Leadership in a Crisis

What great leaders do...

In a Crisis people need someone to guide and support them. To indicate the way forward

This is what Leaders do !

In the army it is no different if a mission goes wrong people look up to their Leaders. According to Army general Stanley McChrystal in a crisis it becomes clear who is meant to be a leader and who is just not. A leader has to take responsibility for his actions and be honest about them. Furthermore the support of people should be a priority. Wether the set of value a leader praised in good times are held in bad times defines a Leader.

A real life example for great Leadership is the New York Mayor Rudy Giuliany. On the day of the 9/11 incidents Giuliany supported his people by being available 24/7. He vocalized his grief and apologize in various venues and was seen helping on the streets. Giuliany exhibited great leadership with support and honesty towards all his peers. (Jordan-Meyer.jane.2012)

A sample for bad business leadership in a crisis ?

Sure! Remember when the BP oil spill in the Mexico gulf happened ? That can be identified as a environmental crisis as well as a business crisis for BP. Now what did chief executive Tony Hayward do ? He apparently went on a sailing trip with his son. Well, here you go with a sample of non existing leadership.In case you want to know more about this i found a great article on the subject you can find the link below in the sources.

I created a little video on how to lead through a crisis given 4 little tips based on the leadership concept of Stanley McChrystal

Jordan-Meyer.jane.2012.Appearance do matter: Leadership in a crisis. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.lib.fontys.nl/doi/10.1002/ltl.20044/abstract(Accessed.18.05.2016)

Image 1. https://leadershipcafedotorg.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/crisis-management.jpg

image2 :http://sarahrobbins.com/wp-content/uploads/2.001.jpg

Leading by example

Easy as that...

First think about the following questions

As a leader of any sorts, what do you expect of your people? In which way should they behave and most importantly what are the most important values you want them to share?

As you have got an answer, ask yourself if you are able to fulfill those expectations constantly yourself.

Because every move you make, every step you take is being watched by your team even though you may not be aware of it. A leader is responsible for acting up exactly to what he expects of others. The concept of leadership by example is that a leader sets an example in various kind of situations according to the shared values.

Why would anyone follow a leader who doesn't even follows his own values. Leadership by example  really distinguishes between a good leader and a manager. Leaders make the choice of inspiring people to want what they want. Henceforth, leaders attracted followers but this fellowship has to be earned and can just as quickly be lost.

This concept is also what general McChrystal described as on of his leadership tangibles the actions a leader takes define him and his team. Henceforth, this very basic concept which is actually common sense is of great importance to leaders.

How simple it is ?

Usually leading by example starts very early on for one parents teaching their children what do and what they are not allowed to do. If you teach a five year old not to use swear words but you use the F-word on a regular basis. How big is the chance that the five year old will not repeat it ?

Very slim ! This is teaching by example. You set a bad sample your team might follow the bad manner or you undercut your own leadership.

Additionally, it is beneficial for leaders to get their hands dirty every now and than. The saying goes action speak louder than words and that can be taken word for word in all leadership positions. General McChrystal for example joins his team on missions to define him as a person but also to earn trust in respect.

Image 1: https://nl.pinterest.com/pin/304415256041169332/
Image 2:http://www.prettydesigns.com/32-leadership-quotes-for-leaders/

The Power of Inclusiveness

Inclusiveness

Imagine you love playing football unfortunately you are no good. For the last two years on game day instead of playing the field you were sitting on the bench . How much does it get to you when your team looses?

Probably, not so much, right?


Here is why, you are not as invested as you would be when you were able to actually play.

Same goes for Businesses. A leader who is not able to make his team feel invested will never achieve as positive results as he probably  would when they were. If one feels included and as a part of something it is often proved that the motivation to work and work harder is higher.Hence, the leaders mission becomes the teams mission.

This is also how the army works. All soldiers fight for their county and the freedom of their people. Military missions are often a lot more powerful and easier to determine than business mission statements. Nevertheless, they are of great important to express the company goals and allow higher employee engagement.

Another way to achieve team investment is to share information and include them in decisions. Inclusiveness even in tiny business decision as for example consultancy on a decision lead to the feeling of involvement. Thus, motivation to achieve the shared mission is accomplished.





This Article is again based on Stanley McChrystals theory mixed with personal situational analysis.

Image1:https://res.cloudinary.com/people-matters/image/upload/w_624,h_351,c_scale/v1393502963/3904.jpg
Image2:https://ccwebcontent.blob.core.windows.net/resources/blobs/images/870x489/artwork-powerofinclusivenesscover.png

Training to create trust

Why does the military have the ability
to create that powerful trust relationships?

Training?Trust? Relationships?

Within the basic training of the military trainees are housed in six to ten bed rooms rules and regulations regarding housecleaning deadlines and tidiness are very strict.Work starts around six and ends after approximately 10 hours.Included in training are fully equipped  hikes, body conditioning and theory lessons. The training is utilized to bring soldiers to their limits on a daily basis.



The bond that is created through housing conditions and training is unmeasurably strong. The trainees  go through hell and back together relying only on each other . Thus, their relationship or bond is not based on personal preference but trust and loyalty. This team conditioning is also what enables soldiers to risk their life for each other as they build a trust that to outsiders is unimaginable. Henceforth, the dynamic of military teams.



Businesses are not able to recreate the dynamic of the military as employee training on this basis is just not possible in todays society. Nevertheless there are training facilities that allow business to complete a military team training with their employees. Which could be a nice team building exercise.









This blog post is written under the assumption that the basic training idea within different countries is similar.The source for information is a personal communication with a member of the mountain infantry.

The first Intangible

The importance of personal interaction

Interaction is defined as

reciprocal action, effect, or influence 

by the dictionary.

Therefore, personal interaction is the effect or influence one has on others.

According to United States Army general Stanley McChrystal personal interaction is one of the most important intangibles that make a great leader.

Imagine someone for example a manager trying to create a good work force. But, he is not interested in building personal relationships.

Is the manager as effective as he could be? Without the knowledge of interpersonal work-relationships or abilities? What about certain personal hobbies that could be beneficial to a project or personal networks of team members. Wouldn't the manager benefit more from caring about personal interactions?

According to Cisco an award winning networking academy that undertook a study of human behavior and the barriers to effective collaborations, came to the conclusion that collaboration is grounded in human interaction and relationships.(Forbes.2013)

Concluding, scientists as well as an army general agree on the importance of personal interactions. Henceforth, one can say that this part of the army concept is adaptable by businesses.

In order, to make this topic even clearer I created a little cartoon that you can find just above.

All theory is based on the concept of United States Army general Stanley McChrystal.

Forbes.Editor.2013 „Why Personal Interaction Drives Innovation and Collaboration „http://www.forbes.com/sites/skollworldforum/2013/04/09/why-personal-interaction-drives-innovation-and-collaboration/#ca6749865dd3

McChrystal.Stanley.2012„Leadership is a choice“ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7DzQWjXKFI

Getting started

Leadership

Getting started

Have you ever wondered why, soldiers are so extremely committed, not only to the army but also to their fellow mates? And imagined what business would be like if every employee was that committed to their workplace?

Within this Blog I am going to investigate the

leadership style of the army. And hopefully come to a conclusion on whether business leaders are able to adapt the army concept. And therefore are able to create a team loyal and trusting comparable to the dynamics of an Army Team.

Furthermore, this blog will record changes in my personal point of view as well as aspects Business School teaches differently.

If this is a topic you are interested in please leave a comment and keep on following my blog :D