LEADERSHIP: BASIC PRINCIPLES. . .PART IV

Today we will explore the fifth of seven ‘basic principles’ that powerfully impact ‘leadership.’

Build with Soft Clay: For a number of years there has been a popular concept that authors who focus on organizational development have espoused: ‘Form should follow Function.’ On the other hand if form does not follow function the dangerous corollary will emerge – ‘if form does not follow function, then function will be modified to fit the form.’ This dangerous corollary is experientially well-known. It does seem, however, that we are unable to avoid the corollary. Why? It might be that we ‘try too hard’ to be perfect or it might be that the advice itself is unrealistic – we are not able to actually develop an organization following this advice. Hence, the corollary becomes realty by default.

My son, as you might recall, is an artist – a ceramicist. He has taught me something about ‘constructing’ things. His advice, the advice of all good potters, ‘build with soft clay.’ First grade teachers also know about and rely upon the wisdom of this advice; so do most parents who introduce their young children to ‘clay.’ Children learn that wet mud is more fun and pliable than dry or hard dirt.

Thankfully, or is it paradoxically, organizations have multiple and frequently conflicting purposes that support the concept of building with soft clay (being fixed and rigid in design becomes counter-productive, at best); for example, the exact alignment of structure and purpose become difficult if not impossible. In organizations it appears as if three competing requirements need balancing: ‘legitimacy,’ ‘efficiency,’ and ‘effectiveness;’ they are some of the ‘soft clays’ that are needed.

When organizing for ‘legitimacy,’ organizations are seeking to be responsive (more than reactive, although this all too frequently occurs) to external ‘stakeholders’ (the folks who compose the stakeholder group varies from organization to organization). Almost always the stakeholders are a diverse lot and this complicates an organization’s desire to be ‘legitimate’ for all. Simply stated, legitimacy is rooted in competency. Each external stakeholder judges whether the organization is ‘competent’ and if it is deemed so then ‘confidence’ is built and support is offered and honors/affirmations are bestowed. Now, to complicate matters, there are also internal stakeholders and there occurs tension, if not conflict, between the ‘desires, wants, wishes and needs’ of the internal and external stakeholder groups.

Organizations also seek to be ‘efficient.’ How does an organization use its limited resources? How is it determined who has access to them? Rigidity does not serve the organization well; flexibility is necessary and ‘soft clay’ modeling provides flexibility.

Organizations also seek to be ‘effective.’ ‘We are competent.’ ‘We serve with distinction.’ We also seek to know when it is crucial to be ‘faithful’ at the cost of being ‘effective.’ This creates a powerful tension within an organization and between the organization and the external stakeholders. During the time of the Tylenol poisonings Johnson & Johnson choose ‘being faithful to their Credo’ over being ‘effective’ with their sales (by removing ALL Tylenol from every shelf in the world); a move that caused great tension among and between a number of stakeholders. Because J & J worked with soft clay a number of benefits resulted: the safety-cap for one and recapturing 90% of the market share for another and being recognized world-wide as an organization that cared about its end-user more than about short-term profit.

Building with Soft Clay has proven to work. Do the organizations you know, gentle reader, seek to build with soft clay? If you are part of an organization does your organization seek to build with soft clay?