Leaders are great, but getting better

by Pamela A. Zinkosky

When someone asks me how doing, I either tell them I’m perfect, but improving, or I’m great, but I’m getting getter,” Bill Middlebrooks, Managing Partner of Excellence In Action Inc., told BCN leaders at a Putting It All Together workshop.

The Joint Programs team developed the workshop to help union and management leaders synthesize all of their training and model high performance behavior, ultimately improving BCN’s business results.

Middlebrooks’ comment set the stage for a discussion of the progress BCN leaders have made on their journey toward world-class performance and the work that remains ahead of them.

“Inherent in leadership is the fundamental idea that you, as a leader, know where you’re going. Be proud of what you’ve done, but don’t be satisfied,” said Middlebrooks.

Pieces of a puzzle

Middlebrooks explained the initiatives already in place to bring about world-class performance for BCN:

• The BCN Leadership Strategy, comprising the 7 Key Leadership Behaviors, the Profile of a Leader and Leadership Development.
• BCN Work Place Measurements like the Gallup Q12 Process.
• The Corporate Business Strategy, including BCN’s vision, mission and values.
• The BCN Business Success Model, which states that employee satisfaction leads to customer satisfaction and ultimately better business results.
• BCN Leadership Expectations, including diversity, union-management collaboration and high performance.

These pieces of the puzzle work together to bring about world-class performance, said Middlebrooks, but high performance is the one piece that’s not yet well-defined. To help define it, he had leaders break into groups and suggest one-word descriptions of high performance. Their suggestions will be used to develop a corporate definition.

Leadership vs. management

What do real leaders really do? More than manage, said Middlebrooks. Management includes day-to-day planning, organizing and delegating responsibility. Leadership means modeling behaviors that lead to high performance, motivating employees to do their best and work to improve, and providing directions and vision.

Sharon L. Heath, Director, BCN Corporate Compliance, called the leadership versus management session an ‘ah-ha moment.’  “Most leaders have a comfort zone, leaning toward the management end of the spectrum,” she said. “Leadership is about recognizing that, as much as we like to think so, leaders can’t control people. Obtaining feedback and buy-in is integral to success. Combining leadership and management is the foundation to continued success.”

Managing the Individual

The workshop also included an introduction to the next stage in BCN’s movement toward becoming a strengths-based organization: Managing the Individual. Until now, BCN’s Gallup training has focused on engaging employees at the group level. Managing the Individual is a process for improving engagement by working one-on-one with employees. Training for this new process began in May.

Commitment to high performance

Attendees came away from the workshop with commitment cards describing how they will model leadership behaviors. Shela Drew, claims manager, Grand Rapids, committed to treating all her team members with courtesy and respect. Debra Versalle, document management manager, Grand Rapids, committed to communicating on a timely basis.

Stephanie Thornton, BCN billing analyst and Amalgamated Local 1781 committee person, said the workshop reminded her that she can always do better, and gave her motivation to achieve high performance by cooperating with fellow employees. “When everyone works together on our journey for success, we all feel the accomplishments,” she said.

Ask a BCN leader how he or she is doing today. If the response is “perfect, but improving” or “great, but getting better,” you’ll know he or she attended the Putting It All Together workshop, and is on the journey toward high performance.