Developing Research/Iechnology Leaders II

Abstract

In my previous Human Side column, I proposed basic research/technology leadership training under the headings of four Ps: Purpose, Process, People, Presentation (1). I asked readers to let me know what they thought about this and what they would add or change. There were a number of responses, some by e-mail and others on a conference call organized by Michele Taussig of the Industrial Research Institute. Here's what some of you think. First, readers overall agreed with my assumptions about leadership in technology companies: that unlike management, leadership is a relationship, that technology managers don't want to be followers but rather collaborators in achieving meaningful goals, that different types of leaders are needed, and that while some people are born with exceptional potential, leadership can always be developed and it's especially necessary to do so in the new context of global business. Readers also affirmed the value of the four Ps, but they offered suggestions to expand them. Concerning Purpose, a reader suggested that leaders needed to learn visioning. Good visioning demonstrates the qualities I've termed Strategic Intelligence (2). These include foresight, scanning for the trends in technology, business, demographics, politics, and the environment that can change markets; systems thinking, creating a vision that integrates purpose, processes and people. Visioning can be taught in workshops of the sort that have been led by Russ Ackoff with my help, wherein managers learn about the elements of Strategic Intelligence and then have the challenge to design a new business for their company. Running Productive Meetings On Process, there were some useful suggestions on guidelines young leaders should follow to run productive meetings. Gale Cutler, IRI Emeritus and Honorary Fellow, wrote, If meetings are not planned, organized and conducted well, they turn into a waste of time and a drain on the company's productivity. Cutler suggests these guidelines: * Have a clear-cut reason for the meeting. * Make sure that the invited attendees have a stake in the subject to be discussed. * Distribute an agenda ahead of time and stick to that agenda. * Make sure participants know what's expected of them and what they need to read or prepare. * Foster debate and brainstorming while respecting each person's opinion. (i would also probe to make sure opinions are based on facts and clear logic.) * Have a specific ending time and stick to it. * Follow up--let participants know any outcome from the meetings. Network Leaders Readers recognized the need for strategic, operational and network leaders who, ideally, would partner to build a strong leadership function for a company. The newest leadership type is the network leader who builds collaborative relationships across boundaries. Network leaders may have to facilitate virtual teams made up of techs from different cultures, working in different time zones. One participant on the conference call who led such a team for almost two years said it was a disorienting environment and she had to be extremely flexible. Soft skills were even more important than technical competence. According to research on successful global product development teams, leaders need good training in both Processes and People, particularly to understand different cultural approaches to dealing with relationships and decision-making. Barczak, McDonough and Athanassiou emphasize processes that facilitate communication and foster relationships (3). Given problems of language, they recommend that leaders work with team members to create common terminology with clear definitions and to assure that relevant project information is shared with all team members, even if they are not directly affected. They describe variations among cultures in the need for open and frequent communication. …