It is one thing for a consumer to appreciate corporate responsibility and another thing entirely for them to chose a brand because of it. However, I will argue, that as leaders (as individuals AND as corporations) people watch you. Whether you desire to be or not, people watch you and they model their behavior after you, thus you are a role model in some fashion. As a role model, I think you have must act responsibly. In a corporate setting this can be something as little as decreasing your waste (Coca-cola’s new PlantBottle) or going so far as to cut ties with vendors who, despite being more affordable, may have some unethical practices (McDonalds with Sparboe Egg Farms). The key take away here is to remember that people are watching, and like it or not, as a leader you are charged with behaving responsibly.

While the article breaks down a study that has some flaws (no comparative analysis), it does raise several intriguing points about Generation Y and their preferences as employees:

• Millenials avoid working for large Fortune 500 companies for a variety of reasons, chiefly among them lack of flexibility and personal touch.
• GenY prefers to work in small organizations, especially start-ups, because they provide the opportunity to make an impact as an individual
• GenY workers are extremely focused on themselves in terms of achievements, career goals, and even entrepreneurial endeavors

“The report urges employers of all sizes to encourage Gen-Y’s entrepreneurial attitude.

What does that mean? I’ve worked with young employees for years and I’ve come to my own conclusions. This generation craves freedom and independence, kind of like teenagers preparing to leave the nest. But they also want your feedback and guidance.

The solution is to let them be “intrapreneurs” within your company. Put them in charge of their time by offering flextime and remote work schedules. Give them a challenge and let them figure out how to handle it. Then, give them both positive and negative feedback on how they did.”

This morning, I was sent a piece that my VP wrote regarding promotions. It takes an in-depth look at the changes one will face when “going from one of the gang to the boss.” This break down is a look at how the relationships with your colleagues are affected by your promotion and what you can do to keep those relationships intact, professional, and most of all productive.

1.     Be confident in your own abilities. When you are promoted from a group of peers, it is easy for others to question the decision or harbor resentment.   The best way to overcome these sentiments and garner respect is to take the reins and lead with conviction.  Your new reports will need this in order for the team as a whole to succeed.  Be confident in your abilities to handle the management duties expected of you.

2.     Clearly communicate your new role and expectations. Don’t be afraid to sit down and talk with your team members. Understand that your new role is not just challenging for you, but for them, too.  Make sure you clearly communicate your new responsibilities and the metrics by which you will be evaluated; setting clear expectations of what is required of you, and what you need from them, is critical from the very beginning.

3.     Draw boundaries and stick to them. While there is nothing wrong with remaining friends with your former peers, by going out for the occasional lunch for example, you will need to set a new, professional tone and create boundaries among your relationships.  Perhaps for the first time, the company’s needs and interests take priority, and you may well encounter some rule-breaking that will require you to discipline or terminate a friend.  If you draw appropriate lines ahead of time, you’ll be much better off when such situations arise.

In a great article in the Washington Post, we are reminded to remember all of the great things Paterno accomplished as a coach. He stuck to his guns, truly coached STUDENT athletes, created a football powerhouse out of nothing in State College, and won two national championships. However, even the greatest coach in college football was not immune to making a mistake.

Had that perspective gotten lost? Did Paterno feel that somewhere along the line, football had become too important — and somehow allowed a real tragedy to go overlooked?

“Well, I don’t think it got lost,” he said. “I just think there was a series of situations that maybe people, a little bit, maybe they neglected something, and maybe they got a little bit frustrated. Whether they had good intentions or not, you’d have to ask them.”

His record will show that he was a great, indomitable champion who amassed a record 409 victories, as well as an intelligent advocate who worked tirelessly for poor and minority athletes his whole career. It will show that he was utterly devoted to his players, regularly graduated more than 75 percent of them, and had 47 academic all-Americans. It will show that he made mistakes and omissions, one of them possibly truly costly. It will show that he mostly maintained his perspective and remained true to himself.

“He didn’t preach one thing and live a different way,” Sue said.

It will show that he was not a statue made of bronze, and that he was defined as much by what he failed to do and say, as by what he did. Which merely made him, in the end, human.

It is important for leaders to keep prospective. And while human error is always part of the equation, it is necessary to be aware of everything under your leadership to avoid irreversible errors that can end your career. As for Paterno, at least for now, an error has led one of the greatest leaders in his chosen profession to a legacy marred by the scandal under his leadership. And that is a shame.

Think about a leadership team. When you are meeting behind closed doors, there may often be discourse and plenty of opportunities to say “I don’t know.” Once the team is put in front of your followers, you must demonstrate a unified front for your cause. Again, exhibiting confidence will drive your followers towards your goals. I think we can all agree that there is value in saying “I don’t know,” but that value depends on the situation. As a leader it is important to remember that people look to you as an example and a source of faith and encouragement, so you must play to these desires as well.

