is essential to make the value proposition clear.
4. They have passed the tipping point
The first three points are the entry ticket to becoming a top company for leadership, but this one comes over time. This is about leadership becoming part of a company’s DNA, part of its identity and the way it operates. At the tipping point, leadership development is no longer separated from operating the business and it becomes more disciplined. It is a way of life and companies become more proactive in developing a leadership brand.
Two successful organisations identified as European Top Companies for Leaders in 2007 - Lufthansa and BBVA - joined Bob to describe how their companies are breaking the mould to deliver leaders with all the attributes necessary to keep their organisations at the top of their field.
“Airlines don’t allow waste: they must be very slim and very fast,” commented Dr Michael Christ of Lufthansa: “At Lufthansa, one of the best ways that leadership supports HR is by asking the right questions. HR has to supply clear answers to the business and these can only be produced with a talent management structure and processes that are compatible worldwide and allow information sharing.” “Leadership must give the vision and understanding to inspire,” he added. “Creativity and innovation must never be allowed to die.”
Juan Ignacio Apoita of BBVA underlined the importance of efficient communication and succession planning processes: “Companies can no longer be based on the leadership of one person,” he explained. “We need to build leaders and provide the tools and support they need to lead and manage teams so that they can deliver on corporate strategy.” Consistency and working towards shared goals are also important: “Every year we assess the skills of all our managers and compare them with the standards defined by corporate strategy,” he added.
Sharing his perspective on how to transform corporate challenges into new competitive advantages, Matthew Barrett, former CEO of Barclays, said: “People need to trust their leadership and believe that they genuinely care about them and their welfare. Good communication must convince both their heads and their hearts. While they have to understand that our raison d’être is to maximise shareholder value we must also convince them that success will bring enormous pride in themselves, their colleagues and the company’s brand. I wanted my employees to see work not as a necessary evil but as a source of great satisfaction.”
About the Top Companies for Leaders study
This is the fourth time that Hewitt has conducted the Top Companies for Leaders study. The first two studies inspired the book Leading the Way – now translated into multiple languages. For the first time in 2007, this was a truly global study – conducted in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. The Top Companies for Leaders study was conducted by Hewitt in partnership with Fortune and RBL and published in Fortune Magazine (1 October 2007 issue). |
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