Can consultants be leaders? Yes, the question posed is meant to be a bit rhetorical. I think most of us would tend to agree that it’s the person (and their values from within) that defines if they are a leader or not, as opposed to a title. Let’s not get started on whether a leader is ‘made’ vs ‘born’, that’s a topic for another day. 🙂
I, like many of you, have attended and listened to many speakers over the years discuss the topic of leadership; styles, attributes, communication, do’s and don’ts. While I won’t be as eloquent as most of those, nor as inspirational, I’ve seen enough great leaders to provide my own perspective.
The most insightful talk on leadership for me was at a conference I attended in Miami about 10 years ago. The presenter defined leadership in a new way to me, that being one of a steward. The definition for stewardship I often see is “the careful and responsible management of something entrusted in one’s care”. It speaks to honour, service and ethics, and the fact that we all, in both our working career and our personal life, are going to be able to contribute to a (hopefully) betterment of society in our lifetime. Be it applicable to our children/family, our planet/community, or a business. Let me elaborate, with my own twist.
With the diversity of companies I’ve worked with, in terms of size, type of work, people culture and maturity of the company, I’ve had one strong belief throughout my time at each company. I am replaceable. And I don’t mean this in a self-deprecating way. I don’t need to know everything, hold onto information, or be an SME on a variety of topics. Aside from the small startup companies with only a handful of people, I don’t think any one individual is indispensable to an organization. Will most organizations survive if the CEO moves on? Very likely. There is usually someone who can do a job more visionary/innovate, more caring, not to mention safer, smarter, faster. Rare is the “100% perfect fit”. Maybe it’s why I’ve tended to change jobs fairly often in my career. Learn and observe, improve the business, help others develop, make a positive impact, and then allow someone else to continue the journey. IMHO, they will likely do greater things than if I stayed. That doesn’t change my belief that those in my stewardship had improved during my tenure, just that we had reached a plateau.
So, unknowingly at times perhaps, I’ve been trying my best to be a steward of the companies I’ve worked for. The companies haven’t been owned by me, but I cared like they were. How many times have we had leaders suggest to us to “treat the department/cell/area” like it’s our own (does the phrase “it’s your baby”, come to mind)? I’d like to think the really great leaders aren’t saying that because they’re asking us to save $$ and do things cheaper/quicker. No, I believe the great leaders are saying that because they know our time leading the company is short, and we’re being trusted to be caretakers and responsible for its improvement and well-being (the people, the product, the reputation, the financials) on a short-term basis. It’s no wonder that when you see a list of values and competencies with companies, “trust” is so frequently on the list. It makes relationships and bonds so much stronger that people can “move mountains” together. It’s honourable, it’s purposeful, it’s powerful.
As a consultant, my responsibility is no different than that of an employee, with one key difference. It is determined in advance the length of time that a part of the business is being entrusted to me, be it a project, an improvement initiative, or an interim leadership assignment. It’s really the mindset I’ve had throughout my career, and it’s been a successful one. As I often say to my son, “I want you to be better than me”, so to do I want the company I’m a steward for to be better as well. I trust the end state will be better than it was before I was involved; call it confidence, call it passion. In any forum, you have to provide leadership, service and guidance to others, be it for a few hours, weeks or years, leave that legacy of trust and caring, and all will be the better for it.
Darren