A Balanced View of Leadership (Goldberg On Leadership)

Leadership is tough to define. While I am loathe to associate leadership with the original subject of the statement, probably the most accurate and common description I hear is modeled after Justice Potter Stewart’s famous statement “… I know it when I see it.”

But in the absence of a clear and agreed definition, I am concerned about a trend creeping into the popular business press about leadership. Sacrificing rigor on the altar of simplicity, many pundits go so far as to simply label a focus on tasks as management and a focus on people as leadership.

I visited one company recently with a poster on the wall that reminded me of George Carlin’s old routine about baseball and football. The comparisons made management out to be a Neanderthal practice of ordering people around, while leadership was an ennobled state of empowerment completely devoid of connection to actual work.

In fact, the research is pretty clear on this topic: Successful leaders focus on both task and relationship. What distinguishes great leaders is the way that they bring that focus to bear. Leadership suffers at the hands of those who are overly focused on one side of the equation or those whose capacities in both task and relationship management are poorly developed.

Let’s start with the relationship side of this equation. A leader who is unable to tolerate and even invite conflict is an expensive liability to his or her organization. Honest feedback and the courageous conversation are often missing in organizations that cultivate an environment of niceness.

I do not advocate nasty or unkind behavior, but how kind is it to allow an employee to continue to impact the larger team or company because no one will tell him the uncomfortable truth? Meetings that have no room for lively discussion, disagreement and dissension suffocate both participants and their new ideas.

Demonstrated leaders have a tolerance and even appetite for constructive conflict and dissension. They are comfortable with ambiguity, allowing them and their teams to push beyond the easy and obvious answer. Successful leaders focus on creating an environment that encourages collaboration and personal learning. They understand that an environment that fosters team play and trust will have more benefit than the short-term feel-good of getting through the day without stress or conflict.

On the task side of the equation, the main distinction is that of sustainability. Any bully with a title or the corner office can get results by pushing people whose jobs depend on keeping the boss happy. But the manager who needs to be in control gets short-term results at a very high price.

The good news about command and control as a default (or only) managerial style is that, unlike “nice,” actual work gets done. But an “I think, you do” managerial approach creates no sustainable execution capacity or new leaders. Command and control task management is like a drug. It creates an ever-increasing dependency and reduces the organization’s ability to scale at the same time.

The skilled leader of tasks knows that every project or work process is also a potential development opportunity for someone. Often, allowing a high-potential manager to figure out a new assignment is less efficient but more valuable than dictating how the task will get done.

Looking beyond today’s pain to find the underlying issue and designing a solution for the cause requires willingness to stay with questions when the siren song of easy answers sings loudly of moving fast.

There are, of course, times when pleasant relations may trump truth-telling. And there are situations that clearly call for someone to take charge and get a process moving. The danger comes when these styles are the default, or only, set of skills available. Leadership is a blend of both task and relationship capacities, tempered by a leader’s understanding of environment and collaboration.

(I. Barry Goldberg is managing director of Entelechy Partners, an executive coaching and leadership development firm headquartered in Little Rock. Barry holds an advanced certificate in leadership coaching from Georgetown University. You can reach him at [email protected].)