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Expanding the Narrative: Servant Leadership beyond Christianity

August 21, 2023 By Nagesh Belludi Leave a Comment

During the 1970s, Robert Greenleaf, an executive at AT&T, began popularizing a concept that challenged the idea of a heroic leader. He advocated for leaders who embraced humility and empowered their followers to lead.

According to Greenleaf, great leaders see themselves as servants first, and this fundamental understanding sets them apart. He taught, “Servant leadership begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead. That person is sharply different from one who is leader first, perhaps because of the need to assuage an unusual power drive or to acquire material possessions.”

Interestingly, this notion of “leader as a servant” aligns closely with the principles and teachings found in Christian scriptures, where Jesus Christ is often regarded as the ultimate example of a servant leader. Jesus exemplified humility, compassion, and selflessness in his interactions with others. In the Gospel of Mark, he declared, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45, NIV.)

While Christianity inspires its leaders to emulate the servant leadership model by prioritizing people, valuing service, and fulfilling their role as stewards, it is essential to note that servant leadership is not exclusive to Christianity. The concept can be found in other religious traditions as well. For instance, even the Śvētāmbara Jain Jñātādharmakathāḥ Sūtra (“Stories of Knowledge and Righteousness”) monastic texts contain elements of servant leadership.

In a past life, the monk Megha was an elephant. Frightened by a forest fire, he created a clearing to provide refuge when the fire next hit. He rushed to the clearing with all the other animals during a future fire. At one stage, he lifted his foot to scratch himself, and when he came to put it down again, he saw that a hare had squeezed into the space. So he stood on three legs for the entire duration of the fire — several days — and as a result, he fell over and died. This exceptionally compassionate act resulted in a human rebirth.

The Mahākapi Jātaka relates Buddha-to-be on his Bodhisattva path:

The story runs that the Bodhisattva was born as a monkey, ruler of over 80,000 monkeys. They lived near the Ganges and ate the fruit of a great mango tree. King Brahmadatta of Benares, desiring to possess the mangoes, surrounded the tree with his soldiers to kill the animals, but the Bodhisattva formed a bridge over the stream with his own body and, by this means, enabled the whole tribe to escape into safety.

Devadatta, the jealous and wicked cousin of the Buddha, was one of the monkeys in that life and, thinking it was a good chance to destroy his enemy, jumped on the Bodhisattva’s back and broke his heart.

The king, seeing the good deed of the Bodhisattva and repenting of his own attempt to kill him, tended to him with great care when he was dying and afterward gave him royal obsequies.

Servant leadership goes beyond any specific faith and encompasses a broader philosophy of putting others and organizations before oneself. It emphasizes the importance of valuing and prioritizing the interests and well-being of others. As the apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Philippians, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others” (Philippians 2:3-4, NIV.)

Wondering what to read next?

  1. Shrewd Leaders Sometimes Take Liberties with the Truth to Reach Righteous Goals
  2. Power Inspires Hypocrisy
  3. Avoid Control Talk
  4. Curry Favor with Customers?
  5. Power Corrupts, and Power Attracts the Corruptible

Filed Under: Leadership, Managing People, Mental Models Tagged With: Assertiveness, Buddhism, Getting Along, Humility, Integrity, Leadership, Parables, Persuasion, Role Models

The Enron Scandal: A Lesson on Motivated Blindness

July 19, 2023 By Nagesh Belludi Leave a Comment

The fallout from the Enron fiasco had far-reaching effects on the economy and the public’s trust in corporations. It serves as a powerful lesson in the dangers of motivated blindness—when individuals have a personal stake in unethical actions, they often look the other way or find ways to rationalize their behavior.

The folks at Arthur Andersen, serving as Enron’s external auditor, found themselves in a precarious situation. On the one hand, they were supposed to ensure financial integrity, but on the other hand, they acted as consultants, aiding Enron in manipulating financial transactions to deceive investors and manipulate earnings. Enron generously poured hefty fees their way, with auditing fees exceeding $25 million and consulting fees reaching $27 million in 2001. So, why would they want to put an end to this lucrative gravy train? To complicate matters further, many auditors from Andersen were eagerly vying for coveted positions at Enron, just like their fortunate colleagues.

