Tag: leadership as service

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Karen Tal: Strangers No More

An amazing leadership story is that of Karen Tal and her work launching the highly successful public school in Tel Aviv, Bialik-Rogozine.

Listen to Karen speak about the school and herself. http://www.tedxtelaviv.com/2010/07/18/karen-tal-thriving-on-turmoil/ 

I had the pleasure of meeting her recently; and Karen’s passion, commitment, and authenticity were palpable. You can also learn more about the school in the Academy Award winning short documentary “Strangers No More.”

Karen set out 7 years ago as a new principal to merge two failing schools in the poorest section. She brought strong belief that it is our duty to help all children to learn. She found within herself the courage to manage her own fears and doubts. She shared a clear vision with the teachers and school staff: in 5 years, the school will become an educational miracle where every student can increase his or her potential. She offered a challenge to the school, government agencies, and diverse partners: “Join me, support us, or I will support the closing of these schools.” 

Statistics show Bialik-Rogozine has more than succeeded by objective educational measures of retention, graduation rates, college admission, etc. Images of the diverse and caring community created for the 800 students from 48 nations and their families tell an even bigger story more.

Efforts are underway, working with successful entrepreneurs from the business community, to find ways to up scale this model of education and community building. Nothing could be more important as we confront the complexities of peace and harmony in an increasingly diverse and global world.        

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Leadership, love, and authenticity: Howard Schultz and Starbucks

I just finished Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul for a chapter on compassionate leadership that I’m writing.  And I’ve fallen in love with the leadership of Howard Schultz. His philosophy — leadership is not just about winning, but about finding a right way to succeed that brings hope for a brighter future to others – is a reminder that if you love what you do and respect the people who help you do it, you’re on a good path.

On the day in 1987 that Schultz bought a local business in Seattle called Starbucks, he held an all-employee meeting. He had three talking points: “1. Speak from my heart. 2. Put myself in their shoes. 3. Share the Big Dream with them.” Schultz saw two requisites for Starbucks’ growth: (1) sustain the passion and personality upon which the company had been built; and (2) instill in every employee a reverence for the coffee experience – the capacity to recreate the transcendental “blend of craftsmanship and human connection” that Schultz encountered with the Italian barista who brewed his first espresso in Milan in 1983. Create a high-quality experience for people, and they will reciprocate with loyalty. Profits will follow.

To quote Schultz:  A company can grow big without losing the passion and personality that built it, but only if it’s driven not by profits but by people . . . The key is heart. I pour my heart into every cup of coffee and so do my partners [the company name for employees] at Starbucks. When customers sense that, they respond in kind … If you pour your heart into your work, you can achieve dreams others may think impossible. That’s what makes life rewarding. 

Starbucks is an amazing success story. In the 1990’s, it was opening a new store almost every day and is now the world’s largest coffeehouse company with more than 18,800 stores in 55 countries and more than 10 billion U.S. dollars in annual revenues – a ten-fold increase in a decade that also necessitated Schultz’s return as CEO (from his position as chairman) to address the company’s 2007 financial slide and reignite the innovation needed for continued success in an increasingly competitive global market.

Starbuck is also, by Schultz’s label, “a love story:” a testament to his love of coffee and of the work in growing a company and building a corporate culture that inspire and excite customers, vendors, and employees.

To quote Schultz again:  Infusing work with purpose and meaning is a two-way street. Yes, love what you do, but your company should love you back. As a merchant, my desire has always been to inspire customers, exceed their high expectations, and establish and maintain their trust in us. As an employer, my duty has always been to also do the same for people on the other side of the counter.

Schultz translated his personal philosophy into a company philosophy to treat all employees with respect and dignity and into company practices like affordable comprehensive healthcare for employees (even part-timers), flexible work hours, competitive wages, stock options, and other perks that repeatedly land Starbucks on Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list – and got Schultz named Fortune’s 2011 Businessperson of the Year. 

So are you doing what you love?  Bringing your best self to the workplace so as to encourage others to do the same?  Walking your talk?  Creating a work environment that inspires your employees to create transcendental experiences for your customers?  Making contributions to a more hopeful future? 

If not, grab a cup of coffee and get out your pencil.  You’ve got some personal – and organizational – planning to do.     

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Responsible Service: Key Learning from the Current World Crises

News from Japan grows darker by the hour, and happenings in the Middle East and Northern Africa tell no better story.

All raise questions about the meaning of real leadership, the trust and transparency that must be part of all healthy leader-follower relationships, and the importance for leaders to accept their responsibility to serve the larger good before they serve themselves.

It is tempting when title or influence dub us the leader to think that the job is all about us: what we want, what we can do, what we want others to do. That couldn’t be further from the truth. A leader’s work is to put ego and self aside so as to facilitate the power and possibility of shared commitment, shared vision, and creative solutions to nagging problems that are better than any a leader or a follower working alone could devise.

That’s the magic at the heart of leadership. Two (or more) heads are always better than one.

When leaders serve for personal gain, when they deny others the honest information or influence they need, when leaders act to preserve their power and pockets, when they make decisions to guard their reputations or ego at the expense of others, they are far outside the leadership realm.

Let’s not forget that truth. We see it so clearly today in Libya, Yemen, Bahrain, and other Middle Eastern hotspots. And when we look closely at the crisis in Japan, there are plenty of questions about the lack of transparency and about how and why decisions are being made (or haven’t been made thus far).     

It’s easier to judge when we stand as critics, viewing crisis or deadly conflicts from afar and evaluating the choices and ethics of the leaders involved. But what about how we enact our own everyday leadership?

How will we remember that leadership is all about responsible service?  If we do, we’ll avert our own crises – and deny our critics the pleasure of all those negatives judgments from afar.