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Leading With Integrity in 2002

By Rich King

The paradox of our economy over the last year has left Americans in a quandary. While the media spins news of our “official recession”, company layoffs, and suffering consumer confidence, we simultaneously discover that companies like Itron, F5 Networks and Hollister-Stier are experiencing record growth and prosperity.

These mixed messages make it difficult for business leaders to choose their strategies for leading in 2002. Should we posture and patiently wait out the recession? Or should we take advantage of our competition’s posturing and aggressively seek to expand market share?

Regardless of the company’s growth status, leaders will benefit their companies the most by focusing on the development of their key stakeholders’ skills in helping their employees deal both strategically as well as emotionally with the changes of business in the coming year.

Much has been written and spoken about the subject of leadership in the last decade. But when all is said and done, the essence of true leadership can only be found in those who embody this simple, yet profoundly important principle: The Law of Flawless Integrity.

In his bestseller, How To Win Friends and Influence People, Dale Carnegie believed that a person must be able to “win friends”—meaning develop a trust and mutual respect with others—before he could ever “influence people”. Isn’t it fair to say that we would rarely allow ourselves to be influenced by those whom we do not trust or respect?

Dwight D. Eisenhower said, “In order to be a leader a man must have followers. And to have followers, a man must have their confidence. Hence, the supreme quality for a leader is unquestionably integrity.” A survey conducted of 1,300 senior executives by the Peter Drucker Foundation concurred, finding integrity to be the human quality most necessary to business success. But what exactly is it to have integrity, and how do we know if we have it?

John C. Maxwell, author of Developing the Leader Within You, explains, “Integrity is not a given factor in everyone’s life. It is a result of self-discipline, inner trust, and a decision to be relentlessly honest in all situations in our lives.” Simply put, it is consciously committing ourselves to both thinking, speaking and acting in ways that will allow us to make a meaningful difference in the lives of those who permit us to lead.

The thoughts, words and actions of a leader must be congruent. If his associates find him guilty of being phony, if they find that his actions often contradict his words, that he lacks forthright integrity, he will fail. Too often, unfortunately, would-be leaders demonstrate little more than consistent contradiction and destroy their ability to effectively influence others.

For example, one Seattle-area organization that we worked with found that they had been experiencing high employee turnover over the last two years. With a closer evaluation of the situation, it became clear that several key members of its executive team had created a confrontational work environment despite what the company’s mission statement had declared.

There was open criticism of mid-level managers from executive team members, justified as “being open, honest and real”. As a result, the company experienced a trickle-down effect. Those same mid-level managers followed suit and openly criticized their subordinates, who criticized one another. The Law of Flawless Integrity had been violated, and it would take a major overhaul to turn things around for the company.

Relationships are the cornerstone to success in business, and there is no greater responsibility for leaders in an organization than to forge cooperative relationships among its personnel. Dale Carnegie explained the only way that leaders can successfully do this is to “Become genuinely interested in the other person.” Notice the emphasis on the word become. Mr. Carnegie asserted that people are not typically interested in others—that we are interested most in ourselves. Then to become genuinely interested requires a conscious choice—an action to put aside our own wants, needs and desires, and to focus on the needs of others.

Recently we had the opportunity to work with a successful lending institution in the development of a team of its key managers’ leadership skills. Rather than sending his managers off on their own to learn and practice some strategies for increasing their effectiveness, the vice president immediately jumped in and joined the group himself, often providing examples for the rest of the group. He enthusiastically attended every session and frequently coached and encouraged his people to stretch themselves to achieve higher levels of success.

The V.P. worked diligently to earn the respect of his managers by not merely assigning what could have very easily been perceived as “remedial training”, but by participating and leading his people through a process that would undoubtedly strengthen his team, their individual skills, and their ability to effectively lead and manage their own business units.

By demonstrating that we simply cannot lead anyone else further than we are willing to go ourselves, the V.P. exhibited a congruency of actions and words that provided an excellent example for how his managers should lead their own teams. This was accomplished so wonderfully because he is truly a man of integrity, genuinely interested in his people.

Author V. Gilbert Beers, says, “A person of integrity is one who has established a system of values against which all of life is judged.” Integrity is not what we do so much as who we are. And who we are, in turn, determines what we do.

There are many challenges in leading today when achieving bottom-line results takes precedence over people. Therefore, leading with integrity in 2002 requires a commitment to change—a pledge to ourselves and to those whom we lead to embody truth and honesty at all times, and to consistently exhibit a genuine interest in the development of others. When we have demonstrated this over time, they will follow earnestly!

References:

Dale Carnegie, How To Win Friends & Influence People (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1981)

Dwight D. Eisenhower, Great Quotes from Great Leaders, ed. Peggy Anderson (Lombard: Great Quotations, 1989)

John C. Maxwell, Developing the Leader Within You (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1993)

Peter Drucker, Management, Tasks, Responsibilities and Practices (New York: Harper & Row, 1974)

Comments to: gthomas@leadingtoday.org

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About the author:

Rich King is the President of Acumen Development Systems, Inc. of Spokane, WA. For more information regarding Acumen Development Systems, visit www.getacumen.com or contact Rich at contact@getacumen.com