Leadership

Community

Last weekend my wife Janet and I visited many studios in the Art Harvest Studio Tour of Yamhill County. We spent Saturday in McMinnville, and Sunday in the Sheridan area. At each location, we were able to engage the artist(s) in dialogue. We learned a little of their history; we learned a little about their house or studio (some of which date to the early 1900s). We sampled the munchies they provided, from crackers and cheese to chocolate chip cookies to home-smoked ribs.

What differentiated this experience from a typical art show is that we were participating in building community. As these artists share their stories, there is connection, one human to another. Not a blinding flash or loud cymbals – just two people connecting. It is simple, quiet, effortless, even unobtrusive. Sort of like breathing. And in its effortlessness, its unobtrusiveness, it is profound, even sacred. Can something so quiet, so easy, so natural, be the glue that holds society together? I think the answer is “yes”. It is the sharing, one on one, that creates connection, that is the foundation of community. Community is neither you nor me. It is “us” – the connection. That easy, profound, natural connection.

And yes, this applies directly to the world of commerce as well. People appreciate being treated as persons of worth, rather than a means to a transaction. In commerce, just like the rest of our lives, people want to be connected, to be in community.

I’d appreciate feedback. You can post it here, or e-mail me at gary@portlandconsultinggroup.com

Gary Langenwalter

3 a.m. and Can’t Sleep

One of the lesser-appreciated costs of leadership is waking up at 3 a.m. and not being able to get back to sleep, because you’re trying to figure out a way forward where there are no decent guidelines. Sometimes it seems like there are no answers at all, but your organization can’t stay where it is! Other times, each alternative has a huge downside. Still other times (but much more rare, in my experience) is the choice between good alternatives.

So, what keeps you awake at night? Is it:

· Strategy – where to take your company? What new products and services to offer? Which current products and services to phase out?

· People – how to find and motivate and keep them?

· Finance – where to get money for expansion?

· Sales – how to increase? How to recover from the loss of a major customer? How to find customers who are willing to pay enough for your products or services?

· Expenses – how to cut?

· Competition – what they’re planning next (or what they’re already doing), and how to counter it?

· Customers – how to deal with them? How to attract and retain the customers you really want?

· Suppliers – how to deal with them? How to attract and retain the suppliers you really want?

· Regulations, red tape, other government issues?

· Other?

I hope you’ll reply to this posting, or e-mail me at gary

Gary Langenwalter 971-221-8155

When You’re in a River of Flaming Shit

When I was the IT Director of Faultless Caster Corporation in Evansville, Indiana, I led a cultural transformation by implementing a new enterprise (ERP) system. About ¾ through the implementation, it felt like we were being nibbled to death by a school of rubber-toothed piranhas, and frustration was climbing to dangerous levels. In the weekly Steering Committee meeting, the VP of Sales and Marketing asked the inevitable question: “Hey, I’m not sure this is a good idea. Why don’t we just go back to the old system?” The CEO replied, “When you’re in the middle of a river of flaming shit, you gotta keep paddling toward the other side.”

We kept paddling, the new system came live (only a couple weeks late), and paid itself back in a year with increased sales, reduced costs, etc., etc., etc.

I draw on this and comparable experiences when I find myself in a similar situation. That’s when I get really “persistent” and continue paddling toward the other side. (Other people are mule-headed and stubborn, I’m goal-oriented and persistent.)

Have you ever been in the middle of a river of flaming shit? I’d enjoy hearing your story. I’ll buy the coffee.

Gary Langenwalter, 971-221-8155

gary@portlandconsultinggroup.com

Humble bosses are best

One more study has confirmed that humble bosses are best. Actually, the word “boss” says it all. The most effective leaders are not “bosses” per se, but leaders who empower and energize those who work with them. A study from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University supports this. The researchers interviewed CEOs of 63 private companies in China, plus about 1000 managers who work for them. They concluded that humble bosses are strong bosses. Their research corroborates a book by Sipe and Frick, The Seven Pillars of Servant Leadership, which showed that companies whose CEOs practice servant leadership achieve a 24.5% return to shareholders, outperforming Jim Collins’ Good to Great companies which achieved 17.5% return to shareholders.

Gary Langenwalter

Portland Consulting Group

Helping Organizations Thrive

971-221-8155

www.portlandconsultinggroup.com

Forget Efficiency! It CREATES waste!

Like motherhood, apple pie, or the Fourth of July, “efficiency” is enshrined in our culture as an ultimate good. In fact, questioning whether efficiency might not be good is tantamount to treason in many management circles. Unfortunately, blind devotion to increasing efficiency fails to question the underlying assumption: that the process that one is trying to improve actually is worth doing at all. After observing hundreds of organizations, I have concluded that approximately 50% of the effort inside any organization is waste. Because it does not add value to the ultimate customer. And therefore, instead of being made more efficient, it should be discontinued completely. Let’s create a rather silly example. Let’s assume that your organization has bought a van and hired a driver. You want to use the van and driver efficiently, right? So when there are no deliveries that need to be made, you tell the driver to go out and drive where there is little traffic. This improves at least three measures of efficiency: 1. Van utilization 2. Driver utilization, and 3. Miles per gallon And it is all waste, because nobody needed any deliveries during that time! Laugh if you’d like, but are you sure that nothing like this is happening in your organization? Call me or text me at 971-221-8155, or e-mail me at gary@portlandconsultinggroup.com Gary Langenwalter Portland Consulting Group Helping Organizations Thrive 971-221-8155 www.portlandconsultinggroup.com

Their Faces Were Glowing!

