How did TN
and GT coursework shape the meaning of responsible leadership?
The TiasNimbas modules and the courses at
Georgetown University have formed a framework based on theoretical knowledge
for effective leadership. These are valuable tools to reflect and help to act as
a responsible leader.
The exposure of different ways of interpreting
responsible leadership within a multicultural group has proven to be
challenging and dynamic. There are different interpretations between “right and
right” and “right and wrong”, and yet few in the corporate world leave time for
reflection and discussion on this matter.
Professor Langenbacher put in perspective what
we learned in Tilburg during the responsible leadership course. We discussed
“subconscious discrimination”, tested our beliefs and the results showed that many
of us have a bias toward traditional gender roles. Prof. Langenbacher showed
various statistics regarding ethnical background and education, employment
success and more. Revealing that this unconscious bias is consistent across
society and these stereotypes still dictate the success one has in life. A
responsible leader should acknowledge the fact that (s)he has such biases and
actively work to mitigate their effect. For example, the judge who treated
mostly black men criminal cases spent time in a different court district where
many white men were convicted to break through his stereotype. Accordingly,
responsible leaders should move in an environment where their biases are
challenged.
Prof. Brenkert’s hypothesis, that values are
universal and yet interpreted differently, lead to very different customs
across the globe. Even though I do not subscribe to the hypothesis, it has
helped me to understand what responsible leadership means. It not only means
that certain customs are different or wrong in my view, but it also means that
sometimes discussing the very basics and understanding why the other person
feels that certain customs are or aren’t acceptable. Once the assumptions
underlying the actions have been made explicit, except in perhaps in some
extreme cases, a responsible leader can act in a way that will mitigate the
potential conflicts. A Pakistani classmate experienced this first hand:
whenever he was on a business trip to Korea, they did not offer him any
alcohol, and whenever the Koreans came to visit him, he did offer them alcohol.
I feel that a responsible leader will try to understand others’ customs and
culture, values and beliefs and use this to create an environment that
nourishes cooperation and progress.
A responsible leader carefully considers the
consequences of his decisions to those affected by the decisions. That does not
mean that in every case any “harm” can be avoided, but her or his
responsibility is to consider that potential harm explicitly. A responsible
leader will do so and then base the decision on his/her values. This may in
some cases lead to for example lower shareholder return, or people losing their
jobs. The key is to ensure that none of the deeper values are violated,
interpreted in the stricter sense rather than the lenient one.
Using
reflections on TN and Georgetown, what is the legacy you want to leave as a
responsible leader?
What I have learned to understand over the past
year is that the effect of actions by a manager or leader is much larger than
one may think. In many cases people talk about the influence of companies on
society and more. However, a key flaw in those arguments is that an
organization is nothing more than people together making decisions towards a
unified goal. So even though the influence of one person is relatively small,
as a manager or part of cooperation this influence grows tremendously.
This has put the question of “leaving a legacy”
in a different perspective. Whereas before I would have believed one can only
really leave a legacy from C level or up, now I see that even a middle manager
can be influential.
Therefore, the legacy I would like to leave is a
dual one. On one hand I would like to be remembered as someone who contributed
to the responsible behavior of people in the organizations I did business with/worked
for or ran. On the other hand I would like to contribute to society, so that
people themselves take more of an active role in being responsible.
The first part is the “easier” part of the
legacy, as it mostly involves my behavior and leading by example. The part of
creating a greater feeling of responsibility for all those around me, however,
is more challenging and will need some convincing. However, one will aid me in
achieving the other. The key of creating an environment where people feel
responsible is holding everyone accountable for their actions and empowering
them to make decisions. We have learned from research quoted in our coursework
that people that are in charge live longer and better, so instead of expecting
others to act in the “right” way, one should ensure to contribute to this responsible
behavior.
An example, mentioned in the discussion with
Andy Shallal from Busboys & Poets, was the author’s responsibility to
ensure that a contract is understandable and readable. The responsibility of
the reader is to read the contract, ask questions and not take a passive role
and say: “the author has a moral duty to do what is right” (the way Andy feels
it should have been). If my legacy is to be anything, it would to contribute to
a society in which everyone is ready to take responsibility. A society in which
people read the terms & conditions before clicking “accept” because they
are not 17 pages long and written in complicated legal terms, but actually only
several rules long and principle based, easy to understand. A society in which
people do not sue because they burned themselves on hot coffee, but in which
they are careful not to burn themselves because coffee can be hot.
I feel that I have started working towards this
with my management project where I will assist ING in expanding their Financial
Education program abroad. The main goal of this program is not to make
decisions for the clients or people touched by the program, but to provide them
with the tools to make the “right” decision. It is then up to the
individual to grab that opportunity and use the tools to make those right
decisions.
