Leading through challenge to opportunity
Nothing is irreparable. Often, I hear those words linger in my mind when something happens that does not go the way that I hoped it would. Nothing is irreparable, my father would say to me. He modelled the way as a trusted leader with strength of character. He was a vice president of an international insurance company. He would regale me with stories about how to move forward when things did not go as planned or hoped for as a leader. He would tell me that nothing is irreparable and thus it is a matter of stepping up to do something in response. I often draw upon this wisdom. In fact, these words inspired me to write this blog.
I had the pleasure of speaking with our RRU president on values based leadership last month. (See https://www.royalroads.ca/news/president-steenkamp-values-based-leadership-kathy-bishop) A series of events happened throughout my day that when it was time to meet with Dr. Steenkamp, I was not on the top of my game. It was a great opportunity to speak about values based leadership and I hoped to have offered more. Considering that nothing is irreparable, I offer more in this blog about the power of values based leadership.
What is values based leadership?
Most people could assume that values based leadership is about a leader acting with values. This is true and, in an organizational context, it is more than that. Values based leadership is about influencing, mobilizing and engaging with others towards a shared mission for the greater good in which values offer a pathway (see Askeland et al. 2020, Barrett, 2017, Hall, 1994). For example, we are able to engage with others by intentionally drawing upon values like inclusion, curiousity, and authenticity. We can move towards a shared mission, guided by values of transparency, alignment, and collaboration. And, thinking in terms of the greater good, we can tap into values of making a difference, being in service and attending to a collective wellbeing.
Values based leadership is essential because we are facing serious challenges.
Values based leadership is especially essential right now because we are facing some serious challenges in the world today. We need leaders with strength of character who understand how to, and are able to, walk through challenges to opportunity. We only need to look around us to see that people from all walks of life are talking about what’s important and are rallying for transformation. Big issues, like Truth and Reconciliation, Black Lives Matter, the Me Too movement, COVID-19, and Climate Change, are demanding our attention. Values based leadership enables us to engage with others through real inclusion not just giving lip service to wanting diversity. Being curious, we can think about what values underlay our behaviours and how we may or may not be missing the mark in our leadership actions. We can lead forward authentically by attending to how we walk our talk and speak our truth with integrity, purpose and intention.
We need organizational leaders with strength of character
Trusted leadership is at an all-time low. Despite a declining trust in leadership, people are looking to their employers to lead change (See https://www.edelman.com/trust/2019-trust-barometer). By drawing upon values based leadership, organizational leaders can mobilize others towards a shared a mission through aligning personal and organizational values, being explicit with transparent communication and engaging in true collaboration. I don’t mean the manager who calls together people to collaborate and then tells them what to do. This is coordination not collaboration. Collaboration recognizes the need for diversity (not just checking a hiring box). Collaboration brings together different perspectives to find new solutions to big societal challenges that we face, both locally and globally. For example, Albert Bourla (2021), the CEO of Pfizer, identified teamwork (everyone contributed), and cooperation (forming partnerships and removing systemic barriers) as key values to “developing a vaccine in record time” (p. 34). Furthermore, through this global pandemic, we have all experienced how essential health and wellbeing is. Deloitte’s Global Human Capital Report (2021) identified the need for organizations to design workplaces for wellbeing in a way that wellbeing is integrated into all workplace policies and practices rather than as supplemental programs. Organizational leaders, then, called to lead change within their organizations and to address bigger societal challenges, can do so by walking a path of values.
Values offer us a way to lead through challenges to opportunity.
Values are beacons of light. They energize us and drive our behaviours (Hyatt & De Ciantis, 2014). They give us a way to talk about the issues without making it about the person but instead going deeper to discover what each of us is valuing. Values enable us to shift from a me to a we mentality and look to seek new solutions together. When challenges come, because they always do, we can hold to our values so we won’t get blown off the path. We can hold to values such as making a difference, being in service and attending to collective wellbeing. Values offer a pathway to move forward.
On a final note, when we seek to live our values, and they don’t always land, we can remember that nothing is irreparable. Remembering that nothing is irreparable can enable us to continue to show up, even if we are not at our best. Although it may not offer us a do over, it can offer us a do again, a way to lead through to taking new opportunities. In fact, at the heart of knowing that nothing is irreparable we can find values of learning, transformation, authenticity, agency, excellence, adaptability, accountability, humility, service, creativity.... and the courage to forge on. Onwards we go.
Askeland, H., Espedal, G., Jelstad Lv̜aas, B., & Sirris, S. (Eds.). (2020). Understanding values work: Institutional perspectives in organizations and leadership. Springer International Publishing. https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-37748-9
Barrett, R. (2017). The values-driven organization. Cultural health an employee well-being as a pathway to sustainable performance. (2nd ed.) Routledge
Bourla, A. (2021). The CEO of Pfizer on Developing a Vaccine in Record Time. Harvard Business Review, 99(3), 34-39. Retrieved from https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=sso&db=bth&AN=149750472&custid=s5672143
Deloitte (2021).The social enterprise in a world disrupted: Leading the shift from survive to thrive. Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends Report. https://www2.deloitte.com/global/en/insights/focus/human-capital-trends.html
Hall, B. (1994).Values shift: A guide to personal and organizational transformation. Wipf & Stock.
Hyatt, K. & De Ciantis, C. (2014). What's important: Understanding and working with values perspectives. Tucson, AZ: Integral.
Photo credit: Photo by John Salzarulo on Unsplash