We will address each question, with the issue of leadership being the first and the most important to explore. (See Chap. 14 for a good example of leadership in action.)
Just what is a leader? Simple: It is someone who has a following. His followers are willing to do what he says, just because HE says so. They may follow him because of his character or they may follow because of his position, or maybe it is his personality, or his competence, or just maybe a critical combination of these four
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…M
anagement must awaken to the challenge, must learn their responsibili- ties, and take on leadership for change. . . .W. Edwards Deming”
aspects of who he is. But the critical factor is that they are willing to follow him, they are willing to act, and many times they are willing to undergo severe hardship and sacrifice for this leader. If he/she says to do something, they do it. They need nothing more.
How does this leader get his following to do these things? There is a great deal in the literature on leadership, and some of it is outstanding—Robert Greenleaf’s being some of the best. Some of the literature puts the topic of leadership completely out of context, yet others touch on all the major points but do not emphasize the very critical few necessary characteristics. I do not intend to fully explore leadership. That is not necessary right now, but what we will discuss is the critical few characteristics that all leaders must have.
They are also the skills that the leader of this Lean initiative must have. Depending upon the type of cultural change undertaken, or maybe where or when it happens, the leaders of those efforts may need other skills as well, but these are the critical few skills that are absolutely necessary for ANY leader. If he/she is lacking in any of these characteristics, the effort—be it a Lean initiative or the overtaking of a nation—will almost surely fail.
Think of a leader, any leader. It could be a political great like Churchill, Martin Luther King, or even John F. Kennedy. It could be a sports leader like Vince Lombardi or maybe a spiritual leader like Gandhi or Christ. All these people were great leaders.
Their individual fields of endeavor were different, yet they shared some common abili- ties that led to their success. That said, what are the common characteristics shared by these leaders? By all leaders?
First, all leaders have a plan. Martin Luther King’s plan was immortalized by his
“I have a dream” speech. Even today, some 40 years later, many people quote his words, “…one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” What about Gandhi’s plan of passive resis-
tance? Maybe the grandest of all was the plan of Christ. Even having died over 2000 years ago, his following still grows. They all had a plan.
Your Lean initiative leader must also have a plan. Lacking this person or his plan, my advice is strong and clear. Don’t even start. If you attempt to undertake this initiative without strong leadership and a strong plan, you will fail.
Furthermore, you will have raised the expectations of your employees, and their expectations will be crushed. This only makes the next effort more difficult. Cer- tainly, do not rush into this effort. Find a good leader and develop a solid plan before you start.
The second necessary characteristic these men all shared was the ability to articu- late their plan so people could understand and buy into it. They have the ability to get people engaged. It is not coincidental that all these examples were also great orators.
I’m not so sure about Gandhi, but the others could mesmerize a group with their speeches. About Vince Lombardi, his great middle linebacker Ray Nietzsche once said,
P
oint of Clarity One can lead through:•
Competence•
Character•
Position•
PersonalityOur Lean leader must lead pri- marily through competence.
P
oint of Clarity It is not pos- sible to lead without a plan.“When coach Lombardi said to sit down, I didn’t even look for a chair.” Their speeches were an extremely strong tool that allowed them to attract, motivate, and activate a following. Often, the content of their speeches was very motivating in its own right—
but make no mistake: the choice of words and the type of delivery made a huge differ- ence. The leader of this Lean initiative must have this skill also. They must be able to make the Lean initiative come alive to those involved. Not only must they encourage the hands and feet of their followers to move in the right direction, they must also moti- vate the people and engage their hearts as well.
Some examples exist of successful initiatives where the person who put together the plan was not the person to articulate it. This type of
brains and mouthpiece combination will not work in our Lean initiative, however. Both skills must be res- ident in the same person since they will have to be on the floor on a daily basis—observing, dealing with problems, and interacting with all the people in the facility. The leader must be able to handle ques- tions and problems quickly—in short, they must be able to lead from competence.
The third, and final, requisite characteristic of a leader is the willingness to act on the plan, at the exclusion of all else. He must exhibit the skill to not lose sight of the goal and stay the course in spite of roadblocks, obstacles, and resistance. He must be willing to act, at all costs, to reach the necessary objectives. This ability to act is a huge need. Many great plans have failed not because the plan was not needed or the plan was not good enough, but because the leadership did not have the courage and char- acter to make the difficult decisions. In the end, this compromised the entire effort, and the plan, simultaneously. We have seen this
all too often.
To act properly, they must first be able to recog- nize exactly what the situation is, and they must be acutely aware of happenings in the facility. Second, they themselves must be excellent problem solvers.
They must be able to sort through the options and properly apply the values needed. Finally, they must have the wisdom, courage, and character to act when action is required, and conversely, should use those same skills to hold back when thoughtful inaction is the appropriate behavior.
So the leader of your Lean initiative—be it you or someone else—must have these three requisite skills:
• The ability to develop a plan
• The ability to articulate this plan and engage others
• The ability to act on the plan
Carefully choose your leader, and if you do not have someone with these skills, find a person who does. There is no substitute for leadership. Any compromise on this topic will guarantee failure.