As I mentioned in my other post on the Inc. Awards, we had the opportunity to hear Jim Collins speak at the Inc. 500/5000 conference in September. It was amazing to hear him speak about what makes good companies ‘great’. According to Jim, great companies are not made by accident, but by careful planning and flawless execution. Here’s what else he had to say during a Q&A session:
Leadership is never more important than in uncertain and turbulent times – this is when people look to and need their leaders the most. I’ve had the pleasure to work with several turnaround and distressed companies and one commonality is the need to move quickly and make tough decisions. Timely decision making without execution, however, is fruitless – and execution starts with people. This means leaders must engage their employees even when they are making tough and sometimes unpopular decisions. In these situations leaders must clearly articulate the organization’s core values and beliefs and tie the “tough decisions” to these values – and they must lead by example – otherwise employees will easily see through the hypocrisy. It is also critical to communicate generously and to listen. Often leaders go underground when times get tough. To the contrary, however, this is when communication and accessibility are most important! Remember at the end of the day our people are the ones “executing” the tough decisions.