Yesterday I shared with you 10 Insightful Social Media Quotes from Smart CEOs, which were reflective of the social media conversation that we had at our most recent CEO Connection event in New York City. I mentioned that as the organization’s Chief Relationship Officer, I have the opportunity to meet with small, intimate groups of these executives five times a year in different locales around the world.At these CEO Connection meetings they have a chance to truly reflect on – and be open and honest about – the leadership challenges they’re facing and mistakes they’ve made. And they share experiences and insights that enable them to leave with a renewed, energized vision and strategies to support it.
In addition to discussing social media, our focus at this past event covered four areas:
- Leadership
- Stewardship with their boards
- Talent management
- Communication strategies, both internal and external
What follows are a series of quotes from the event that will give you a peek into the current challenges these CEOs face and how they’re addressing them, along with some inspirational words and insights:
1. “When we wrote a mission statement at the corporate level the words didn’t resonate with our employees. So we asked the employees to rewrite it in a way that made sense for all of us.”
2. “We call it performance management but are you managing performance or just appraising it? Words matter. Actions matter.”
3. “As a society we get an “F” in giving feedback to employees.”
4. “90% of the employees usually go along with change; it’s the other 10% that can derail you. Don’t die trying to convert them.”
5. “We created a new brand promise and our sales force resisted it. I asked them to take ownership and rewrite it, and was actually very touched by what they wrote.”
6. “How many of your employees woke up this morning with the express intention of doing a crappy job? Probably very few. But if they feel left out, or have a fear of failure or uncertainty, they are less able to succeed.”
7. “I think about my people all the time. I worry about how they’re doing personally.”
8. “I want people to say they work with me and not for me.”
9. “It’s important to be clear about when you’re giving input and when you’re giving decisive direction.”
10. “Why do people follow me? Because I always know where I’m going.”
11. “Boards say the #1 thing they’re bad at is CEO succession”
12. “Global trends favor splitting the CEO and Chairman roles.”
13. “You can ask all your (Board) Directors what success looks like and they’ll all give a different answer.”
14. “Never sugarcoat in the boardroom.”
15. “Our biggest challenge with hiring Gen Y’s and Millennialls is finding people who can write well.”
16. “Know and track your top talent. They can be plugged into different boxes based on need.”
17. “Be honest about your culture.”
18. “Our mission focuses on what our customers are passionate about. We hire people who are passionate about the same things as our customers.”
19. “It’s so important to be happy in your role and to have passion for the role. I have made a conscious choice to focus on how I love the people and the products, and to be happy each day.”
What resonates with you most about these quotes? Do they surprise you at all? Encourage you in any way? Share in the comments!
Need help defining a business vision, purpose and mission and the strategies to support them? Hire me for Visionary Leadership programs, and work with me by emailing me at Lisa@CLevelStrategies.com.
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Photo is Close up of The Thinker by Brian Hillegas.
22 Response Comments
18. “Our mission focuses on what our customers are passionate about. We hire people who are passionate about the same things as our customers.” – Wow! That should be put on a banner in front of the HR department…
I know! I loved hearing that and hearing examples of how they do this – including hiring customer service folks who are passionate and connect with the customer as individuals and “fans” before addressing their issues as “accounts.” It’s one reason that company is growing rapidly in an otherwise mature market.
All are telling, some are encouraging and many indicate a shift away from the traditional Command and Control context of CEO’s of the past. Giving away the “words” of a vision or a brand promise and wanting your people to say they work with you not for you are great examples.
From all the statistics I see employee engagement is at an all time low overall. I wonder what engagement levels are in the organizations led by these CEO’s.
Susan, I agree with you about the shift and think you raise a great question. There is no way for me to know for sure, but I can tell you that the CEOs who talked about wanting people to work with them and not for them, and who gave control of the brand promise to others, those are the CEOs that are using new social media tools like blogs and Twitter to engage with their employees (my blog post from yesterday). These are people who are doing things from a genuine, authentic place of leadership rather than being told to do something by an outside consultant… Thanks for being here and for sharing your thoughts – I always appreciate thinking through great questions with fellow #LeadChangers!
9. “It’s important to be clear about when you’re giving input and when you’re giving decisive direction.”
I have seen so many leaders mess up here. It’s like a parent trying to be a friend instead of a parent.
Great quotes, Lisa!! I learned something from each one…
Jen, great analogy. It also brings to light the fact that sometimes team members don’t do what you wanted them to do simply because they thought you were providing input, and not necessarily *telling* them to do something. This means you’re not setting them up for success. So glad to know that these resonated with you – thanks for your input!
These are interesting quotes and not what I expected.
