Ethics & Leadership in Business Development

In the 25 + years of working with some of the best people in Business Development within the power generation industry, we have found some unique characteristics that separate these individuals from the rest. It doesn’t seem to matter what organization they work for, or the services, the client base or the economic climate.

Keywords:

ethics, leadership, business development leadership, business, sales, ethical sales, sales leadership

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In the 25 + years of working with some of the best people in Business Development within the power generation industry, we have found some unique characteristics that separate these individuals from the rest. It doesn’t seem to matter what organization they work for, or the services, the client base or the economic climate. We find that these individuals are in fact the top 3% of the professionals in their field. In addition to learning to think as CEO’s, Presidents, entrepreneurial leaders of Business Development units, we’ve discovered they have acquired the behavioral characteristics of a leader. They have learned how to set strategic and operational objectives in putting together plans, how to be visionaries and see opportunities for their organizations that other individuals may miss, and in the role of Business Development, they have mastered the 12 Core Competencies, a benchmark to measure leaders.

One of the most compelling definitions of a leader is an individual whose mere presence inspires the desire to follow. When asked if leaders are born or bred, the general consensus is that leadership can be taught. While few of us have had the opportunity to be formally trained or mentored in leadership, all of us are called to be a leader at different times and circumstances in our lives. Leadership is first about who you are as an individual, not what you do, and the term character best describes the core characteristic of a leader. It is this part of an individual that inspires other to follow, so we see character as the summation of an individual’s principles and values, core beliefs by which one anchors and measures their behavior in all roles in life. Principles and values of a positive leader include loyalty, respect, integrity, courage, fairness, honesty, duty, honor and commitment.

If character is the summation of our principles and values, then ethics is the application of them. To understand more about character development, we can reach back nearly 2500 years to the writings of Aristotle in Nicomachean Ethics. Aristotle taught that moral virtue is acquired by practice. Ethics, according to Aristotle, is moral virtue that comes about as a result of habit. Ethics has as its root ethike, formed by the slight variation of the word ethos (habit). Aristotle explained that moral virtues do not arise in us by nature; we must accept them, embrace them and perfect them by habit. Leadership training emphasizes that understanding leader values and attributes is only the first step in development. A leader must also embrace values and practice attributes, living them until they become a habit.

In the Business Development role, success requires a fusion of who we are as an individual, along with our principles, values, ethics and their application. It’s a unique combination of what we know, how we apply it and what we do.

Bill Scheessele is CEO/Founder of MBDi, a Business Development consultancy based in Charlotte, North Carolina. For the past 27 years, MBDi has assisted client firms in leveraging their high level expertise into bottom line business. Information on the company and the MBDi Business Development Process™ access: www.mbdi.com.

High Tech Management & Leadership

What makes a great manager or leader in a High Tech company? Is it great technical knowledge or skill? Or is it the ability to be affable and convince people to do what you want by the strength of likeability and personal relationships? Getting people to perform by fear of and grudging respect that comes from being in a position of power? People might answer this question in almost as many ways as there are people to ask.

Keywords:

high,tech,management,software,marketing,people,top down,hierarchy,CEO,leadership,subordinate

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Copyright 2006 PJM Consulting

What makes a great manager or leader in a High Tech company? Is it great technical knowledge or skill? Or is it the ability to be affable and convince people to do what you want by the strength of likeability and personal relationships? Getting people to perform by fear of and grudging respect that comes from being in a position of power? People might answer this question in almost as many ways as there are people to ask.

I’ve had many influences in my career that have shaped my attitude toward management and leadership. I started my career in old-line, traditional, top-down industrial companies in the Midwest. Not knowing any better at the time, I thought that taking orders and doing what you’re told was the normal course of business. This doesn’t lead to much initiative or critical thinking, but I guess there wasn’t much asked for or expected of an entry-level employee in old-line companies. Speak when spoken to—do what you’re told, was the leadership style of the day.

