TED@BCG Toronto
Elizabeth Lyle: How to break bad management habits before they reach the next generation of leaders
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Companies are counting on their future leaders to manage with more speed, flexibility and trust than ever before. But how can middle managers climb the corporate ladder while also challenging the way things have always been done? Leadership expert Elizabeth Lyle offers a new approach to breaking the rules while you're on your way up, sharing creative ways organizations can give middle managers the space and coaching they need to start leading differently.
Elizabeth Lyle - Leadership development expert
BCG's Elizabeth Lyle challenges top leaders to create high-performance, future-ready organizational cultures. Full bio
BCG's Elizabeth Lyle challenges top leaders to create high-performance, future-ready organizational cultures. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:13
I am guilty of stacking
my dishes in the sink
my dishes in the sink
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and leaving them there for hours.
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I fact-checked this with my boyfriend.
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He says it's less like hours
and more like days,
and more like days,
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but that's not the point.
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The point is sometimes
I don't finish the job
I don't finish the job
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until the stack has gotten high enough
that it's peaking over the lip of the sink
that it's peaking over the lip of the sink
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and my inner clean freak loses it.
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This charming habit developed
when I was in college,
when I was in college,
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and I had tons of excuses.
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"I'm running to class!"
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"What's one more dirty dish in the sink?"
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Or my favorite, "I think
I can save time and water
I can save time and water
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if I do them all together later."
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(Laughter)
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But it's not like I needed those excuses,
because nobody was calling me on it.
because nobody was calling me on it.
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I wish they had.
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I look back now
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and realize that every time
I didn't put a dish in the dishwasher
I didn't put a dish in the dishwasher
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and finish what I started,
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it became more second nature to me,
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and I grew less likely
to question why I was doing it.
to question why I was doing it.
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01:06
Today, I'm a 30-something,
certified dirty-dish leaver,
certified dirty-dish leaver,
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and breaking this habit is hard.
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01:13
So when I'm not at home avoiding the sink,
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01:16
I work with large, complex organizations
on leadership transformation
on leadership transformation
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in times of change.
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My job is to work
with the most senior leaders
with the most senior leaders
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to examine how they lead today
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and establish habits
better suited for the future.
better suited for the future.
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But what interests me more
than senior leaders these days
than senior leaders these days
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is what's going on with the junior ones.
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We call them "middle managers,"
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but it's a term I wish we could change
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because what they are is our pipeline
of future talent for the C-suite,
of future talent for the C-suite,
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and they are starting to leave
their dishes in the sink.
their dishes in the sink.
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While organizations
are hiring people like me
are hiring people like me
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to redevelop their senior
leaders for the future,
leaders for the future,
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outdated leadership habits
are forming right before our eyes
are forming right before our eyes
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among the middle managers
who will one day take their place.
who will one day take their place.
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We need middle managers
and senior leaders to work together,
and senior leaders to work together,
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because this is a big problem.
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Organizations are evolving rapidly,
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and they're counting
on their future leaders
on their future leaders
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to lead with more speed, flexibility,
trust and cooperation than they do today.
trust and cooperation than they do today.
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I believe there is a window of time
in the formative middle-manager years
in the formative middle-manager years
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when we can lay the groundwork
for that kind of leadership,
for that kind of leadership,
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but we're missing it.
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Why?
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Because our future leaders
are learning from senior role models
are learning from senior role models
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who just aren't ready to role model yet,
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much less change the systems
that made them so successful.
that made them so successful.
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We need middle managers
and senior leaders to work together
and senior leaders to work together
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to define a new way of leading
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and develop each other
to rise to the occasion.
to rise to the occasion.
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One of my favorite senior clients --
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we'll call her Jane --
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is a poster child for what's
old-fashioned in leadership today.
old-fashioned in leadership today.
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She rose to her C-level position
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based on exceptional
individual performance.
individual performance.
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Come hell or high water,
Jane got the job done,
Jane got the job done,
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and today, she leads like it.
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She is tough to please,
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she doesn't have a lot of time
for things that's aren't mission-critical,
for things that's aren't mission-critical,
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and she really doesn't trust
anyone's judgment more than her own.
anyone's judgment more than her own.
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Needless to say,
Jane's in behavior boot camp.
Jane's in behavior boot camp.
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Those deeply ingrained habits
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are deeply inconsistent
with where her organization is heading.
with where her organization is heading.
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The command-and-control behavior
that she was once rewarded for
that she was once rewarded for
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just isn't going to work
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in a faster-moving, flatter, more
digitally interconnected organization.
digitally interconnected organization.
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What got her here won't get her there.
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But I want to talk about John,
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a supertalented, up-and-coming
manager who works for Jane,
manager who works for Jane,
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because her habits are rubbing off on him.
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Recently, he and I were strategizing
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about a decision we needed to put
in front of the CEO, Jane's boss,
in front of the CEO, Jane's boss,
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and the rest of Jane's peers.
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He said to me, "Liz,
you're not going to like this,
you're not going to like this,
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but the way decisions
get made around here
get made around here
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is with a bunch of meetings
before the meeting."
before the meeting."
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I counted.
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That was going to mean
eight one-on-ones, exec by exec,
eight one-on-ones, exec by exec,
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to make sure each one of them
was individually on board enough
was individually on board enough
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that things would go smoothly
in the actual meeting.
in the actual meeting.
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He promised, "It's not how
we'll do things in the future,
we'll do things in the future,
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but it's how we have to do them today."
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John wasn't wrong on either count.
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Meetings before the meeting
are a necessary evil
are a necessary evil
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in his company today,
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and I didn't like it at all.
