Are Your Leaders Fit for Purpose?

Several years ago, I came across an interesting piece by Ben Horowitz on the difference between war time and peace time CEOs and leaders.  Drawing on several corporate examples, Horowitz described how certain leadership qualities work well in ‘peacetime’ while others tend to be more effective in ‘wartime’.  He also concluded that some leaders are in fact better suited to peacetime environments while others are better suited to wartime environments. 

One of the most frequently cited examples of leadership in context is that of the former British prime minister, Winston Churchill.  Winston Churchill was the British Prime Minister during the Second World War and his “bulldog” spirit captured the mood of the British people during the dark days of the conflict.  After the war, however, the focus of the nation turned to rebuilding and Churchill quickly found himself at odds with the people.  One of the greatest leaders in British history was subsequently defeated in the 1945 election with people concluding that the leadership he had demonstrated so admirably during wartime was not suitable for peacetime.

Horowitz’s proposition taps into an important notion; that leadership is not defined by a single context but often influenced by the prevailing conditions of the time. He goes on to make the point that many traditional views of leadership tend to focus on peace time leadership and ignore other contexts that may define leadership success at any point in time. 

While the two contrasting conditions described in Horowitz’s blog help to illustrate how different conditions can demand different approaches and different types of leaders, in my experience the issue it is not quite so binary; in fact, there are many different challenges and contexts that leaders must step up to.  Furthermore, leaders can adapt well to one set of challenges and conditions but struggle in another.  We only have to look at the last couple of years which has presented a very different set of conditions that many leaders have struggled with.

Ready now…. for what?

Within the field of leadership and leadership development we often talk about the concept of leadership readiness.   That is, how ready is an individual to step into a leadership role or step up to the challenges within a leadership role.  The problem is we often default to a somewhat generic list of leadership competencies and behaviours, rather than target those that will have the most impact based on the specific priorities and challenges.  If we accept the view presented by Horowitz we should be asking the question ‘ready for what’ and align any assessment of readiness to those priorities. 

So how can we do that?

One way to tackle this question is to clarify the leadership imperatives or priorities that leaders must step up to in order to drive on the operational, strategic and cultural priorities of the organisation.  In any organisation it would be common to find multiple leadership imperatives and in any large organisation different imperatives across different divisions. 

If we embrace the importance of context then these imperatives must form the foundation of any approach to leadership development and succession management.  While a core of general leadership skills remains relevant, organisations need to consider the capacity of individuals to deliver on specific business requirements based on an assessment of relevant capabilities, experience and personal attributes.   This ultimately enables the organisation to deploy the right talent against the right business need.  Furthermore if we accept the view of Horowitz and others then we must also confront the reality that individual leaders may be suited and ready to execute one set of imperatives but struggle with others.  There is no one size fits all approach to leadership.

From an individual perspective the question leaders must ask themselves is, what am I required to do, what do I bring that enables me to do this effectively and what do I bring that could get in the way.

Fit for Purpose

For some time now I have struggled with the overly prescriptive view taken on talent and leadership.  In today’s complex business environment a single definition of leadership and leadership qualities is simply not possible.  Furthermore it is highly unlikely that one individual will bring the mix of skills, experiences and attributes that will ensure success in all conditions.  

In his piece on peace time and wartime CEOs, Horowitz sheds light on the inherent risk of adopting a one size fits all approach to performance and readiness.  Perhaps its time to focus on fit for purpose.

by Mark Busine