To combat motivated blindness, it’s crucial to reflect on our biases, hold ourselves accountable, and actively seek out diverse perspectives to gain a broader understanding of any given issue. Max Bazerman, a professor at Harvard Business School and author of The Power of Noticing: What the Best Leaders See (2014,) asserts that individuals can overcome their inclination to overlook vital clues by fostering a “noticing mindset.” This involves consistently asking oneself and others, both within and outside the organization, the question: “Which critical threats and challenges might we be neglecting?”

Wondering what to read next?

  1. Power Inspires Hypocrisy
  2. Why Groups Cheat: Complicity and Collusion
  3. The Poolguard Phenomenon
  4. Power Corrupts, and Power Attracts the Corruptible
  5. The Ethics Test

Filed Under: Business Stories, Leadership, Mental Models, Sharpening Your Skills Tagged With: Discipline, Ethics, Getting Along, Integrity, Leadership, Motivation, Psychology, Risk

Beware of the Leadership Trap: Losing Moral Bearings

July 18, 2023 By Nagesh Belludi Leave a Comment

Some leaders fall into a dangerous trap, succumbing to temptations along their paths. These leaders deviate from their ethical responsibilities and shield themselves from fair criticism, considering themselves exempt from the rules. Such behavior can stem from an inflated ego or narcissism, a lack of self-awareness, a fear of vulnerability, or an intense emotional attachment to their ideas or beliefs.

These leaders often operate within a culture of flattery, where disagreement is seen as disloyalty, and no one dares to challenge or bring attention to issues within the organization. The leader’s circle of enablers grows as time passes, making honest dialogue impossible.

Idea for Impact: Steer clear of these pitfalls by establishing a clear “inner compass”—your values and priorities that revolve around serving a purpose. Live by these values, advocate for them, and ensure they are deeply ingrained in the fabric of your team.

Wondering what to read next?

  1. The Poolguard Phenomenon
  2. Power Corrupts, and Power Attracts the Corruptible
  3. Power Inspires Hypocrisy
  4. Why Groups Cheat: Complicity and Collusion
  5. The Ethics Test

Filed Under: Leadership, Mental Models, Sharpening Your Skills Tagged With: Decision-Making, Ethics, Getting Ahead, Humility, Integrity, Psychology

Books in Brief: ‘Flying Blind’ and the Crisis at Boeing

September 24, 2022 By Nagesh Belludi Leave a Comment

'Boeing Flying Blind' by Peter Robison (ISBN 0385546491) Bloomberg investigative journalist Peter Robison’s thoroughly researched Flying Blind: The 737 MAX Tragedy and the Fall of Boeing (2022) offers noteworthy lessons about corporate responsibility and leadership problem-solving.

In a nutshell, starting in the late 1990s, Boeing shifted from a company run by engineers who emphasized product integrity to one run by MBA-types who prized shareholder value over long-term product planning. Inspired by General Electric’s Jack Welch, the company embraced cost-cutting, outsourcing, financial engineering, union-busting, and co-opting regulators. These miscalculated strategies culminated in the 737 MAX disasters and disgraceful corporate responses.

Recommendation: Read Peter Robison’s Flying Blind, but be wary of the author’s broad-brush political biases, which, I found, sidetracked from the storyline. The internal organizational tensions that led to corporate deception and the fateful consequences of federal regulators’ consigning design approvals to Boeing are particularly interesting.

Key Takeaway: Negligent engineering to minimize costs and adhere to a delivery schedule is a symptom of ethical blight.

Wondering what to read next?

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  3. This is Not Responsible Leadership: Boeing’s CEO Blames Predecessor
  4. Dear Customer, Speak Early and Have it Your Way!
  5. Don’t Outsource a Strategic Component of Your Business

Filed Under: Business Stories, Leadership, The Great Innovators Tagged With: Aviation, Ethics, Governance, Innovation, Integrity, Jack Welch, Leadership Lessons, Problem Solving

Why Groups Cheat: Complicity and Collusion

July 2, 2022 By Nagesh Belludi Leave a Comment

News broke out that Ernst & Young revealed this week that its employees cheated on ethics exams. The accounting behemoth is being fined $100 million. That’s one of the biggest fines ever levied against an audit firm.

It’s absurd that specialists responsible for keeping things straight and steering moral enterprise cheated on ethics exams! Ernst & Young’s leadership evidently disregarded the internal reports about the cheating. Perhaps because when people identify so strongly with a group, they’re much more swayed to view the group’s actions positively and accept that group’s norms.

