Cultural Leadership

Utilizing Perspectives

bjerome1 — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 15:50:22 +0000

Author and CEO B. Stewart has spent many years studying the science behind leadership and connectedness and has developed a unique perspective of our social tendencies. As he furthered his knowledge of the human brain, he began to realize that there are some areas that all perspectives have in common. Our view of the world is shaped by experience and we develop a lens through which we see and interpret incoming information. In order to become a true leader, one must understand the various lenses or paradigms that occupy an organization and then use those differences to leverage diversity. A great example of this model is a symphony. The conductor must utilize the different sounds and feelings of the various parts of the symphony in order to produce a powerful sound that is well received by the audience. If the conductor favors one part of the symphony, the sound will lose intricacy and become bland, only welcomed by those who like that tune. However, when all parts are combined and each has a chance to make their presence felt, the overall product is greatly enhanced.

As he states in his new book titled Cultural Leadership: The New Chemistry of Leading Differently, “Globalization is shifting the tectonic plates of politics, economics, and sociology. Today, in order to lead with an authoritative voice, one must first understand the voices, hearts, and minds of those listening. One must have a firm estimate on the most likely response to a leader’s words. In essence, one must possess a perspective on perspective.” This focus on the individuals being lead, rather than the leader, contradicts top-down leadership and replaces it with a more encompassing and collective form of leadership.

He adds, “This master perspective not only elongates influence in a localized sense, but creates a transportable, mobile chemistry that is invaluable, with immeasurable potential. The new cultural leader has the ability to spontaneously adjust, truncate and revise language. This skill is cultivated on purpose. This cultivation is birthed out of an intentional desire to understand multiple cultures, long before the need to connect arises.” As you can see, a heavy emphasis is placed on empathy and understanding, two of the most affective ways of uniting a group. Study these principals and more by reading the Introduction and First Chapter of this new must-have leadership guide.

Situational Leadership

bjerome1 — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 19:03:00 +0000

Leadership is a quality and characteristic that has fostered the development of several theories and models. What many of these models have in common is adaptability. Depending on the situation, leaders must be able to utilize the total talents of a group, placing people in positions for them to flourish and best help the team. Situational leadership, a theory developed by Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard, acknowledges that effective leadership is dependent on the task at hand, the skills of a group and the degree to which group members are motivated to follow. Effective situational leaders develop four different influence competencies (telling/directing, selling, delegating and participating) then apply different styles, depending on the type of assignment and the needs of the group.

Read this article from eHow titled Examples of Situational Leadership and see four ways that you can adapt your leadership style and make the most of your team.

Keeping Your Ideas Alive

bjerome1 — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 16:44:42 +0000

Much effort is put into creating new and innovative ways of changing organizational structure and increasing connectedness. This work is necessary and rewarding, yet often leaders are faced with nay-sayers and general disregard for the proposal.

One of the most common barriers to change that could result from such initiatives is fear. According to John Kotter of Harvard Business School (HBS), “The fear strategy is aimed at raising anxieties so that a thoughtful examination of a proposal is very difficult if not impossible. People begin to worry that implementing a genuinely good plan, pursuing a great idea, or making a needed vision a reality might be filled with frightening risks—even though that is not really the case”. If humans were only logical creatures, this would not be a problem. But we are not as influenced by logic as we would like to think.

In a recent article from (HBS), John Kotter examines our tendency to let fear dictate our success. In Four Ways to Kill a Good Idea, Kotter explores ways that we unknowingly limit our potential and hinder progress using the same tool: our brains. Read this article by clicking on the link and return to share some of your good ideas that have been “killed” due to fear of change.

The World Works Through Systems

bjerome1 — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 00:03:18 +0000

The word system originates from the Greek verb sunistanai, meaning to cause to stand together or to combine. Modern definitions include: a group of interacting, interrelated, or interdependent elements forming a complex whole; and, a functionally related group of elements. Complex systems are characterized by nonlinear dynamics (small changes can have BIG effects) and emergent properties (system attributes cannot be explained by the mere sum of the parts). These systems are called Complex Adaptive Systems (CASs). Examples include stock markets, gardens, human beings, weather systems, and human organizations. Diverse individual agents are massively entangled yet adaptable and resilient. CASs are capable of undergoing spontaneous self-organization and leaps in performance. From this point of view, we can begin to understand the dynamic paradigm required to allow an organization to flourish. Spend some time researching Complex Adaptive Systems and return to share your thoughts.

Cultural Leadership by B. Stewart

bjerome1 — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 19:24:02 +0000

“‘What is the best model of leadership in a new world of increasing diversity, complexity, and rapid change?’ After reviewing current leadership models and theories, I quickly realized the model of leadership I was looking for did not exist. This is the question that set me on a quest to develop a social model that supported my new theory of Cultural Leadership. Based on my research I came to the following conclusions:

“ A leader’s essential role is to create coalitions of followers to achieve organizational goals. How is this done? By deeply understanding the characteristics of followers, and reflecting or mirroring those characteristics back to followers in an inspiring, motivational, and culturally intelligent way. Once again, to be culturally relevant, successful leaders must know: how culture is created, it’s essential components, and how to sustain it. And, most importantly, they must know how to transport this skill from one cultural domain to another without losing effectiveness.

These findings and more importantly, how to develop, strengthen, and maintain these essential components of leadership provide the material for a great book. From the justification of a new model of leadership to the resulting Cultural Leader, I outline scientifically supported steps toward achieving leadership greatness. Learn more about this new chemistry and Read the Introduction for free by clicking here.

