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2013 Leadership Summit

DeCoster presents essential elements of organizational leaders

“What got us here, won’t get us there.”

That pronouncement came during opening remarks by Dr. Tom DeCoster, a national authority on organizational leadership. He told participants at the ITD Leadership Summit last week that flexibility and adaptation is essential in a rapidly changing world.

The demand of a technology driven society is faster and faster – a need for speed. Regardless of how fast we operate today, it will not be fast enough for tomorrow, DeCoster emphasized. It is easy to stand on your successes, but that will not prepare you to move forward.

The public keeps raising the bar, and honeymoons are short.

DeCoster gave a comprehensive and compelling presentation on “5 Characters for Successful Leadership,” encouraging employees to focus on the future without forgetting the lessons of the past.

1. Conceive it, Believe it, Achieve it

Some people dream of success, others stay awake and make it happen.
Make a difference; that translates into leadership. Do it within your means and abilities, without carrying a feeling of superiority.
Don’t play God. The job already is taken. Instead, do your best without seeking praise
There’s always time. If you really want to accomplish something, you’ll find a way. If not, you’ll find an excuse. One person with passion is better than 40 people who are merely interested. Manage your time so the important things get done and procrastinate on those what will not move you forward.
Focus on the vital few. DeCoster referred to a secretary in the Arizona Department of Transportation who had vision and ambition. She closed her transportation career in a position with a similar title – secretary: U.S. Transportation Secretary and administrator of the Federal Highway Administration, Mary Peters. She coined the phrase “a vital few,” warning against trying to accomplish everything instead of concentrating on a few goals that lead to success. ITD took that same approach in creating a new strategic plan that has only three key goals.

2. “I do not need to be, nor should I be, the source of solution to every challenge.”

One way of escaping responsibility is to kick the can upstairs.
Don’t dismiss opportunities with “It’s not my job.” Instead, choose collaboration and working with others over individual effort.
Practice active engagement. Aspire to land in the blue. People seldom resist their own ideas. When you give a suggestion, own it, but that doesn’t mean it should be attempted without the help of others.
Practice humility. That doesn’t mean thinking less of your self, but more of others. Share the successes with colleagues who helped make them happen.
Practice creativity. “I may not be the most creative, even if I conceive the plan. Creators and explorers pull together good ideas with the goal of implementing them. Don’t let judges and warriors stand in the way of progress. Listen to find value in suggestions, not to find fault.
Preach your sermon with your deeds. Lead by actively doing, by your deeds. “What I say is what I do.” Good sermon don’t need words to convince. Have passion for what you believe. Bosses create fear; leaders create confidence.

3. Leadership is not a matter of getting an education; it is a matter of staying educated.”

It’s a matter of staying educated, engaging in a continual process not believing you have become educated. Executives go first, leading the way by example; leaders become the teachers; trainers become the facilitators. Leadership is about developing competencies; training sessions should be one-third instruction and two-thirds application.
Build the skill and the will. Convert skills into the will to make plans happen. Don’t fall into the trap of asking “How did you like it?” It’s not about likeability. What is more important is your investment and identifiable take-“aways.” “What are you going to do with what you learned?
The classroom experience is merely the beginning point. Success entails applying it in the workplace.
Transition to the workplace. Practice becomes implementation. Ask yourself, “What will happen as a result of the training. If ITD does training right, it will be among the best in the country. Middle managers become mentors, preparing employees to pass the baton to a new generation.
Make individual implementation plans a part of the “blue” culture. Employees should be responsible for developing the IIPs. Managers should work with employees to ensure that training translates into your work. It’s not about training; it’s about leadership development.

4. The cure for personal stagnation is always growth and change.

Climb out of the rut that would stifle personal and professional growth … that would confine and channel your future.
Don’t become trapped by circumstances.
The fallacy of cruise control – “wherever I am is where I am supposed to be, what I am cut out for.” You can become a victim of cruise control by letting others chart your course and make your decisions. Focus on continued improvement and moving forward. “The rate of the leader determines the speed of the pack.”
Where are we going? Two fundamental questions employees share is “How am I doing,” and “Where am I going?” Focusing only on the task ahead prevents you from seeing the larger vision. Determine to be the leader who helps to set the direction and destination.
Fight through the pain. When you propose something new, the first filter usually is “How does this affect me? And, “What’s in it for me?” Leadership is not about making friends; it’s about being respected. You can inspire people to change without being a friend. Change can be painful, so can leadership.
Focus on your sphere of influence. Contain your influence to those things you have the ability to change. Recognize how many things you can influence. Stagnation can be a direct result of trying to do things that are beyond your sphere of influence. People who don’t grow, shrink. Stretch yourself.

5. “If not the best, then why bother?

Focus on forward feedback, not backward. Performance reports are a measure of what and how well we have done in the past. They are based on past performances, history and yesterday. Forward feedback focuses on the future – keep the challenge in front of you, looking forward not behind. It’s not how high you have climbed in an organization, but by how many people you bring with you.
Measure against the best. If you want to be the best, you measure yourself by the best. Strive for an A-plus in an A world, not a C-minus world. You can always find someone doing average work. Don’t choose to live in that world.
Reinforce with self-confidence. If we have succeeded in the past, we can do it again. Part of a leader’s job is to instill confidence in others. Don’t settle for failure, which insists that you can’t succeed. Success convinces you that you can. Use past success to create future successes.
Qualify as a star performer. If you want to be among the best leaders, become a leader.

Being the best transportation department depends on individuals who are determined to be their best. “Within my sphere of influence, if it is to be, it is up to me.”

If ITD is to become the best transportation department in the country, every employee must determine to be the best performer possible. It’s each member of the team, doing what he or she can, to make the collective team the best.

See video, Part 1

See video, Part 2