April 2009

FIGHTING THE GOOD FIGHT

MILLION DOLLAR LESSONS FOR TODAY’S LEADERS

Many know, Dr. Mel is a boxing fan...

In early 2008 I was honored by Florida's Governor Charlie Crist, to serve as one of five statewide commissioners on the Florida Boxing Commission - it's the second most active commission in the country and we oversee any professional Boxing or Mixed Martial Arts match in the state. Not only am I the only woman to current hold a seat on the commission, I am the second woman ever to have this appointment!

So after watching over a hundred Boxing and MMA cards in the past many months, I thought I'd share some lessons I see play out on a regular basis, both in the ring and at your office!

A couple of years ago Clint Eastwoood directed (and starred in) a great fight film that still today provides powerful lessons for business and governmental leaders. It received seven Academy Award Nominations and four Oscars including: Best Director (Clint Eastwood), Best Actress in a leading role (Hillary Swank), and Best Actor in a supporting role (Morgan Freeman). And you may have already guessed it won the 2005 Best Picture Award as well -- it was none other than: Million Dollar Baby written by F.X. Toole.

Lesson:

“Instead of running from pain, in boxing you step into it.”

–F.X. Toole, Author

Application: What ‘pain’ have you been running from in your business? You continue to run, but it’s still there! What’s the issue you need to turnaround, face, and step into, head on?

Lesson:

“You cannot call yourself an actor (leader) if you’re not listening.” --

Morgan Freeman, on role in Million Dollar Baby.

“Listening is everything.”

Hillary Swank

Application: Do you believe listening is everything? Do your actions support your belief?

Lesson: One of the peripheral characters in the movie, “Danger” was a 100lb. weakling, a misfit, lacking a firm grasp of reality; this individual had no/low skills, in fact ended up getting himself hurt badly.

Application: Do you have such peripheral characters in your organization? Who’s the “Danger” in your organization – they’re low skilled, lacking a grasp of reality, under-performing, yet have been allowed to malinger? What steps will you take to address your “Danger”?

Recently, one CEO quite indignantly shared, “You think we’d invest in training and developing them!?” He was referring to employees filling service roles within his Fortune 500 organization.

He continued, “Mel, it’s low skill/low wage. It doesn’t matter.” What this CEO failed to realize was it was this level of employee that had the most direct and profound interaction with his customers.

A thought: If you don’t want to invest in your “Dangers”, then eliminate them from your team. Remember the maxim, “We are only as strong as our weakest link.”

Application: What significance do you think there is in the character’s name being "Danger”? By not addressing the “Dangers” in your organization, there’s a great cost in terms of time, dollars, and human resources. So, who’s your “Danger” and what are you going to do about it?

HOW CEO’S GET TKO’D

It’s a common belief that CEOs get fired because of financial performance. While the cases like GM's Rick Waggoner are made news, the reality is that’s wrong. According to a study by LeadershipIQ.com. It found that 31% of CEOs get fired for mismanaging change, 28% for ignoring customers, 27% for tolerating low performers, 23% for denying reality, and 22% for too much talk and not enough action.

The 4-year study interviewed 1,087 board members from 286 public, private, business and health care organizations that fired, or otherwise forced out, their chief executive.

Upon completing the 1,087 interviews, responses were compiled and distilled the most common answers to the open-ended question: “So why did the CEO really get fired or forced out?” The top five responses:

1. Mismanaging change (31%): Virtually every organization interviewed indicated they were undergoing, or had recently undergone, a change initiative. However, half of board members said that their change initiative did not go well. Most pointed to a failure on the CEOs part to properly motivate employees and managers, and more specifically, to adequately sell the need to change course.
2. Ignoring customers (28%): Even with Sarbanes-Oxley, many board members have close ties with, or are themselves, customers of the organization. Board members said their test for whether the CEO was sufficiently engaged in the business was the extent to which they evidenced intimate knowledge of customers, customer needs and developing trends.
3. Tolerating low performers (27%): Board members shared that when CEOs allowed an obvious low performer to linger (without any improvement or discipline), it destroyed the CEO’s credibility and made it politically difficult for them to hold others accountable.
4. Denying Reality (23%): When board members felt that they were closer to the market and customers than the CEO, the CEO was ousted. Board members said they would rather have bad news and a plan to fix it, than they would no news or sugarcoated news.
5. Too much talk, not enough action (22%): Walking the walk is more important than talking the talk. Boards want tactical plans for the who, what, when and where, as well as evidence of implementation.

The tagline to Million Dollar Baby went: "Beyond his silence, there is a past. Beyond her dreams, there is a feeling. Beyond hope, there is a memory. Beyond their journey, there is a love."

While true for the movie, what would your tagline be about the lessons you're learning in this economy?

Are you Fighting the Good Fight?