by William “Bill” Brashers, Ph. D., Featured Contributor
[su_dropcap style=”flat”]W[/su_dropcap]E’RE ALL FACING profound challenges, but the greatest and longest-standing challenge for every business is not the economy. It’s not even the various obstacles that have hindered us due to the federal sequester. A much larger issue confronts us, not only in manufacturing, but also in every business that employs a workforce.
This commentator’s only advantage is that I travel everywhere, and speak to everybody I can. My observation is that beyond the horizon of our current economic predicament, leadership is the issue. I’m referring to the expanding fissure between employers and those they employ. This issue extends far beyond the traditional divide between “management” and “labor.” It has now expanded to include an increasing divide between managers and supervisors, managers and directors, directors and vice-presidents, presidents and VP’s.
Leadership is the cure.
My prior article pointed to the Leadership Renaissance we are all witnessing throughout the business community. While we are using increasingly scientific methods to develop our technologies and approaches to continuous improvement, we have finally outgrown our distraction with what has been called “scientific management.”
There are things about people that can be understood through the lens of science, such as physical and mental health. However, the things that mean the most in life and work are not scientific issues. Leadership is one of those things. In my prior life as an Industrial Psychologist (I’ve been in “real-world recovery” for 20 years), I’ve seen as many as 40 different theories of leadership advanced by the “intelligentsia.” Over the years only two have survived. The first is the basic economic man model—that people will work for rewards (what a revelation)—and Servant Leadership, in that striving for the success of our followers, we as leaders will be successful. All the rest have hit the dustbin of history.
In subsequent columns, I’ll clear up some misunderstandings concerning Leadership, and provide useful tools to win back our workforces and overcome this leadership challenge. It is possible, necessary, productive and profitable. We are winning – winning slower than we might wish, but winning nonetheless. We will prevail.[message type=”custom” width=”100%” start_color=”#F0F0F0 ” end_color=”#F0F0F0 ” border=”#BBBBBB” color=”#333333″]Editor’s Note: Bill serves as a the Dean of Bartell & Bartell’s Leadership Flight School™, geared to provides the tools you need to improve your leadership and inspire followers – while teaching you the fundamentals of leadership, and how to apply them in real situations. Find out more at Leadership Flight School™. [/message]
