| Poignant Quips |
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True leadership only exists if people follow when they have freedom not to.
Jim Collins
People who see things purely as black and white are not using their gray matter.
BD
Price is only an issue in the absence of value.
Kathi Simonsen
There is a fine line of difference between being soft-hearted … and soft-headed.
BD |
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| Recent and Current Searches |
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GM for a new Napa resort and private club
CFO for a California university
Executive Pastor for a large church
CEO for an international non-profit in California
Chief Investment Banking Officer for a financial services firm
CFO for a hotel company undertaking major growth
CFO for a nationwide broadcasting company
COO for a startup hotel company |
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| Book Reports |
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 Talent is Never Enough
by John Maxwell |
John Maxwell, the author of the best sellers, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership and Developing the Leader Within You, has done a strong job of detailing how successful leadership is based on more than natural talent. In Talent is Never Enough (Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2007), Maxwell suggests thirteen seemingly straightforward traits that go beyond innate talent yet are often overlooked. His point is that talent alone will not sustain you in relationships, whether business or personal. The author refers to those who subscribe to these traits as, “TALENT-PLUS PEOPLE.” The following list is taken from the book and encapsulates the main nugget of truth for each chapter in this 288-page hardback. Maxwell lists these traits as choices you must consider in your quest to be a more effective leader, spouse, parent and/or friend:
- Beliefs lift my talent
- Passion energizes my talent
- Initiative activates my talent
- Focus directs my talent
- Preparation positions my talent
- Practice sharpens my talent
- Perseverance sustains my talent
- Courage tests my talent
- Teachability expands my talent
- Relationships influence my talent
- Responsibility strengthens my talent
- Teamwork multiplies my talent
It has been said that a person’s greatest strength, may at times also be their greatest weakness. In saying that in relation to Talent is Never Enough, Maxwell has a tremendous grasp of what other prominent leaders, authors, politicians, celebrities have said about each of the “choices.” In truth, I loved reading what the quotes had to say (the strength side) but sometimes I felt as if I was going from one motivating quote to another without much substance in between (the weakness side.) After finishing the book, I felt that, as a whole, it was impacting, energizing and motivating. It’s a good read overall and I would recommend as a compliment to your leadership library. - Book review by Tim Bernstein |
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 True North
by Bill George and Peter Sims |
It does not matter where you stand on planet Earth…wherever you are you can hold a compass in your hand and the needle will indicate the direction of the North Pole. Even if you are stuck in the middle of the ocean with no landmarks on a cloudy night, you can find the northern direction with the aid of a simple compass.
True North, written by Bill George and Peter Sims parallels the experience of using a mechanical compass with that of an internal compass.
A compass is very interesting. Think of the Earth as having a gigantic bar magnet buried inside. In order for the north end of the compass to point toward the North Pole, you have to assume that the buried bar magnet has its south end at the North Pole. If you think of the world this way, then you can see that the normal "opposites attract" rule of magnets would cause the north end of the compass needle to point toward the south end of the buried bar magnet. So the compass points toward the North Pole.
Likewise, George and Sims write that if you have a clear, distinct set of authentic-based values “buried inside,” you will consistently make your leadership decisions based on the values that correlate with your personal true north. You will not make decisions that are the polar opposite of those values that connect with your internal compass.
George, the former CEO of Medtronic, as well as a board member for Goldman Sachs, Target, and Novartis, outlines three sections in True North: Leadership is a Journey, Discover Your Authentic Leadership, and Empowering Powering People to Lead. These sections provide a solid primer explaining how to develop and incorporate your own “true north” into your leadership, be it at work or home.
