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Third Generation Leadership and inappropriate behaviour

Written by: Douglas Long

Article Overview: By focusing on my performance and explaining difficulties I may be having in reaching my performance goals the emphasis moves away from how “the other” should change to how “the other” can help me achieve whatever it is I am supposed to achieve. I can use a Third Generation Leadership approach in my interaction with him or her or “them”. Now it is an easy step for me to set out what support I need or would like from “the other” in order for me to perform.

Third Generation Leadership and inappropriate behaviour

Lois was appointed CEO of an organisation employing 680 people and with annual turnover in excess of $100 million. Patricia, the General Manager Operations, had been an internal applicant for the CEO's role but she was fully prepared to remain in her existing role when Lois was appointed. Lois has found Patricia to be a tireless worker who produces results.

After about a year of getting to organisation intimately, Lois decided that the culture of the organisation needed changing. Her observations showed clearly that there was room for improvement in all areas. Lois was supported in this by the Chairman and Board.

Without knowing about Third Generation Leadership, Lois embarked on a program to make the organisation more collegial and inclusive. One of her first symbolic changes was to operate an open door policy in which any employee could access her easily. To facilitate this she moved her executive assistant to an office adjoining the CEO's office. The effect of this was to make it possible for anyone entering the executive level to immediately see whether or not Lois was available. This was a marked contrast from the approach taken by previous CEO's and it soon became clear that the shift was noticed and appreciated by most staff. Lois added to this by being very active in moving around the organisation and no-one was quite sure when she would turn up and chat with them. Initially there was suspicion and apprehension about these visits but by part way through her second year suspicion had gone; Lois was widely respected and she was warmly welcomed no matter where she went.

This open door policy and these visits did not mean that Lois tried to interfere in the work done by her executives and she was always careful to ensure that the executive team was fully in the loop as to what she was doing. When she became aware of matters requiring attention Lois was meticulous in ensuring that the appropriate channels were used to address them. However it had quickly become apparent to everyone that Lois knew exactly what was going on across the organisation. This meant that reports could no longer gloss over anything in order to make any particular person or group look either "good' or "bad".

On the surface, Patricia was quite comfortable with this. She supported Lois' initiatives for training everyone in the new approach and was enthusiastic about the changes when talking with directors, fellow executives and people both within and outside of the company. However clearly she was experiencing some internal conflict and this showed in her micro-managing of the areas under her charge. Where Lois wanted to encourage decision making at the lowest possible level and to encourage an atmosphere of innovation, Patricia wanted to know every last detail of everything in order to ensure that there was nothing Lois might learn that wasn't already known to Patricia. No significant decision could be made without first consulting Patricia. In addition Patricia moved to appoint to key roles only people who would support her and who would report to her everything that was happening. The result was a steady decline in respect for Patricia and the development of a "don't let Patricia or her spies know about this" culture from her reports.

Lois became increasingly worried about this. She valued Patricia's contribution and wanted her to stay with the organisation but the situation couldn't be allowed to continue. Lois said to me, "how can I deal with someone who doesn't seem to really want to make the shift to a new culture?"

This issue of reluctance to change is probably the most common matter encountered in any change initiative. There are two key things to remember when dealing with it:

• Remember, people don't "have" to change. Ultimately the decision as to whether or not a person wants to develop a new world view is a choice that only each individual can make for him or herself.
• Remember, too, that willingness to change behaviour is very difficult when a person has been successful with behaviours that are no longer appropriate.

I have made the point before that resistance to change comes out of the brain's red zone area of control. Clearly Patricia, no matter how much she tried to support a "blue zone" approach, found that she was dominated by her red zone. It is in this understanding of the brain's area of control that we find the clues to dealing with people who appear to white ant the change process.

When you are "the boss" it's not too difficult. The starting point with Patricia was to revisit the "blue zone - red zone" concept and this was followed by cognitive coaching. Given the right environment and appropriate support, Patricia was able to move to the new approach.

But how does one deal with the situation when it is a peer, your boss, or the overall organisational culture that fails to see and/or support a Third Generation Leadership approach? This becomes a test of one's commitment to a Third Generation Leadership world. It is also where much of the learning from the leadership research of the 20^th century comes in to play.

From 20^th century research we know that any person can lead from any position in any organisation. Even in a family, how often do children take the lead in getting parents to do what the child wants? Leadership is not dependent upon one's place in a hierarchy. It is this fact that enables informal organisational structures to be so influential in affecting organisational culture and performance. The 20^th century also taught us that, at its core, leadership is the generic concept of influence. These two pieces of knowledge converge when we lack positional power but we need to deal with people who are slow to enter Third Generation Leadership world and/or who oppose the development of a Third Generation Leadership world.

The starting point is to focus on my behaviour rather than to focus on the behaviour of the other person - to focus on my performance, not theirs

For many years counsellors have known the strength of "I" statements - those statements which let others know how "I" am feeling or concerns "I" may have. These are statements which remove threat and encourage all parties to move into the blue zone.You need to create a safe zone before development can commence. "I" statements help create this safe zone in which discussion can take place without fear. In this environment positive resolution of an issue becomes possible.

By focusing on my performance and explaining difficulties I may be having in reaching my performance goals the emphasis moves away from how "the other" should change to how "the other" can help me achieve whatever it is I am supposed to achieve. After all, I cannot control whether or not "the other" adopts a Third Generation Leadership approach - but I can use a Third Generation Leadership approach in my interaction with him or her or "them". Now it is an easy step for me to set out what support I need or would like from "the other" in order for me to perform.

When this is done, influencing can start. Working out of my own blue zone and sharing my concerns about my performance I open the door for genuine dialogue. Through applying the techniquesof Powerful Questioning, Observational Listening, and Optimistic Listening, I show respect for the other person and simultaneously I show both that they are being listened to, and that I have belief in the other person. Such behaviour from me optimises the probability that the other person will either move to or remain in their blue zone.

Again, however, it is essential to always remember:

• people don't "have" to change. Ultimately the decision as to whether or not a person wants to develop a new world view is a choice that only each individual can make for him or herself, and
• that willingness to change behaviour is very difficult when a person has been successful with behaviours that are no longer appropriate.

Accordingly dealing with those who are reluctant to change may take quite a long time. And that is true no matter what the context in which we are trying to exercise leadership.

Related Articles
  Trust in a New Age
  Catch Someone Doing Something Right
  A Behaviour Change Model
  Avoiding Inappropriate Interview Questions
  Dealing With Conflicts

Article Tags: inappropriate behaviour, Observational Listening, Optimistic Listeningcounselling, performance goals, Powerful Questioning, third generation leadership



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