Leadership U: Accelerating Through the Crisis Curve

By Gary Burnison

Accelerating Through the Crisis Curve

Leadership is all about others—inspiring them to believe, then enabling that belief to become reality. That’s the essence of Leadership U: it starts with ‘U’ but it’s not about ‘U.’

Those timeless words are timelier than ever today, as leaders look to accelerate through the crisis curve. As author Gary Burnison observes, “There will likely be more change in the next two years than we have seen in the last twenty.”

Now, in Leadership U: Accelerating Through the Crisis Curve, Burnison lays out a framework—his “Six Degrees of Leadership”—to show leaders how to create change. 

Anticipate – foreseeing what lies ahead, amid ambiguity and uncertainty that are throttled up like never before

Navigate – course-correcting in real time, to keep the organization on an even keel

Communication – constantly connecting with others; the leader is both the messenger and the message

Listen – breaking down the organizational hierarchy to gather insights at all levels—especially what the leader doesn’t want to hear

Learn – applying learning agility, to “know what to do when you don’t know what to do”

Lead – empowering others in a bottom-up culture that is more nimble, agile, innovative, and entrepreneurial than ever before.

Only by embracing these truths can leaders master another ‘U’—the “crisis curve” that will completely disrupt the business landscape.  The world has changed—forever. The old days are fine to reminiscence about, but you can’t stay there.

Today leadership means becoming comfortable with being uncomfortable. As Burnison says, when a door closes, leaders cannot afford to stand there, staring at it. It’s a “get up or give up” moment. For leaders, the only choice is to find and open another door. Leadership U defines and inspires the pathway through that door.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wiley
• Release date: Jun 24, 2020
• ISBN: 9781119753339

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

My wife, Leslie, and I were at the grocery store not long ago, standing in the checkout line behind an elderly woman with six cans of Progresso minestrone soup in her cart—and nothing else.

I'm sorry, the cashier said. We have a limit. You can only get four.

Overhearing the conversation, Leslie spoke up: Don't worry, I'll buy the other two for her.

Immediately, the man behind us said loudly, "Count me in for

four more!"

Leslie pointed to the woman's nearly empty shopping cart. Are you sure that's all you need? We can help.

As a group of us made our way to the paper goods aisle, another shopper was just taking the last packages of toilet paper.

Could we have one of those? Leslie asked.

I'm sorry, the shopper said. I need this for my family.

It's not for us. Leslie pointed to the elderly woman standing at the end of the aisle. It's for her.

Immediately, the shopper reached into her cart. Of course. Take both—I have enough at home.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, stories like this played out all over the world—shared interest defeating self-interest.

To foster shared interest, leaders need to create followership. After all, no leader wants to charge up the mountain, only to discover halfway up that no one is following. That requires an emotional connection on a very real and human level in every interaction—and especially in a crisis. To do that, leaders must commit to meeting others where they are. What matters most is not what the leader achieves, but how people are empowered to act.

As we were writing this book, my collaborators, Dan Gugler and Tricia Crisafulli, asked me, Pretend that a leader is about to enter the arena. What advice would you give?

Instinctively, I said, It's not about you. But it starts with you.

Welcome to Leadership U.

Unless you are a sculptor working alone in your studio, chipping marble or molding clay, you aren't a solo performer. Despite all the technological advancements of the past few decades, others stand on the shoulders of leaders to accomplish the goals of the organization.

Knowing how to inspire and motivate people requires emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills. All this and more go into being a leader—starting with you, but never about you.

IT'S NOT ABOUT YOU…

LEADING OTHERS WITH PURPOSE

Leadership is all about others—inspiring them to believe, and then enabling that belief to become reality. The way you do that is with purpose, which is best and most simply defined as why an organization exists.

Knowing the why is central to transforming self-interest to shared interest. Purpose must precede the first step.

When people understand the purpose, they want to become part of something bigger than themselves. With a strong sense of purpose, they are more likely to act in concert with the mission and objective of the organization. They'll row in the same direction to reach the destination. And that's exactly what you will need to accelerate through the crisis curve.

THE SHIFT FROM ME TO WE

Purpose also creates the shift from me to we. The reality is that thousands of employees will make hundreds of decisions every day. You will not be looking over their shoulders, nor could you. Rather, your job is to paint the bright lines—the left and right guardrails for making their decisions—and, most importantly, to anchor the organization in purpose. Then others must take it from there.

The endpoint is the organization's vision: what it will look like when the purpose is realized. Together, purpose and vision form the basis of leadership.

As the leader you must embody purpose. It is no less than the basis of everything you do. Others must see purpose in your words and actions.

With purpose as your guide, you can lead others forward: from what we've been to what we will be.

LEADERSHIP IN ACTION: THE SIX DEGREES

The leader sets the course toward change and possibility, emotionally and sometimes literally. Leadership is a journey, transporting people from one place to another, and inspiring them to believe in what they can achieve—that they can, indeed, reach a faraway destination.

To make that happen, in good times and in challenging ones, takes a framework: the Six Degrees of Leadership, which are the heart of this book.

ANTICIPATE – predicting what lies ahead

NAVIGATE – course correcting in real time

COMMUNICATE – continually

LISTEN – to what you don't want to hear

LEARN – fail fast, learn faster

LEAD – be all in, all the time

The Six Degrees of Leadership are the core curriculum of Leadership U—a name that has several meanings. The most obvious is U as shorthand for you—that now-familiar saying about leadership starting with U but not being about U.

The U also traces the path of recovery from a downturn or crisis. This speaks to the importance of the Six Degrees of Leadership as the skills you need the most during challenges, massive disruption, and rapid change.

And, there is U for university and its association with learning. The best leaders, no matter how experienced and accomplished, are lifelong learners.

In the following chapters, you'll learn about each of the six. Don't think of them as a plug-and-play framework that tells you what to do. Far more important, these Six Degrees guide you on what to think about.

Although these six are dealt with separately, they are intertwined and interconnected—like four wheels, an axle, and a steering wheel. Each is a separate part, but to get anywhere, you need all six in motion.

COMFORTABLE WITH BEING UNCOMFORTABLE

The world has gone through a pandemic. First and foremost, this was a global health crisis, which meant the top priority was keeping people safe. Leaders everywhere also had to find a way to protect their businesses and their brands for the future. Often, that involved