While True North is a strong, yet basic, start toward internal, values-based leadership, what was most captivating were the 125 interviews and snippets of wisdom provided by senior level leaders throughout the world. Because of his history with Medtronic, George was able to have contact with an impressive group of well known and accomplished men and women. Their comments alone make True North a valued resource. I recommend True North for those that want to start on the journey of having personal values line-up with outward leadership. - Book review by Tim Bernstein |
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| Our People |
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Bruce Dingman
President
Donna White
Vice President
Tim Bernstein
Associate
Patti Schultz
Office Manager
Allison Lindauer
Admin Support
Connie Schuh
Bookkeeper |
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| Feature
Article |
Valuing Innovation
by Wendy Soderquist Togami
Director of Leadership Development
Soderquist Center for Leadership and Ethics
www.soderquist.org
Published with permission |
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Innovation is exciting. It can save us from the past and can prepare us for change. Innovation is the way we improve—the way we advance, grow, and learn from one another. However, there is reason to be cautious. Effective innovation comes only through careful leadership.
As leaders, we must recognize that innovation always involves some level of risk. Some leaders today promote innovation but fail to create a safe place for their people to take risks. If we promote innovation but do not allow our people to make mistakes, we shatter our credibility as leaders, de-motivate our workforce, and push managers to make decisions based on fear rather than the strengths of the organization. On the other end of the spectrum are organizations like Enron where the emphasis on innovation trumps all cultural values, driving the company into reckless risks. While operating this way can bring short term success, sustainable innovation relies upon a careful balance of risk and caution.
Living out the value of innovation requires time and energy. A leader who wants to cultivate this value must be an active listener, welcoming the free-flow of conversation among individual contributors and valuing the opinions of employees from across the organization. |
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| The Value of Feedback |
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If a firm wants to maximize its potential, it needs feedback from its constituencies. The same is true of a leader. The Donald Trump style may seem successful, but the reality is it would be much more successful if feedback was sought and accepted. Taking corrective action to one’s plans, leadership style, or even one’s persona, not only makes one more effective but it can also have the advantage of developing buy-in from others so they are more motivated to achieve the desired results.
When we’re interviewing candidates (shhhh…don’t tell the people we’re going to be interviewing!!), we look for a response that indicates the candidate has often sought feedback from others. Almost always, that feedback has prompted the person to modify their approach so they become more effective.
How we are perceived by others is more important than how we think they perceive us or how we intend them to see us. So when a candidate responds to a question with “I don’t know how others would see me in that area” we see it as a red flag. If we are an effective leader what we intend, how we think others see us and how they actually perceive us are the same. When this is true, we’re likely on the way to maximizing the positive impact our leadership can have. - BD |
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Dateline…Düsseldorf, Germany:
The Annual Penrhyn Conference. |
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Being a new member of Penrhyn, this was my first meeting with the gathered recruiters—40 of us, representing 21 firms with offices in 35+ cities. It was a delightful time. As expected, I found professionals who are concerned about doing quality executive search work. Getting to know the other Penrhyn members at the annual conference provides a basis so when one’s client has a need in another country it’s likely that the recruiter will know another Penrhyn-er who can assist them. Having the confidence the search will be done well is crucial. Last year, Penrhyn firms performed 728 searches worldwide.
The conference is also the opportunity to learn how a search is done in different markets. For example, Foster Partners based in Asia, is growing like crazy (China being the primary market). To see how they keep high ethical and professional standards in a market that is endemic with “flexible” ethics and standards was very interesting. In China there is no easy way to locate candidates such as using directories or data bases, so it’s all done by manpower. Foster Partners uses five times as much manpower on research as is typical for search firms in the U.S.
Beside the social aspects of the gathering and what proved to be a fine hotel in a lovely German city, there was great weather…it was a wonderful time well spent. Next year: Santiago, Chile and the anticipation of more quality interaction. - BD |
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| Differences Between Search Firms |
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In an earlier Reflections from the Lamp we described the differences between contingency and retained recruiters. Now let me share insights on differences between search firms.
Any search firm that has been around five years or more has likely shown just by endurance that they know how to run a profitable business. And yet there is a fairly wide variance in what recruiters charge and in what they deliver.
We all know the old phrase “there is no such thing as a free lunch.” In this case, it means that thorough, detailed work may be the difference between what one search firm charges and another. For example, our Candidate Profiles, “Dingman’s green book” as one client calls them, are very thorough. Any new user of search services would be wise to ask for an example of the Candidate Profile that is presented to the client just prior to the client’s interview of that candidate. The recruiter can “sanitize” such a document so no confidential information is compromised.