Research by Vanderbilt University’s Jessica Kennedy and colleagues suggests that high-flying people are sometimes more inclined than low-ranking people to adopt what their group recommends, even when it represents an ethics breach. Power sometimes provokes people to so strongly want to identify with their group that they’re willing to overlook when the group’s collective actions cross an ethical line. This affinity is, therefore, urged to sustain transgression instead of stopping its spread, especially when the odds of being caught and punished are slim.

Wondering what to read next?

  1. Power Corrupts, and Power Attracts the Corruptible
  2. The Poolguard Phenomenon
  3. Shrewd Leaders Sometimes Take Liberties with the Truth to Reach Righteous Goals
  4. The Enron Scandal: A Lesson on Motivated Blindness
  5. Power Inspires Hypocrisy

Filed Under: Business Stories, Leadership, Managing People, Mental Models Tagged With: Discipline, Ethics, Getting Ahead, Integrity, Leadership, Motivation, Psychology, Role Models

The Ethics Test

February 26, 2022 By Nagesh Belludi Leave a Comment

Since 1961, Texas Instruments has had a multi-step guideline that it wants employees to use to decide whether or not a contemplated decision is ethical. One version:

  1. Is the action legal?
  2. Does it comply with our values?
  3. If you do it, will you feel bad?
  4. How will it look in the newspaper?
  5. If you know it’s wrong, don’t do it!
  6. If you’re not sure, ask.
  7. Keep asking until you get an answer.

Idea for Impact: Use such decision-making models for clear direction about ethical behavior when the temptation to behave unethically is strongest.

Wondering what to read next?

  1. Power Inspires Hypocrisy
  2. The Poolguard Phenomenon
  3. Power Corrupts, and Power Attracts the Corruptible
  4. Why Groups Cheat: Complicity and Collusion
  5. The Enron Scandal: A Lesson on Motivated Blindness

Filed Under: Mental Models Tagged With: Discipline, Ethics, Humility, Integrity, Motivation, Psychology

Power Inspires Hypocrisy

July 27, 2020 By Nagesh Belludi Leave a Comment

Mark Hurd, whom I featured in Friday’s article, was one of the most respected and eminent leaders in Silicon Valley until his mighty fall following his dalliance with a contractor during his time as CEO of Hewlett Packard (HP.)

Hurd had hired this contractor, a glamour model, as a “hostess” for “executive summit events,” even at out-of-town places where there is no HP event, but Hurd happened to be.

Hurd was ultimately exonerated of violating HP’s sexual-harassment policy (nothing was consummated with the contractor, and Hurd settled with the accuser for undisclosed terms) but he was officially charged with drumming up expense reports.

Hurd walked away from HP with a $34 million severance package. Almost immediately, he became co-president of Oracle, earning $11 million a year and options.

Much has been speculated about the real reasons HP’s board gave Hurd the boot, especially considering that he probably falsified his just an expense report just the once. Even then, said expenses were petty compared to the massive turnaround he had engineered at HP after walking into a very troubling situation. Hurd was famed for his no-nonsense management style and for finagling a culture of operational excellence at HP.

When the Hurd controversy broke out, Wall Street Journal’s Jonah Lehrer argued that when nice people rise to positions of power, “authority atrophies the very talents that got them there.”

The very traits that helped leaders accumulate control in the first place all but disappear once they rise to power. Instead of being polite, honest and outgoing, they become impulsive, reckless and rude.

Contrary to the notion that nice guys finish last, research shows that the surest way to accumulate power is to do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

But once nice guys reach the top, the headiness of wielding power causes them to morph into a very different kind of beast. They lose their ability to empathize with others, especially lesser mortals, and ignore information that doesn’t confirm what they already believe. Most tellingly, perhaps, they learn to excuse faults in themselves that they are quick to condemn in others. That’s not to say that every CEO is a secret villain. But even the most virtuous people can be undone by the corner office.

Idea for Impact: Power can become an enabler of corruption, deceit, and hypocrisy. People in positions of power have incentives to hold others to strict account for their behaviors even as they themselves act up, especially when the odds of being caught and punished are slim.

Wondering what to read next?