I spent last Friday at YEACamp, an organization that teaches teens how to be successful change agents. The highlight of the day was when each camper stood in front of their 25 peers and 12 staff, gulped once, and then declared their action plan for the change that they want to bring about. When each camper finished, they remained standing to receive their much-deserved ovation. And they glowed! For most of them, their week at camp, culminating in this experience, is life-changing. It grounds them in understanding that they are a gift to the world, and that they can only be stopped if they allow it.

But, and there’s always a “but”, none of these youth can accomplish great things by themselves. It takes all of us, as a community, to continue to encourage them to greatness.

The same is true in our workplaces and our families and other organizations. We can choose to be supportive, helping each person become all they can be. Or we can choose to ignore people, leaving them to drift, unsupported. Or, we can choose to criticize, to find fault. It’s our choice. And our choice will determine the world that we and our children and our grandchildren live in.

I welcome feedback and conversation on this topic. 971-221-8155, gary@portlandconsultinggroup.com.

Gary Langenwalter

Leadership Worth Following

Typical change management programs focus on stakeholder management, getting “buy in” from others etc. While some of this is necessary, people are more likely to follow true leaders based on their conviction, confidence, and likelihood of success. This principle explores some of your underlying unexamined assumptions about leadership. In one of our workshops, you will identify your assumptions and beliefs regarding leadership and develop a leadership philosophy grounded in your core values. We can also have this conversation one on one.

Can You Hear Me Now? Authentic Listening

All of us battle distractions during our hectic days and often do not take the time to truly listen to one another. Whether it’s business meetings or family conversations we do not become “present” to the other person. These distractions cost us in ways we are not always aware of. If you would like to improve your listening by quieting the mind and the listening with your heart, we can help, either with one on one coaching or in a workshop setting.

Empathy is the #1 Leadership effectiveness trait!

Empathy & Leadership Effectiveness (excerpt)

What are leaders good at? What makes them the most effective?
· Business aptitude 1. Empathy
· Responsibility 2. Trustworthiness
· Clarity 3. Business aptitude
· Internal attunement 4. Depth

Excerpt from a study of 8,000 respondents rating 1,405 leaders in 47 countries. Blessing White, 2009.

How does empathy translate into competitive advantage?

It’s been said that employees join companies, but leave managers. To realize an organization’s full potential, leaders need to understand the power they possess to affect their employees’ level of happiness and engagement. Empathy is the catalyst for building positive workplaces and moving employees up the engagement ladder because it meets a primary human need: to be valued and recognized as an individual. The greater your employees’ engagement, the greater their loyalty and productivity and the greater your competitive edge.

I attended a very insightful Emotional Intelligence workshop recently conducted by Susan Zabriskie. She did an outstanding job with the content, exercises and facilitation! The role play Susan & I did is permanently etched in to my memory. The first part of the exercise with non-empathetic listening (interruption, dismissed, sharing her story, etc.). The second part, was true empathetic listening as shown by her true caring & genuine interest (acknowledging my feelings, my story & truly being present). Now, I am much more aware of how I might not be as empathetic as I thought I was.

Best Regards,

Greg

Greg Sievers, PMP, CPC

C 503-833-2016

The Greatest Gift You Can Give

Children crave attention. A 4 year old will demand, “Daddy, Daddy, look at me! Mommy, Mommy, look at me!” Unfortunately, parents are not always able to pay attention when the child demands it; other items might take higher priority. When a child doesn’t get attention by being good, he or she might do something naughty. Any attention (even negative attention) is better than being ignored.

So what does this have to do with our organizations?

People crave to be seen. People need genuine recognition for who they are. Old or young, male or female, boomer or gen X or millenial – doesn’t matter. We are each wired to want to be recognized, to be seen.

Thus, the biggest gift you can give someone is to see them. You can see them for how they want to be seen, and/or for the potential and creativity and capability that you see in them. Even better, this is free. It costs the organization exactly zero dollars.

Best of all, you can ask others give you that gift as well.

This is the original win/win.

We’re all on a journey – so let’s support and celebrate our fellow travelers. And let’s be gentle and generous and give them the gift of being seen for who they really are and who they can be – courageous persons who are doing the best they can with what they’ve got. That’s what makes great teams great.

What do you think? Do you agree/disagree? Let me know. I’m looking forward to hearing from you.

gary

gary@portlandconsultinggroup.com