OK, so if you haven’t spotted an early theme, often times this
blog offers perspective on someone else’s article because, frankly, reading
something interesting gets me thinking.
Today is no different. Recently,
a specific headline caught my attention - What
biz leaders can learn from jazz.
The uniqueness of this article, in particular, started my
mind running in several related, but somewhat different directions. Please forgive me if this post is a bit scattered…
Everyone can’t be a
leader
Most people don’t want to be identified as a “follower” for
obvious reasons, so let’s take that as a given.
Yet if you step back from things, we are all followers in different
aspects of our lives. Even generals or CEOs,
when they are at home, when they go to church, or at some point in their
everyday lives need to follow.
So, applying this professionally, almost everyone has to balance
leading and following in their workplace.
The first part of this article was refreshing, because it makes an
attempt to deal with the real world, practically, as opposed to espousing an
unrealistic notion that ‘everyone can become a leader and here’s three easy
steps how to do it.’
One quick aside: I love the
bit about the cult of superstar CEO leadership and how the media and society
has been fawning over CEO superstars for the past 25 years or so. I’ve been put off by the notion that
shareholder value and meeting quarterly guidance is the only thing. I’m encouraged that some attention is being
paid to leading for long-term growth of late, based solely on my personal
observations. I can’t help but recall a
time tested lesson that was imparted on me by my parents – everything in moderation - as good rule of thumb.
Let me shift to the idea of following. Per the author “Jazz shows us followership
can be not just satisfactory work but a noble calling.” I don’t want to spoil
the original article so, again, please take a minute to read it
This notion and how it’s explained hits home for me and my
place in Centric Consulting in a number of ways
Part of an ensemble
In Centric Boston we are still in the stages of establishing
our brand, footprint, and differentiation in the market. There are consultancies big and small, with comprehensive
and specialty offerings, with which we are competing. And while I know some important ways how we
are different, these differentiators are subtle, underlying our overall purpose
as a firm, but not overtly displayed in a snazzy tagline or sound bite. So what hit me, as I read this article, is
that we are absolutely working as a jazz ensemble as we ‘perform’ here in
Boston. We listen to each other, and
that is part of what’s exciting for me as a member of the team.
“There’s no clear road map that tells people how to act in
order to coordinate with one another.”
Our way forward, in the context of providing consulting
services in Boston, has led us to consistent progress (which includes some
trial and error). We’ve adapted based on
external circumstances and internal resource aptitude. We’ve capitalized on some opportunities and
missed others (some we know about and some, I’m sure are still blind to
us). I didn’t know this when I joined
the Boston office as an early employee, but I’ve come to learn that, room to
breathe, improvisation, and being who you are as a consulting professional is
accepted, if not explicitly encouraged. So, based on experience, that’s a key differentiator.
Generous listening is
even better than active listening
Centric Boston may be newish, but we are operating in the
context of a medium-sized, growing consulting firm. Centric Consulting has 8 local offices and 2 national
practices, with over 400 delivery consultants that have experienced wonderful
success in business verticals, service offerings, and geographic
marketplaces.
And you know what? - I can say almost the same thing for at
least half a dozen consulting firms in Boston alone, who knows how many
nationally. But, again, here’s what struck
me from the article:
“But generous listening does mean being acutely aware of
where the other is heading – of
someone else’s sense of future possibilities.
There is a selfless suspension of ego in these moments when you make the
other primary and seek to further his or her contributions.”
Centric is a self-described flat organization. Beyond that, the differentiator is that we work
hard to collaborate across the firm. Cross-company
collaboration resulting in the sum of the parts being greater than the whole is
often a nice idea but is very difficult to achieve. What I’ve experienced at Centric is delivery
on this promise. It’s not perfect,
because perfect information sharing and a lot of variables can get in the way, but
effort is put in. It is part of
our culture to collaborate and assist, even if it’s for other offices or resources
in our firm. I can think of 4 examples off
the top of my head from the past 6 months where this happened. I won’t write them here for fear of losing your
attention but ask me about this if we ever cross paths.
Finally, the generous listening thing is pretty huge in the
way we serve our clients. I’ve seen it listed
simply as we’re “easy to work with”. But
that means so much when you live it. It
means that we don’t steamroll into a consulting opportunity, business challenge,
or project and leave a mess in our wake because ‘WE ARE THE EXPERTS’. There’s no chest thumping or singular
approach to success. We bring expertise,
are adaptable, and look to partner with our clients on solutions while
maintaining accountability for the results.
We try to stay “…acutely aware of where the other is heading – of someone else’s sense of
future possibilities.”
These differentiators may be subtle, but they are no small
thing. Don’t get me wrong, there is
still tons of progress to be made and it’s taken me a while to feel these
differentiators on my own but they’re there.
It’s fantastic and inspiring when something you come across helps to
crystalize your own thoughts on a topic, which is what this article did for me.
So to tie this up, I know jazz is not for everyone. I happen to like it, well at least the
classic jazz. Like it or not, the next
time you hear a jazz tune, try to hear how often times each artist gets his or her
chance to solo or shine while the other players are supporting him or her. It’s a nice way to think about how to approach
your next work challenge.
