Leaders, Movers and Shakers

There are managers who are great in execution, but lack vision and strategic thinking. There are managers who are great in vision and strategic thinking, but are unable to carry through to completion. Then there are managers who are leaders. They combine vision and execution.

Consider vision and execution as the two dimensions of leadership. Leaders score high in both vision and execution. They have clarity of vision, think out of the box, see what exists only as a possibility to be realized in the future. They are able to work out strategies to convert the possibility into reality. They also have the discipline to work out detailed plans, delegate responsibilities, ensure resources, review progress and follow through to completion.

What about people who are effective in executing plans, even if it calls for moving the mountains? Yes, they are the movers of the world. They make things happen, and that too pretty quickly and on budget. They are the traditionally efficient managers.

You would also remember someone who deeply influenced you by a very articulate presentation of a vision for the future. He or she could be a manager, a teacher, a politician or from any other profession. Yes, that person literally shook you up. Such people are the shakers of status quo.

For the sake of completion, let me also refer to another type, who neither move nor shake. They may be called laggers. The word may not be in the dictionary. But you know it means someone who lags behind. (Laggers may not be laggards, and so I am using a different word.)


Footnote: The term 'movers and shakers' appears in the following poem by Arthur O'Shaughnessy. The poem is titled 'Ode'

We are the music-makers,
And we are the dreamers of dreams,
Wandering by lone sea-breakers,
And sitting by desolate streams;
World-losers and world-forsakers,
On whom the pale moon gleams:
Yet we are the movers and shakers
Of the world for ever, it seems.


You may like to read the entire poem. It is on http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Ode_(O'Shaughnessy)

Dealing with change

Yesterday I met a group of youngsters who graduated recently with engineering degree. My interaction with them made me think about how people deal with change.

I was also surprised to find that many of them were unaware about the recessionary pressures in the economy, how such forces affect the job market, and thus impact their own careers. These youngsters were seeking entry level jobs in IT companies. But the current reality is that large IT companies have cut hiring. Why? Because the jobs are not created by the IT companies. The jobs are created by their clients in different sectors such as finance, insurance, retail, manufacturing, travel, logistics, hospitality, entertainment, telecommunications etc. When they are cautious, as in the current times, they cut down on large-scale expenditure on IT.

What are the options in front of a person when crisis is in the air - in the economy, in business, in society or in personal life? And for the young engineers I was talking about, it is about their own careers and lives. What are the choices?

There are three responses to changing times: The first is to go on with life and business and performance on the job as if nothing is changing. "Crisis, meltdown, recession etc. are for the finance minister and the chief executive and the media people to talk about. It doesn't affect me, I hope."

The second response is to join the blame-game team. Those who choose this option live with an orientation to the past, using most of their intellingence to find out who was responsible for what happened yesterday.

There is another response which is chosen by a few. This starts with an acceptance of the change that is taking place, and acceptance that many of the causative factors are beyond their control. But that doesn't make them feel powerless, because their orientation is towards the future. They take charge and do their best in the given scenario. They are agile. They take risks, get started and learn from experience. They succeed in hard times.