Changing Organizational Culture and Re-Designing Leadership
So much has been written about “the Great Resignation,” also referred to as “the Great Reshuffle,” “the Great Renegotiation,” and even “The Great Reset”, that readers might query if there is anything more to be written (or said). Can we add any value to the debate about what is next in this unprecedented time?
To address the imbalance between companies’ needs for employees and the number available, proposed solutions have ranged from leaders demonstrating more empathy and compassion, companies should be listening to grievances, they should be throwing money at the problem, and employee negotiation power is growing. Amazon workers are attempting to organize a union and it seems that their timing is advantageous. Several have advocated corporate culture change and others have proposed more opportunities for personal and professional growth for all employees. All this upheaval in the job market coincides with a global pandemic (Covid 19 if you forgot) and a heretofore buoyant stock market. There is a debate about the how’s and what’s of hybrid work as people return to their offices. Now we have a tragic war in Ukraine to add to the mix of uncertainty.
All of the above are excellent proposals. In my mind they fall into two overarching categories. The first is that corporate and organizational culture change is a must, not only for survival but also to spur the innovation that assures economic growth. The second ‘must have’ is the development of leaders who can effectively straddle the bridge of compassion and performance. As one writer puts it, are these two imperatives necessarily binary? Is there a way to be effective on both counts? Which brings me to advocate the need to ‘feminize’ future leadership where appropriate.
The Great Resignation has created Challenges for organizations as well as Opportunities and, above all, has Implications for Leadership. Corporate Culture and Leadership are both sides of the same coin. Altering an organization’s culture will necessarily fall to its Leadership. The further good news is that there are leaders at every level of the organization who can be brought on board to effect change.
Changing Organizational Culture
Changing an organization’s culture is often compared to diverting the course of an aircraft carrier in mid-ocean. It is a long and slow effort and takes time.
That’s the bad news. The good news is that John Kotter and James Heskett in their book, Corporate Culture and Performance, discovered that corporations that developed innovative and adaptive cultures achieved nearly three times the revenue growth, 900% higher stock price growth, and 755% higher net income growth.
I was especially impressed with an article by Jon Katzenbach and Carolyn Black advising leaders to revisit the works of three corporate culture pioneers. These findings are especially relevant in today’s climate.
The first was the theory of cognitive dissonance developed by Leon Festinger. Beliefs and actions need to be aligned. If organizations are saying one thing about their culture and employees are experiencing something else, this disconnect leads to frustrated and negative (feelings) employees.
The second is Frederick Herzberg. He developed the concept of job enrichment and the motivation hypothesis. Make work itself enriching and motivation will ensue. Finally, the authors cite the work of Daniel Goleman and his work on ‘emotional intelligence.’ Did you know that according to research, empathy is the most important leadership skill?
Tracy Bower quotes a study of nearly 900 employees by Catalyst, which found that empathy has some significant constructive effects. For example, 76% of people who experienced empathy from their leaders reported they were engaged in their work compared to only 32% who experienced less empathy.
Which brings us to most concerning of the data. According to research done by Russell Reynolds, the attrition of leading talent is among those 1-2 levels below those of the C suite. Seventy-three percent among this group say they are open to new opportunities and do not see a future where they are. Even fewer, 41%, have confidence in their C suite’s strategy for success. The values of this group are reported to be not in alignment with those of their organizations. They experience little or no purpose in their work and suffer from the psychological stress of the effects of the pandemic.
In an article in the weekend Financial Times about a London haberdasher named Drake’s, the question asked was how the leadership made the challenging transition from heritage manufacturer to a modern brand without alienating existing customers. Drake’s success was down to “authenticity.” As one of the owners said, “It’s about somehow trying to build a great company, . . .” What makes (his) work tick is trying to do things in the right way; being connected to our people, our product, and the community we speak to.”
Re-Designing Leadership
This issuch a great introduction to the importance of Leadership in creating a culture that people want to work in. How do they lead? What is the strategy of senior leadership for managing talent and creating the desired culture? Are they listening to their people? Are they creating the conditions of psychological safety necessary to allow ideas to flourish and mistakes to become learning opportunities?
My own conclusion is that organization and/or corporate leadership needs to embrace more feminine traits. This is not about having more women in leadership positions (which would, however, conform to current efforts to make them more diverse, equal, and inclusive), but that feminine qualities of leadership should be encouraged. Whether men or women, the feminine qualities are described as having “an orientation toward more participative, interactional, and relational styles of leading.” According to an article by Nancy Adler written in the last century (1997!), this style of leadership is more appropriate for 21st century organizations.
Why you ask? Because the standardization of mass production which characterized the industrial age of the 19th – 20th centuries is no longer applicable in our knowledge-based economies of the 20th – 21st centuries. We are now in a digital age which permits customization of goods and services. Customization implies the need to develop relationships prior to completing tasks. Feminine qualities of leadership excel at stressing relationship building, team building, and leading from the middle and rear, which are much more suitable to this kind of production. If Ford can advertise ‘build your own SUV’ we know that manufacturing has taken a fundamental turn.
More importantly, it is because this Works. Compassion, empathy, good listening, meaningful work, psychological safety, and trust are what are required to halt the Great Resignation. It is an opportunity for leaders and their organizations to create values-led organizations and walk that talk. According to the results of the leading 360-degree feedback assessments, female leaders are more likely to excel in these skills, which is why I believe we need to see value placed on the feminine traits and competencies of leadership. This would mean remodeling the current programs of leadership development to highlight the ’soft, people-focused’ skills which have, up to know, been of secondary importance. I have also heard this termed this ‘Human-Centered Leadership.” They are the relationship skills which need to be put front and center in future leadership training and development for all men and women who aspire to leadership positions. Here we echo what we wrote in Part I of this series, the exodus of employees is coming from male and task centered organization cultures.
. . . And In Conclusion
Somewhere I read (with apologies to the writer) that The Great Resignation has become The Great Realization. He refers to the fact that the changes, challenges, and insights gained during the pandemic have caused many people to question their current paths in life and career.
It reminds me of Frederick Hudson and Pamela McLean’s Cycle of Renewal which tells us that periods of highs in our lives and work will more than likely fall into ‘Doldrums.’ To escape this valley, we begin to look for alternatives. The keys here are to develop the skills of reflection and experimentation.
The Great Resignation may be a signal that many of us are doing exactly that.
Should you wish to discuss any of the above, don’t hesitate to contact Marion Estienne at marion@3sixtyglobal.com or telephone, +1 719 201 6405.
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