After you have reviewed the book description, read the Introduction or finished the book, share with us your reactions and plans moving forward. We are interested to hear your take on Cultural Leadership: The New Chemistry of Leading Differently.

From Push to Pull

bjerome1 — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 17:30:46 +0000

Marketers have increasingly recognized that their world has been changing from “push” to “pull.” Traditionally, they could push advertising and other marketing content toward potential customers to tout new products or services. Now, consumers have grown accustomed to pulling that information in for themselves by, for instance, surfing the Web. And that fundamental shift from push to pull is not limited to marketing; it’s occurring in all aspects of business, from human resources to research and development. The question: Does your leadership provide dynamic, meaningful material for users to “pull” in? In other words, does the information provided by the organization match its recipients? To answer this question, check out this article from MIT Sloan and compare your organizational structure to the new suggestions research is providing. When you return, give us feedback on ways that you can allow employees and customers to pull in vital information by making it relatable to a diverse group of interests.

How Cultural Factors Affect Leadership

bjerome1 — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 16:30:15 +0000

In 1993, Robert J. House launched a revolutionary study titles The Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness Research Program (GLOBE) to test leadershipprincipals in various cultures. The results of these studies has provided much of the information used to make organizational decisions on leadership. What the GLOBE studies focus on is universals in leadership and cultural variations in the way leadership is perceived. In the second phase of this effort, researchers found that there were universally endorsed characteristics of leaders. In addition, the study found that there were many universal attributes considered detrimental to leadership and the overall health of an organization. Some of the universally accepted characteristics of outstanding leadership were determined to be foresight, a willingness to encourage colleagues and staff, being a confidence builder, a dynamic presence, and a positive attitude. Other characteristics were determined to be contingent on the particular culture where they were displayed. These included risk taking, charisma, and being a visionary. The GLOBE studies continue to provide users with information from a global perspective and prove to be a vital tool when addressing the needs of a global organization. Read a brief introduction to these studies by clicking the link below. When you have finished, share with us your stories of leadership in different areas and what characteristics you believe to be universal to all leaders.

Link: http://www.grovewell.com/pub-GLOBE-intro.html

How Disconnecting Can Help Us Reconnect

bjerome1 — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 16:21:13 +0000

In today’s world, much of our communication is done through some digital process. An interview of author William Powers, we learn how he discovered that giving up or relaxing our dependency on electronic communication, we can reconnect with our lives. As you watch, think about how much time you spend communicating digitally and what it has caused you leave behind. We become walled in and separated from a connected world, often failing to communicate with anyone outside of our contact list. This trend takes us further apart from one another, often creating isolated groups with limited diversity of thought. Watch this interesting interview and then return and post your comments on our Cultural Leadership Blog.

Link: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/science/july-dec10/hamlets_08-16.html

Networks…the Building Blocks for Everything…

bjerome1 — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 19:50:31 +0000

“The war in Iraq will always be remembered for the failures of intelligence that preceded it and the insurgency that bedeviled coalition forces long after President George W. Bush declared an end to major combat operations. Amid all that disaster, the capture of Saddam Hussein has become a forgotten success story. It’s an accomplishment that wasn’t inevitable. In a five-part series that begins today, I’ll explain how a handful of innovative American soldiers used the same theories that underpin Facebook to hunt down Saddam Hussein. I’ll also look at how this hunt was a departure in strategy for the military, why its techniques aren’t deployed more often, and why social-networking theory hasn’t helped us nab Osama Bin Laden.”

The above quote was taken from an indepth article in Slate magazine. In the 5 part article the author recounts how Sadam was captured, due in large part by using the the theories form the science of networks.

The article is a fatanstic look at the utility of network science and thinking. Networks underlie everything that there is and in many instances hold the key to a better understanding of our world.

Read the article from the link below and think about how you can apply some of the insights illustrated in the article to your own situation at work, home, or in your community.

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http://www.slate.com/id/2245228/

Getting your message out is as much about emotion as it is about logic..

bjerome1 — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:13:48 +0000

There was an interesting article in the Washington Post about why President Obama is having such a hard time getting his message out about his healthcare proosal. Regardless, of your politics you should be able to appreciate the President’s difficulty in connecting with the groups not predisposed to agree with him on many policy issues. So, as leaders how do we get those folks who are not ardent supporters of our direction to go along with us anyway? Well, we know this for certain. Logic alone will not get it done.

The Washington Post article highlights the findings of the latest book by the Heath brothers. The book is called, “Switch” and it talks about change and why it is so hard to get people to change. Their major finding? You have to appeal to the emotions of the group you are trying to persuade and ensure that your message is something they can identify with. Even better is something that they have been through themselves.

Why are emotions so critical? Because, it is how our brain works as a result of natural selection.

Emotions help us decide which of the vast pools of information that we are bombarded with on a daily basis is important and critical to our well-being. That’s why change programs which touch people emotionally are the ones that are successful.

What the Heath’s suggest in the article is that the President would be far better served to not be so detailed in his appeal to citizens who are not his natural constituents. And instead provide emotional and simple appeals to get these groups onboard.

The act of Influence is one of the 5 Acts that a succesful cultural leader must master. The president needs to bone up on his storytelling skills if he wants to bring the public along on his healthcare proposal.

Read the Washington Post article by clicking on the link below…

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/25/AR2010022504847.html