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Engaging the Leaders Around You BIC Susquehanna Conference Leadership Day February 17, 2011

Engaging the Leaders Around You BIC Susquehanna Conference Leadership Day February 17, 2011. Emerson L. Lesher Messiah Village elesher@messiahvillage.org. Outline. Taking the title apart – “ Engaging the Leaders Around You”: What is leadership? What does it mean to engage?

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Engaging the Leaders Around You BIC Susquehanna Conference Leadership Day February 17, 2011

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  1. Engaging the Leaders Around YouBIC Susquehanna Conference Leadership DayFebruary 17, 2011 Emerson L. Lesher Messiah Village elesher@messiahvillage.org

  2. Outline • Taking the title apart – “Engaging the Leaders Around You”: • What is leadership? • What does it mean to engage? • Who is around you? • Messiah Village

  3. Messiah Village • A network of senior services: • Resident Communities • Messiah Village (Residential Living, Nursing Care, Enhanced Living) • Mount Joy Country Homes (Cottages) • Community Based Services • Home Care • Adult Day Services • Rehab Services • Enrichment Experiences • Pathways Institute for Life Long Learning • Wellness • Mechanicsburg Senior Center • Serve 750 residents and 750 clients • 600 employees • $32,000,000 operating budget • Sponsored by Brethren In Christ Church

  4. What are some leadership challenges we have been working on at Messiah Village? • Oral to Written Tradition • Good Person to Right Person Selection • Individual to System Response • Internal to External Benchmarking • Fuzzy to Sharp Culture • Centralize to Distributed Decision-making • Institution to Community • Campus Services to Community Based Services ----In short, we not are perfect and are on a journey!

  5. What is Leadership? Engaging the Leaders Around You

  6. Max DePree – Leadership Jazz • The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between the two, the leader must become a servant and a debtor.”

  7. Charlene Li – Open Leadership • “Having the confidence and humility to give up the need to be in control while inspiring commitment from people to accomplish goals.”

  8. Patricia M. Hughes – Gracious Space • “The single most important contribution of a good leader could be to ask the right questions of a diverse group of people – to invite the ‘stranger’ and learn in public – and lead the way to consider conflicting opinions and find creative solutions.”

  9. Diana Whitney, et al. Appreciative Leadership • “The task of leadership is to design values into structures so they become living values and the inevitable ways of doing things.” • “Leadership is about design – the design of meetings; the design of marketing campaigns; the design of products, services and policies; the design of strategic plans and partnerships; even the design of markets, governance systems, economies, and currencies.”

  10. Peter Block – Community: The Structure of Belonging • “Leadership is about intention, convening, valuing relatedness, and presenting choices. It is not a personality characteristic or a matter of style, and therefore it requires nothing more than what all of us already have.” • “The task of leadership is to provide context and produce engagement, to tend to our social fabric. It is to see the leader as one whose function is to engage groups of people in a way that creates accountability and commitment.” • “If we want to change the community, all we have to do is change the conversation.”

  11. Jesus Christ – Mark 10:42-45 • “You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.”

  12. Leadership as Role vs. Catalyst – Open Leadership

  13. Comparison Engaging Leadership Traditional Leadership Open Servant Convening Designing Gracious Controlling Warrior Charismatic Pronouncing Decider

  14. Theological Themes and leadership • The model and words of Jesus • The priesthood of believers • Gifts of the Body

  15. New Metaphors – Terms of Leadership • Convener • Social Architect • Designer • Leading Servant – not servant leader • Communicator • Catalyst - What metaphor or term would you add?- Which ones fit you?- How have they changed?

  16. What does it mean to Engage? Engaging the Leaders Around You

  17. What is Engagement? • Trust • Transparency • Ownership • Accountability • Results

  18. thoughts on engagement from Open Leadership • Respect that your customers and employees have power • Just think of the good or bad comments on Facebook • Share constantly to build trust • Authentic openness builds strong relationships • Nurture curiosity and humility • “Learn in public” & invite the stranger into the discussion • Hold openness accountable • Clarify expectations and consequences • Forgive failure • Failure is not accepted but is acknowledged & understood

  19. What Can A Leader do to Encourage engagement • Create/Align the Culture • Journey Together, Inward and Outward • Set operational guidelines • Team Standards • Develop feedback loops • Satisfaction Surveys • Share information • Social media “Define reality, say thank you and be a servant/debtor”

  20. Thoughts about Decreasing Control… • Do you think you have control now? • Larger forces at work (God, history, social, economic, etc) • Can you really control if you will be someone’s pastor? • What type of ministry do you what? • Controlled by you or some larger purpose? • Freedom vs. fear? • What is effective in engaging people? • Respect, participation, values, service, co-creation • What is leadership? • Until someone chooses to follow, you are not a leader • More about embracing chaos than controlling!

  21. Letting go to build engagement • Important to let go at the right time, in the right place and in the right amount • Accepting that people have power can actually put you in a position to influence the outcome • Building in systems of accountability becomes important – not a free for all!!! • Letting go can be a relief!

  22. How has my Leadership Changed? • Meetings • Intentional Two-Way Communication • Organizational Design and Performance • Keeper of Mission and Vision

  23. Examples of how my leadership has changed • Meetings • Ask more questions • Warm-ups and “reflections” • Shared moderation and where I sit • Facilitator • Intentional Two-Way Communication • Weekly newsletter/blog • State of the Village • President’s Circle • Feedback/Dialogue gatherings • Birthday lunches with directors • Leadership Circles • Social media

  24. More Examples of how my leadership has changed • Organizational Design and Performance • Team Guidelines and Standards • Decentralize structure • Deepen culture • Dashboards/Satisfaction/Quality • Right people in right place • Keeper of Mission and Vision • Less operational • Build culture • Create interest and energy • Brand • Co-creating future

  25. Discussion • How have you engaged persons in your team or congregation? • What has been most successful? • How is your leadership style more like a choir than a soloist?

  26. Who is Around You? Engaging the Leaders Around You

  27. Thoughts on Leading Those Around Us • Your view of people ---- • Your view of people – are you optimistic or pessimistic about people’s intentions? • Your view of success – is success primarily from your efforts as an individual or stemming from the efforts of a team? • Selecting leaders who can work in an engaging style • Make sure the right people are in the room to make the best decision – the stranger and end-user • Leadership is frequently more a matrix network than a strict linear process

  28. Leaders Around Us • Leaders around us include those: • Above • Below • Beside • Outside • Those we serve • All relationships need to be engaged

  29. Who/What Do I Keep Around Me To Give me Energy for the Journey? • Board and Executive Team • Personal • Time with Spouse and Children • Silent Retreats • Books and Conferences • Mentors • Connections with Other Organizations • Alliances with similar organizations • External organizations we can learn from • WorldBlu

  30. WorldBlu Principles 1. PURPOSE AND VISION2. TRANSPARENCY3. DIALOGUE + LISTENING4. FAIRNESS + DIGNITY5. ACCOUNTABILITY6. INDIVIDUAL + COLLECTIVE7. CHOICE8. INTEGRITY9. DECENTRALIZATION10. REFLECTION + EVALUATION

  31. What is Organizational Democracy?

  32. Summary Comments • This approach is not about endless process but better process • Open leadership requires more – not less – rigor and effort than being in control • The leader is a social architect who creates experiences for others – experiences that are examples of the desired future • Leaders help shift conversations from the problems of the community to the possibilities of the community • Leaders don’t need more information, but colleagues who will be present with them for the journey

  33. Discussion • How might you give more power away rather than hoard power? • How can you support those around you more? • How might you start a new conversation with those around you? • Who are the external colleagues helping you lead?

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