There certainly is value in admitting you don’t know something as suggested by the 4 benefits in the article: Ideas, Direction, Space, and Confidence. However, I would argue that a good leader should use discretion when saying “I don’t know.” I agree that there is a lot of inherent value in sharing this candid response, and most of the time it is the correct thought to share. There are also times when it may be beneficial to remain a little tight-lipped before spilling all of the beans. This is certainly an interesting thought. When do you think it is appropriate to admit “I don’t know” and when should you avoid that statement?

I’ve come to recognize that it’s far more important to be confident in my ability to make good decisions than it is for me to be confident in any one answer or solution. So now, instead about worrying whether any given initiative is a the best answer or a “home run,” I instead trust that I will know when to invest more or when it’s time to pull the plug, once I have more information. And recognizing this has made it a whole lot easier to talk with others about an initiative or project I’m not sure about yet.

It treats employees like the adults they are. If they’re incapable of handling the responsibility that comes along with having unlimited vacation days, they’re probably incapable of handling other responsibilities too, so don’t hire them.

It is important to remember to give everyone the responsibility associated with their roles. Giving people the respect and independence to perform on their own, in my opinion anyways, should result in higher buy-in and performance. Now if only I could convince my CEO to check out this policy…

Why do people who have the potential and ability to think strategically, empower others and prioritize issues seemingly choose to micromanage — to act in a way that’s myopically short-termed and dive into every problem thrown their way? The answer is that it’s not a conscious choice. No executive chooses to behave this way, just like no executive wakes up in the morning thinking “today I will really mess up and frustrate lots of people.”

Executives behave that way when they don’t allow themselves to pause and reflect about what really matters.

A new year’s resolution offers the chance to set a goal or a target for you to accomplish in the upcoming year. Often these goals focused are on dietary and fitness but they really can be anything. Here on the blog, I hope to continue posting and gaining followers, but my real goal is to get other contributors. If you are interested in leadership and have something to share, let me know. Collaboration is key because, as leaders, you know that “it takes a village to raise a child.”

So in the exciting first few days of the new year, leaders have a great opportunity to step back and create a new vision for the upcoming 12 months and from that vision start to formulate the goals that will help it become a reality. Really, I guess the idea of a new year’s resolution is a lesson to be shared with leaders about realigning priorities and reestablishing/creating a vision and goals.

I thought it would be appropriate to start the new year out with a discussion about the leaders and leadership we saw in 2011. Sadly there are a lot of leadership blunders that stick out to me and I hope you can think of great leadership examples in the last year to share. Without being too opinionated, here we go:

Easily the biggest headline of 2011 (for Americans anyways) was the death of Osama Bin Laden. In a very calculated operation, President Obama took an extreme gamble and sent Navy SEAL Team 6 into Afghanistan. The way that Obama managed the situation and addressed the world that fateful Sunday night, he united an extremely divided nation and brought back a sense of national pride that we had not had in almost a decade. Unfortunately, 2011 also saw the lowest approval rating of Obama’s tenure just a few months after he united everyone in celebration.

2011 was open season in the Republican Party. Gearing up for the 2012 primary, many candidates threw their hats in the ring to win the GOP nomination.  The short and the sweet of it is that pretty much every candidate used the opportunity to say something they shouldn’t have. Political headlines noted the constant changes in public opinion of each candidate as well as their blunders. Politically, we saw many examples of poor leadership in 2011.

On the sports side of the world, leadership was also notably absent. 2011 saw both the NFL and the NBA enter into lengthy labor disputes between team owners and the respective players’ labor unions. While the NFL was able to settle on an agreement without losing any regular season game, the NBA missed several months of games. Both sides had relatively legitimate claims, but it is disappointing to see such wealthy individuals arguing over 1% of profits. Where was the leadership?

Finally, 2011 saw the passing of a man who has become regarded quite highly as a leader in the world of innovation. on October 5th, we lost Apple’s visionary leader Steve Jobs. Jobs was a shining example of entrepreneurship and creativity. As founder and CEO of Apple, Jobs created a new line of technology products that appeal widely to consumers and have become the definition of “cool”. Jobs created Apple, was eventually fired, and returned to make it what it is today. While his passing is certainly unfortunate, it provided us the opportunity to reflect on his accomplishments and his insights. One of the gifts I received during the holidays was a recently published biography of Jobs, I look forward to reading it and sharing a detailed post in the future.

In closing, I hope that I have inadvertently overlooked some great leadership moments of 2011. I look forward to seeing what 2012 brings and continuing to explore the subject of leadership and its application in every day life.

“My model for business is The Beatles. They were four guys who kept each other’s kind of negative tendencies in check. They balanced each other and the total was greater than the sum of the parts. That’s how I see business: great things in business are never done by one person, they’re done by a team of people.” –Steve Jobs, 2003

Steve Jobs quotes