Citation
Nicholson, N. (2013), "Engaging leadership – the Duke Ellington way", Strategic HR Review, Vol. 12 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/SHR-06-2013-0060
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Engaging leadership – the Duke Ellington way
Article Type: Strategic commentary From: Strategic HR Review, Volume 12, Issue 6
Thought leaders share their views on the HR profession and its direction for the future
Do we have a crisis of engagement in some areas of business? In hard hit areas like financial services, managers have bemoaned the consequences of reduced incentives. Others find morale undermined by insecurity and the survivor syndrome, when friends have been shed and others are left feeling lonely and unmotivated. In some businesses the challenge is more mundane – there is just not enough going on to excite and motivate people. Managers have run out of exhortations, or the staff have run out of patience with their bosses continual urgings to go the extra mile.
The answer starts with leadership. In my new book, The “I of Leadership: Strategies for Seeing, Being and Doing, I have some new suggestions for how this can work. To start with let us not fall prey to the dangerous division of leaders from managers. The task of leaders is to help define direction, align people and resources, and to motivate and engage people. Anybody designated a “manager should do those things. Leadership is about taking charge of situations – not staying within the bureaucratic boundaries of your accountabilities, KPIs and direct reports. It means seeing your role as a culture carrier – as someone who is responsible for shared experience and collective performance.
Let us pick out some points and principles. To do this I want to draw on a leadership hero of mine from outside the world of business – composer and band leader, the late great Duke Ellington (http://www.dukeellington.com). He created and held together for over four decades the most difficult organization in the world to sustain – the jazz orchestra (though the Duke avoided labeling his music), retaining throughout intense loyalty, love and creative energy. Following are some lessons:
1. Know yourself – tell your story. Every leader has to be able to stand up and say, this is who I am and this is why I am here. Dukes personal mission was always clear – he forsook the privilege of his background to learn his trade in the competitive creative world of popular music; burning with a fierce commitment to his creative instincts, religious passion and love of life.
2. See the world and tell. In strategies for seeing, being and doing, seeing is the key to change. Leaders have a duty to see what others do not – to rise above and see the context. When his musicians were buried in the musical experience, Duke could stand apart to give them a story of their mission in the wider world of their audience, the media and their supporters.
3. Read hearts and minds. In 360° feedback this is what staff say their bosses do worst. The remedy is what I call “decentring. This involves asking smart questions of people; active listening (checking understanding); constructing a testable model of what the world looks like from their point of view; and then managing them in a way that works for them. The Duke was a master in handling the most diverse and difficult people in the world – jazz musicians!
4. Feature talents. When Duke composed, he devised numbers that featured individual players. Knowing that you have your moment in the limelight, where you make a unique difference to the performance of the organization is a motivator greater than any incentive. The Duke retained and motivated his talented people by such simple principles.
5. Think ensemble. Duke never worried about whether he was good enough to be their leader, he understood his role was to enable the talents of others, by bringing people together in a spirit of equality. Everyone matters equally to the performance. Everyone has to listen and support whoever is leading on stage.
6. Empower creatively. The leaders job is not to solve everyone elses problems, but to allow them to work together creatively to solve the problems they face collectively, to share ideas and inspirations. This is the spirit of improvisation – what makes jazz the most dynamic collective art form there is.
7. Organize for collaboration. Jazz is not a free-for-all – it is a disciplined practice following laws of rhythm, harmony and melody, and it works best when there is a simple, well-understood framework of chords and themes. The Duke was a master at shaping the structures that brought out the best in the band – in his compositions and methods of rehearsal and performance.
8. Shape the culture. It is the leaders job, wherever she may be and at whatever level, to see her responsibility as surfacing and shaping the shared values of community – even if only with two or three people. This is the spirit that drives the best family firms.
The Duke Ellington Orchestra gloried in its unique identity and delighted audiences. Through its recordings it still does so. Engaged performers and a great sound are cause and effect. They are within the reach of every leader.
Nigel Nicholson
Professor of Organisational Behaviour at London Business School, London, UK
About the author
Nigel Nicholson is professor of Organisational Behaviour at London Business School. He received his PhD in Psychology from University College Cardiff. He worked as a journalist prior to becoming a business psychologist and joined London Business School in 1990. His current major research interests include the psychology of family business; personality and leadership; and people skills in management. He has published over 20 books and 200 articles. To learn more about his ideas and his latest book, see http://www.iofleadership.com Nigel Nicholson can be contacted at: mailto:nnicholson@london.edu