  1. Power Corrupts, and Power Attracts the Corruptible
  2. The Poolguard Phenomenon
  3. The Enron Scandal: A Lesson on Motivated Blindness
  4. Shrewd Leaders Sometimes Take Liberties with the Truth to Reach Righteous Goals
  5. Why Groups Cheat: Complicity and Collusion

Filed Under: Leadership, Mental Models Tagged With: Attitudes, Discipline, Ethics, Getting Along, Humility, Icons, Integrity, Leadership, Motivation, Psychology, Success

This is Not Responsible Leadership: Boeing’s CEO Blames Predecessor

March 12, 2020 By Nagesh Belludi Leave a Comment

In January, Boeing’s former Chairman, David Calhoun, became CEO after the board fired Dennis Muilenburg. Less than two months later, in a New York Times interview last week, Calhoun blamed Muilenburg for the misfortunes plaguing Boeing:

  • Asked why he wouldn’t give up his salary (he gets a $7 million bonus if he can get the 737 MAX back into the sky) in light of the 737 MAX-related woes, Calhoun declared, “… ’cause I’m not sure I would have done it [taken the job without a salary].”
  • On Boeing’s systemic culture problem (a steady trickle of revelations has exposed software problems and corners being cut in the engineering and certification processes,) Calhoun characterized the contents of the leaked emails as unacceptable but also downplayed the issue: “… I see a couple of people who wrote horrible emails.”
  • Calhoun has been on Boeing’s board since 2009. While the MAX crisis snowballed and Boeing’s crisis management went from bad to worse, Calhoun took over as the board’s chairman. In that capacity, he fully endorsed Muilenburg saying, “from the vantage point of our board, he has done everything right,” “he didn’t create this problem,” and “shouldn’t resign.” Now, in the last week’s interview, Calhoun had a different take: “Boards are invested in their CEOs until they’re not. We had a backup plan. I am the backup plan.”
  • Acknowledging that Muilenburg boosted production rates before the supply chain was ready, Calhoun declared, “I’ll never be able to judge what motivated Dennis, whether it was a stock price that was going to continue to go up and up, or whether it was just beating the other guy to the next rate increase. If anybody ran over the rainbow for the pot of gold on stock, it would have been him.”

Calhoun and the rest of Boeing’s board of directors were part of the context right from the outset. The roots of Boeing’s current crisis embody decisions made by the company’s leadership over a decade and fully sanctioned by the board. The board is wholly accountable for everything that happens under its authority.

Idea for Impact: Blame is an Accountability Killer

This is not responsible leadership. A true leader doesn’t pass the blame for failure but graciously accepts responsibility for the problems he inherited. Even though Boeing’s lapses may not be traceable directly to him in his capacity as a member of the company’s board, Calhoun should have acknowledged his—and the rest of the board’s—failing to keep an eye on Boeing’s leadership team over the last decade.

Leading with integrity means taking personal responsibility. It’s tempting for people to take flight and avoid the personal consequences of what happened, to reject personal responsibility, and to pass the blame on to other people.

Calhoun could have acknowledged that the board’s actions had a role in the situation. By facing up to these criticisms and admitting that Boeing and it’s board could have done things better, Calhoun could have encouraged others at Boeing to do the same, especially considering that he must overhaul the company culture from the top down.

Wondering what to read next?

  1. The Cost of Leadership Incivility
  2. Five Signs of Excessive Confidence
  3. The Poolguard Phenomenon
  4. Books in Brief: ‘Flying Blind’ and the Crisis at Boeing
  5. Shrewd Leaders Sometimes Take Liberties with the Truth to Reach Righteous Goals

Filed Under: Effective Communication, Leadership Tagged With: Attitudes, Aviation, Governance, Humility, Integrity, Leadership, Leadership Lessons, Respect

The Poolguard Phenomenon

February 24, 2020 By Nagesh Belludi Leave a Comment

Even Petty Power Corrupts

Ever wondered why some people in a position of power, but without the concomitant rank or status, tend to exert their power unreasonably?

People in menial jobs can have, within their petty fiefdoms, the ability to inconvenience people. Rub a TSA agent the wrong way, for example, and you could be signaled for expanded screening. Summer-time poolguards can be seen checking excessively over kids and parents who show no deference to the poolguards’ authority. At bureaucratic offices, clerks and stern supervisors sometimes impose petty rules that must be followed for the sake of the rules—and nobody likes dealing with them!

The power tripper’s fragile ego hinges on exerting his/her power.

Power Increases People’s Sense of Entitlement

This anecdotal fact seems to be substantiated by this study, titled “The Destructive Nature of Power Without Status.” The researchers make a case that neither power nor low status independently provokes people to mistreat others. Rather, the combination of these two facets of social interaction makes abuse that much more likely.