It wasn’t until I moved into High Tech and went to work for Hewlett Packard that a whole new world was opened up to me. You actually care what I think? You want me to take the lead on that issue—and actually make a decision that will very likely be approved—if it’s deemed important enough to even be reviewed? What a revelation that was—the idea of treating employees like valued adults, with spare brainpower that might actually contribute to the company’s success. The HP way opened up my mind to the power of enabling people, and pushing decisions down as far as practical in the organization—where best knowledge about the particular situation often resides. To this day I’m in awe of the effect of a few basic principles at HP—respect for the individual, hire the best you can find in a methodical and comprehensive manner with cultural fit being a major factor, fire slowly, push decisions down in the organization, keep organizations small, and senior executives are “just people too”—no pedestals. People felt like they were working in a small company in which they were important owners because of these policies—and had incredibly loyalty as a result. Even though HP was already an $8B multi-national corporation. Like any company, the HP culture and leadership wasn't perfect, and some of the warts have likely contributed to the recent malaise the company has found itself in in recent years. But the simple policies above elevated HP to incredible success over some 60 years—it’s too bad this great company has strayed and lost its way a bit lately.

Another area that I believe is incredibly important in the management and leadership of software and high tech companies is work ethic. Our business moves too fast to sit still for very long. The top people in the company set the tone here. In my experience, if the top people aren’t obviously sweating to contribute, it is really apparent to the troops. When the CEO is taking home several hundred thousand dollars (or millions) and seems to be doing it by just enjoying the good life, it sends a very chilling message down the ladder—what is valued, what it takes to get ahead, and "get some for yourself" while you can. Not the best way to build a team-oriented, winning culture.

I was struck by a ride that I had from the airport in a taxi this week. The cabbie was an immigrant from Eritrea in east central Africa. His country has been war-torn and plagued by military coups and corruption. He came to the US with little more than the clothes on his back, with a wife and two small children. Spoke no English. He originally worked in a car wash, one of the lowest jobs in the US food chain. Learned English and Spanish at the same time, because he had too. Now he owns his own Cab, and has 4 kids. Still works hard—he picked me up at 11PM and had been working since 7AM that morning. But he doesn’t complain at all. He is appreciative that he was able to come here, and loves this country. His two daughters just got accepted to UCLA. It’s a classic American tale similar to many of our families that immigrated to this country over time. And you know what? To me, that taxi driver is a real leader. I’m sure that his children look up to him, and are appreciative that his hard work has paved the way to a better life for them. I’m certain that they are very loyal and will do whatever they can to gain his approval and fulfill his expectations for them. He has set a tremendous example for the people he is responsible for—one of selflessness, a gritty work ethic and never-say-die attitude. A strong Tech company CEO or senior executive can set a great example with much the same attitudes and qualities.

So to sum it up, what makes great leadership in High Tech? I think it’s someone with great intellectual capacity, but also great empathy for people as well. It’s someone with his ego in check enough to hire good people and let them create—with the ability to push the envelope and fail without getting fired. Someone who sets an example of hard work, intellectual honesty and tireless work ethic. A manager who realizes the power of giving credit to subordinates, rather that taking it for him or herself. One who realizes the short term profits are very important, but that people should not be treated as a simple expense like an office chair—if you want to have long term profits as well. Great leadership builds great companies for the long term. It’s very rare. If you know of one, I’d love to hear about him or her. Let me know what you think.

Career Enhancement Leadership Course Review

Leadership is a tricky subject, at best. Perhaps this is why finding a single source that covers every aspect of this topic seems nearly impossible. And, what’s more, much of the information available on leadership today taps into dated research, making modern day leadership mastery more elusive than ever.

Sure, there in a plethora of information out there – books, websites, etc., but finding a credible, go-to source that can be counted to bring about strong results, can b...

Keywords:

career enhancement, career enhancement tools, careers

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Leadership is a tricky subject, at best. Perhaps this is why finding a single source that covers every aspect of this topic seems nearly impossible. And, what’s more, much of the information available on leadership today taps into dated research, making modern day leadership mastery more elusive than ever.

Sure, there in a plethora of information out there – books, websites, etc., but finding a credible, go-to source that can be counted to bring about strong results, can be next to impossible.

That is, until now.

For if you are a manager, team leader or inspired professional, you finally have within your reach the tools needed to lead successfully. Thanks to the team at Mind Tools, everything needed to achieve leadership success – the latest research, the proven tools, techniques, resources and exercises, have been assembled in a single resource, appropriately entitled "How to Lead: Discover the Leader Within You".

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Similar in format to other popular Mind Tools e-books and courses, there are also additional sources, links and other information provided throughout "How to Lead: Discover the Leader Within You." The link to the class can be found at http://www.careerenhanceonline.com.