Especially interesting were the quotes 2 and 3. I think some companies are now changing the appraisal process. I was a manager for 15 years in a Big 4 company and the process changed a few times while I was there. One of the most important pparts of that process is not having one session once a year. The notion of having feedback many times during the year is so important. This is part of the no surprises idea. In other words, at the review time, the employee already knows much of how they are viewed. Why? They’ve been told many times during the year. Still, this process may need more change.
As a manager, I viewed 8 as very important. There are some people who view that as wrong because they are afraid employees don’t know who is boss. I disagree highly. I used this and got closer to my employees than normal. We used to talk and laugh all day. The result was a closer group and employees that trusted their boss.
9 is important because I used to encourage my employees to talk to me about ways they could improve the group, the workplace, and the work process. They didn’t have to be my ways. When your employees feel they are running their own group, and they are mature and responsible, great things happen. And in the end, by allowing this to happen, it made me look better also.
15 made me think because I used to have a problem writing. It took me many hours of hard work to improve. Without communication, a good employee or manager is so limited. I used to tell my staff they to grow, they needed to come with me to the corner office and present their ideas. Many were afraid to do that. They did not realize that management wanted to hear their ideas. All forms of communication are important and so is being willing to take the riak of presenting them to management. Only with good management,there is much less risk.
Henry,
Thanks for sharing your insights – I strongly agree with you about making feedback a more integral part of leading your employees and not a “once per year” event. In regard to number 8, I think the CEO was getting at a feeling that the team is working *with you* to accomplish goals and move toward the vision. And with number 9 it’s about clarity. If you suggest something to one of your team members and they don’t do it, can you really hold them accountable if they simply thought it was a suggestion? And such a great point about number 15 – the importance not only of writing well but conveying your ideas well regardless of the communication vehicle you’re using. Thank you, Henry!
Hello Lisa – Thanks for sharing these quotes – it gives great insight on what is on top of the mind of our leaders today. What struck me was none of the quotes touched on revenue, profits,competition etc – I doubt if this would have been the case say 2-3 years back. It is great to see that the leaders are all focused on people and communication – connections between and among people.
I loved this quote particularly :
16. “Know and track your top talent. They can be plugged into different boxes based on need.”
Build leaders and make them successful to achieve success.
Regards,
Suchitra
Twitter : @suchimishra
Thanks for your thoughts, Suchitra. Keep in mind that the discussions were focused on leadership, talent management, communication and stewardship. So, I wouldn’t say that revenue and profit is not on their minds, it’s just not what we were discussing during the day-long meeting. And I liked that quote as well! All the best – enjoy your weekend!
As a branding agency, we come across #4 quite a bit. There are always employees who cannot change or adapt as the brand evolves or is re-directed. They become the brand saboteurs within the organization. They will either leave on their own or need to be weeded out. Companies often spend too much time trying to convert the negative ones rather than focusing on those who are on-board.
Bob, agreed. I think companies need to work hard to ensure they’re communicating clearly, and helping all of the employees understand how they personally fit into the vision, and fulfill the brand promise. But if the company is doing this well and employees just cannot accept that role, then it’s best they’re not on the team. Thanks for the comment!
I agree that this is a common trend among CEO’s an leaders – most (if not all) feel a sense of duty and obligation to their employees.
Unfortunately, there is a tremendous perception gap between them and their employees, as recently highlighted in a study on corporate culture.
According to the study, CEO’s generally tend believe their efforts are inclusive and their good intentions are trickling down to rank and file.
The rank and file however, tend to regard leaders as perhaps out of synch at best and lying greed mongers at worst.
Unfortunate – because I see a conflict of perceptions that will continue to perpetuate problems until leadership takes ahold of the real mission, win hearts and minds.
Those leaders have my best wishes, I hope they are able to cross the chasm.
Check out the article
http://www.economist.com/node/21530171
Alan,
Yes, I often say that it’s painful to see perceptions of leaders and CEOs, because those I meet truly have the best interest of their employees at heart. And I do believe they are trying their best each day to be a steward of values, to lead with courage and to communicate clearly. Thanks for your best wishes to this group – I’m optimistic about them! All the best!
The one I like most is “5. ‘We created a new brand promise and our sales force resisted it. I asked them to take ownership and rewrite it, and was actually very touched by what they wrote.'” When you own it, it becomes a part of you and your belief system.
Yes, such a great lesson for all of us! I liked this one too and was impressed when I heard the CEO talk about it. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
> a conscious choice to focus on how I love the people and the products, and to be happy each day
I really like this focus.
I think we bring out our best when we connect with a tribe that shares our values and we flow value in our unique way. The amplifier and force multiplier is always passion. So the more congruent we are with those we like to serve, the more we flourish.
Very eloquently said, J.D. – thank you for sharing this with us!