Two mega corporate mergers in my 15 years career. I was part of the marriage deal between a 200 years old European company called Danzas, and AEI (Air Express International), a successful corporation in the US then.
Both gave themselves two years to harmonize any differences and work the right balance. They listed in the "will" the people, assets, liabilities, and share of voice on both sides. They adopted both names and called themselves DANZAS AEI. Quite a fair marriage.Two years later, Danzas AEI took DHL as a partner. This time, the decision was swift. They decided to bury Danzas and named the combined entities DHL, due to its global brand equity.
These integrations taught me many things. However one thing prevails. People work for people.
The key team who cut the deals - Danzas, AEI, and DHL, are mostly around, fiercely loyal, and the best talents in the industry. They went on to achieve many great things in the corporate history.
A corporation can change directions many times. They can rewrite new mission statements and core values. They can rebrand themselves. They can acquire new assets and buy more companies. All these can be done in a controlled fashion. When it comes to matters of the heart - people's attitude, values, belief, respect - they look only to their leaders for guidance. No amount of carrots dangling can move your people to do what they don't believe in, unless you have nurtured strong shepherds to herd the sheeps. Don't omit the good shepherds from the will for they determine the success.
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true that at the heart of each integration, it isn't just the head that counts but the shepherds below. However, there are times when the head thinks that the shepherds are the sheep, or thinks that as the head, he is the only shepherd and the rest are just sheep. When these things happen, shepherds which hold the organization together unfortunately aren't needed (whether it is to the detriment of the organization - only time will tell), however, what I can say is that the good shepherds will always be needed in other organizations and there will be plenty out there for those good shepherds.
ReplyDeleteTrue leaders empower. The inability to cultivate shepherds at every level cut short the race to success.
ReplyDeleteA friend emailed his comment:
ReplyDeleteIn today’s corporate setting, there could be too much emphasis on leadership. CEOs don’t have all the answers. And employee disengagement is at an all-time high across all industries.
My response is:
I couldnt agree more that the average CEOs are getting the shame and blame for the way they lead or a total lack of it. That's precisely why we need "shepherds" to lead more effectively at all levels and not just rely on the CEO. I believe confusion and an unclear focus = disengaged people. Many leaders I know worried about their positions all the time. It's like the political election. The moment they are appointed to new roles, they start working for their next move. By and large this is the greed of the human race. The fear to do anything drastic that will threaten their positions prevent them from having the guts to do their jobs properly. Thus people on the ground know what kind of leaders they are but they just do not challenge them either for fear of their own jobs. It's a vicious cycle. After sometime it permeates the company's culture and became a way of life.