Captain, my captain!

Sat, 18 Jul 2009 19:10:28 GMT

In recent years there’s been a trend in international businesses to move away from hierarchical employee structures in favour of a flatter, more egalitarian approach to managing operations and people. While I fully support employees and colleagues treating each other as equals, I fear that in some cases companies may have over-corrected.

I’m certainly not saying that businesses require dictatorial CEs or elitist management structures. Far from it. But in doing away with hierarchical structures, organisations must beware of throwing the proverbial baby out with the bath water.I’m a leader. I say it unashamedly, because it’s my sincere belief that winning teams require assertive, creative, visionary leaders in order to remain successful and stay on course to greatness. It’s a universal truth, recognised by experts in all fields of life and business, that every ship needs a captain. To take this analogy further, the ship’s captain can be absolutely clear on where he wants to go and have a precise strategy on how to get there. He can be a great captain who treats his crew with respect and dignity. But unless he can rally his team and actually sail the ship, he’s destined to remain standing on the dock.

Success in modern business is hardly ever the result of an individual effort. It takes winning teams to build successful and sustainable companies. But what makes a winning team? It doesn’t fall miraculously into place: a winning team is created. And this requires effective leadership.So the question is this: what type of leader is able to build and lead a winning team? John Quincy Adams, sixth President of the US, once said: “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you’re a leader.” Here at Pamodzi Investment Holdings, we live by the philosophy of “tiyende pamodzi” (“together we strive”). It’s a reflection of our belief that, when it comes to building a successful business, unity is power. It epitomises our culture of togetherness and teamwork.

It’s only within such a high-performance culture, built on shared responsibility and accountability, that a team of people can be empowered to become winners. I once heard it said that the culture of an organisation is the shadow of its leader. It’s worth remembering that if you’re a leader, your actions and attitudes shape the environment in which others are required to perform. It’s a huge responsibility. But, then, if you’re a leader, you should be happy to shoulder it.

So, if you desire a winning team – lead! Confidently. By all means be democratic in your decision-making, but embrace your position – and then take your team to greatness.

Have vision, will lead

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 21:14:30 GMT

Nowadays, business leadership requires multiple abilities — primarily sensitivity, insight and the ability to develop others’ potential

Suddenly you succeed your boss, who’s been promoted to lead another division. From an individual contributor, you’re now management. Everything feels different and the rules of the game change. Corporate mentors and authors Jack and Suzy Welch say before you become a leader, success is about growing yourself. Once you become a leader, it’s about growing others.

My management début came in 1979, heading the forerunner to Pamodzi Investment Holdings. Subsequently, I was responsible for teams ranging from three people to the current 12 CEOs of our portfolio companies and four executive directors of Pamodzi.My personal development has included coaching and being coached. Recently, I asked a friend: “At least three of my direct-reports are smarter than I am. How can I productively appraise their performance management plans?” CEOs provide strategic leadership to a diverse team of specialists – my success is fuelled by the success of the intellectual capital that surrounds me.

Part of growing into my role included developing attitudes, beliefs and behaviours that define my leadership. Of course, life would be easier if leadership simply involved observing a list of guiding principles. However, it means doing balancing acts every day.Leaders come in different varieties. Personal development has prompted me to make sense of my own leadership experiences over the past 29 years. I make sure people not only see the vision, but live, breathe, eat, drink and dream it.The clarity of one’s vision is mission-critical beyond the workplace. Last year during the roadshows in support of the Pamodzi Resources Fund in the US, I dispensed with my fancy multimedia presentation. Instead, I focused prospective investors on our vision for sub-Saharan Africa’s largest private equity fund for mining and natural resources. My presentation, albeit non-traditional, proved so compelling that pre-eminent US investors agreed to contribute US$1,3 billion (about R10,4 billion) to operationalise this vision.

I relentlessly use every encounter with my people as an opportunity to evaluate, coach and build self-confidence. High-performing teams are produced by companies whose leaders invest the vast majority of their time and energy in three activities:
• You have to evaluate (making sure the right people are in the right jobs).
• You have to coach (critiquing and helping people improve their performance).
• Finally, you have to build self-confidence, which energises and is infectious.

There’s no easy formula for being a leader. Every day is a challenge. For most people, leadership happens one day when you become a boss and the rules change. Before, your job was about yourself. Now, it’s about your team, your division and your company.

Leaders have to set or facilitate the setting of their team’s vision. However, that vision isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on unless management brings it to life.

Ndaba Ntsele

Captain, my captain!

Have vision, will lead