Industry or function specialists
Some recruiters specialize in just one or two industries, or only doing local searches, or searches for a certain function (i.e. CFOs). But we do a third of our searches in a variety of industries, one third in hospitality (my original profession) and one third for non-profits (our commitment to “giving back”).
Sometimes a client wants candidates to come from a certain industry (i.e., must have airlines experience). Sometimes the person could come from any industry within a broader spectrum, (i.e., services industries) which decreases the need for relocation. That’s especially true if filling a human resources or CFO position. So, unless a particular recruiter has something else to bring to the party (as in “our recruiter knows us so well and has done such good work for us we would not dream of using another recruiter”), then using a recruiter who is in the same locale as the position may be worth considering. Numerous recruiters for both lifestyle and efficiency reasons do not take on searches that are nationwide in scope or out of their locale. We, on the other hand, do local, nationwide and international searches.
“Recycling” can be an advantage or disadvantage to the client. Having a Rolodex of likely candidates for a particular search can make the search go quickly and easily. Clients often feel most comfortable with using a recruiter who’s done a lot of similar searches. The possible disadvantages depend on the recruiter. Does the recruiter only present “recycled” candidates or does the recruiter also do new research to find candidates not yet known? A good recruiter will usually present both some “recycled” candidates plus some candidates that are new as a result of fresh research done for the current search assignment.
Casting the net broadly
Many have seen television documentaries that show the trawler dumping a net load of fish on the deck. Lots and lots of fish…and many, sometimes even most of them, get tossed back into the sea. But to end up with a good catch, a healthy number of “keepers”, the fisherman needs to start with lots of fish.
The same is true about excellence in recruiting. We typically contact 300+ people who either might potentially be a candidate or refer us to one. From that we usually have 20-60 who are interested in the position. Through email or telephone screening that is quickly reduced to 6-10 who we interview in person, then do additional reference checking and background checks, in order to arrive at the four we wish to present to the client.
If the initial list of people we’ve contacted by email and telephone doesn’t produce the quality and quantity of candidates we’re looking for then we recast the net, this time either going deeper, or casting in a another direction. We keep doing that until we get what we’re looking for.
Sometimes we might not have the bait the fish were looking for. Was the compensation range not attractive? Were we not attracting the caliber of people the client was looking for? How can we modify things so we get the desired results? Not as an excuse, but just a note of reality, we don’t make the fish…we just find them. Sometimes, the appropriate fish are not where we thought they were, so we look somewhere else that might be fruitful. We will stay hard on task trying new variations or approaches as long as we think there is still something that can be done to produce the desired results.
The hardest search we ever did was for a division of Emerson Electric. It took over a year, we interviewed 33 people, presented 13 candidates and the client offered the job to three before the right person was landed. Over a decade later the person is still there. Did we do anything wrong? No. The client had high expectations and it was an industry with few great candidates. Also, the money was not that attractive and the location was expensive. Amazingly, though, after a year, headquarters authorized raising the compensation $20,000 and that worked!
One last thought. To any prospective user of executive search services we offer a list of questions on our website to ask the recruiter being considered. Take a look…perhaps you’ll be better prepared the next time you consider a recruiter. - BD |
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| Things Change Over Time…Your Opinion Please |
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A recent complaint from someone we placed well over a decade ago is causing us to reconsider one of our standards. We’ve had a practice of not ever recruiting to a new client a candidate we had placed in their present organization. This executive said it was unfair, perhaps even ridiculous, to hold to a “forever out-of-bounds” policy. I must admit that over the years I have not heard one client say they were really glad our policy was that long, nor have I heard other search firms having a policy that goes that long. What do you think?
We’re considering modifying the policy…but what is the right number? Should it be ten, seven or five years? One fellow recruiter suggested five years was more than fair to all involved, but I don’t know. Would you drop me a quick email and voice your opinion…and let me know if you speak from a candidate’s viewpoint or an employer’s viewpoint.
Ethics is something we take very seriously so this is not a casual consideration for us.
Thanks.
Bruce Dingman
Bruce@dingman.com |
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