We predicted that when people have a role that gives them power but lacks status—and the respect that comes with that status—then it can lead to demeaning behaviors. Put simply, it feels bad to be in a low-status position and the power that goes with that role gives them a way to take action on those negative feelings.

One way to prevent such power dynamics is to find ways to make all individuals feel respected and valued irrespective of the status of their roles. “Respect assuages negative feelings about their low-status roles and leads them to treat others positively.” Courtesy pays!

Notes

  • Some people will despise anyone they suspect is exerting power over them.
  • Compare to the 1971 Stanford Prison Experiment, in which a group of students was appointed either prisoners or guards in a mocked-up prison. Although all the participants understood they were part of a simulation, the “guards” treated the “prisoners” in extremely humiliating ways because, per the researchers, the guards recognized that they lacked respect and admiration in the eyes of others. (This controversial experiment was the subject of a 2015 docudrama.)
  • Compare to the concept of the Napoleon Complex, through which, shorter men could overcompensate for their height by means of social aggressiveness. (Napoleon wasn’t short.)
  • Cf. The “Waiter Rule” states that how you treat seemingly insignificant people says a lot about your personality and priorities.

Wondering what to read next?

  1. Power Corrupts, and Power Attracts the Corruptible
  2. Shrewd Leaders Sometimes Take Liberties with the Truth to Reach Righteous Goals
  3. Power Inspires Hypocrisy
  4. Why Groups Cheat: Complicity and Collusion
  5. Is Showing up Late to a Meeting a Sign of Power?

Filed Under: Leadership, Managing People, Sharpening Your Skills Tagged With: Attitudes, Discipline, Ethics, Etiquette, Getting Ahead, Humility, Integrity, Leadership, Motivation, Psychology

Shrewd Leaders Sometimes Take Liberties with the Truth to Reach Righteous Goals

April 12, 2018 By Nagesh Belludi 1 Comment

Duplicity must be decried when used to justify the attainment and exercise of power. However, sometimes, even principled leaders must put on an act to realize noble ends—infuse optimism to surmount hopelessness, win followers’ devotion to audacious new ideas, for example.

In the Zen parable that follows, a warrior motivates his followers in the face of desperate odds. He persuades his outnumbered army by flipping an unfair coin and proclaiming that they are fated to win the battle.

A great Japanese warrior named Nobunaga decided to attack the enemy although he had only one-tenth the number of men the opposition commanded. He knew that he would win, but his soldiers were in doubt.

On the way he stopped at a Shinto shrine and told his men: “After I visit the shrine I will toss a coin. If heads comes, we will win; if tails, we will lose. Destiny holds us in her hand.”

Nobunaga entered the shrine and offered a silent prayer. He came forth and tossed a coin. Heads appeared. His soldiers were so eager to fight that they won their battle easily.

“No one can change the hand of destiny,” his attendant told him after the battle.

“Indeed not,” said Nobunaga, showing a coin which had been doubled, with heads facing either way.

Idea for Impact: Moral Leadership Relates to the Integrity of Leaders and Their Intentions

A wise leader must be open to bringing deception into play to smooth the way to sound decisions and noble results.

As long as leaders use these methods to respectable purposes, and until people wise up to their methods, certain ends can justify certain means.

Postscript: The quoted Zen parable is sourced from the celebrated compilation Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings, Shambhala Edition (1961) by Paul Reps. This book traces its roots to the thirteenth-century Japanese anthology of Buddhist parables Shasekishū (Sand and Pebbles) compiled by the Kamakura-era monk Mujū.

Wondering what to read next?

  1. Power Corrupts, and Power Attracts the Corruptible
  2. The Poolguard Phenomenon
  3. Why Groups Cheat: Complicity and Collusion
  4. Power Inspires Hypocrisy
  5. Heaven and Hell: A Zen Parable on Self-Awareness

Filed Under: Leadership, Managing People Tagged With: Attitudes, Buddhism, Discipline, Ethics, Getting Ahead, Humility, Integrity, Leadership, Motivation, Parables, Role Models, Wisdom

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About: Nagesh Belludi [hire] is a St. Petersburg, Florida-based freethinker, investor, and leadership coach. He specializes in helping executives and companies ensure that the overall quality of their decision-making benefits isn’t compromised by a lack of a big-picture understanding.

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