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Sure, it was going
to be inefficient and annoying,
to be inefficient and annoying,
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but what bothered me most
was his confidence
was his confidence
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that it's not how
they'll do things in the future.
they'll do things in the future.
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How could he be sure?
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Who was going to change it and when,
if it wasn't him and now?
if it wasn't him and now?
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What would the trigger be?
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And when it happened,
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would he even know how to have
effective meetings without pre-meetings?
effective meetings without pre-meetings?
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He was confidently implying
that when he's the boss,
that when he's the boss,
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he'll change the rules
and do things differently,
and do things differently,
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but all I could see were dishes
stacking in the sink
stacking in the sink
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and a guy with a lot of good excuses.
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Worse, a guy who might be
out of a job one day
out of a job one day
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because he learned too late how to lead
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in the organizations of tomorrow.
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These stories really get to me
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when it's the fast-track,
high-potential managers like John
high-potential managers like John
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because they're probably
the most capable of making waves
the most capable of making waves
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and redefining how leaders
lead from the inside.
lead from the inside.
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But what we find is that they're often
doing the best job at not rocking the boat
doing the best job at not rocking the boat
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and challenging the system
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because they're trying to impress
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and make life easier on the senior leaders
who will promote them.
who will promote them.
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As someone who also likes to get promoted,
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I can hardly blame him.
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It's a catch-22.
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But they're also so self-assured
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that they'll be able
to change their behavior
to change their behavior
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once they've earned the authority
to do things differently,
to do things differently,
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and that is a trap.
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Because if I've learned anything
from working with Jane,
from working with Jane,
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it's that when that day comes,
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John will wonder how he could
possibly do anything differently
possibly do anything differently
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in his high-stakes,
high-pressure executive job
high-pressure executive job
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without risking his own success
and the organization's,
and the organization's,
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and he'll wish it didn't feel
so safe and so easy
so safe and so easy
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to keep doing things
the way they've always been done.
the way they've always been done.
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So the leadership development
expert in me asks:
expert in me asks:
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How can we better intervene
in the formative years
in the formative years
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of our soon-to-be senior leaders?
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How can we use the fact that John
and his peers want to take charge
and his peers want to take charge
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of their professional destinies
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and get them ready to lead
the organizations of the future,
the organizations of the future,
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rather than let them
succumb to the catch-22
succumb to the catch-22
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that will perfectly prepare them
to lead the organizations of the past?
to lead the organizations of the past?
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We'll have to start by coming to terms
with a very real paradox,
with a very real paradox,
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which is this:
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the best form of learning
happens on the job --
happens on the job --
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not in a classroom, not via e-modules.
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And the two things we rely on
to shape on-the-job learning
to shape on-the-job learning
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are role models and work environments.
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And as we just talked about,
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our role models are in behavior
boot camp right now,
boot camp right now,
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and our work environments
are undergoing unprecedented disruption.
are undergoing unprecedented disruption.
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We are systematically changing
just about everything
just about everything
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about how organizations work,
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but by and large, still measuring
and rewarding behavior
and rewarding behavior
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based on old metrics,
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because changing those systems takes time.
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So, if we can't fully count on role models
or the system right now,
or the system right now,
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it's on John to not miss
this critical development window.
this critical development window.
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Yes, he'll need Jane's help to do it,
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but the responsibility is his
because the risks are actually his.
because the risks are actually his.
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Either he inherits
an organization that is failing
an organization that is failing
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because of stubbornly
old-fashioned leadership,
old-fashioned leadership,
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or he himself fails to build
the capabilities to lead one
the capabilities to lead one
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that transformed
while he was playing it safe.
while he was playing it safe.
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So now the question is,
where does John start?
where does John start?
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If I were John, I'd ask
to start flying the plane.
to start flying the plane.
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For my 13th birthday,
my grandpa, a former Navy pilot,
my grandpa, a former Navy pilot,
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gave me the gift of being able
to fly a very small plane.
to fly a very small plane.
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Once we were safely airborne,
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the pilot turned over the controls,
folded his hands,
folded his hands,
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and he let me fly.
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It was totally terrifying.
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It was exhilarating, but it was also
on-the-job learning with a safety net.
on-the-job learning with a safety net.
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And because it was real,
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I really learned how to do it myself.
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Likewise, in the workplace,
every meeting to be led,
every meeting to be led,
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every decision to be made
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can be a practice flight
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for someone who could really
use the learning experience
use the learning experience
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and the chance to figure out
how to do it their own way.
how to do it their own way.
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So instead of caving,
John needs to knock on Jane's door,
John needs to knock on Jane's door,
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propose a creative strategy
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for having the meeting
without the eight pre-meetings,
without the eight pre-meetings,
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show her he's thought
through the trade-offs
through the trade-offs
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and ask for her support
to do it differently.
to do it differently.
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This isn't going to be easy for Jane.
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Not only does she need to trust John,
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she needs to accept that with a little bit
of room to try his hand at leading,
of room to try his hand at leading,
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John will inevitably start
leading in some ways
leading in some ways
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that are far more John than Jane.
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And this won't be an indictment of her.
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Rather, it will be individualism.
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It will be progress.
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And it might even be a chance
for Jane to learn a thing or two
for Jane to learn a thing or two
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to take her own leadership game
to the next level.
to the next level.
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I work with another senior client
who summed up this dilemma beautifully
who summed up this dilemma beautifully
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when we were talking
about why he and his peers
about why he and his peers
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haven't empowered the folks below them
with more decision rights.
with more decision rights.
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He said,
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"We haven't done it
because we just don't trust
because we just don't trust
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that they're going to make
the right decisions.
the right decisions.
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But then again, how could they?
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We've just never given them
decisions to practice with."
decisions to practice with."
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So I'm not advocating that Jane
hands over the controls
hands over the controls
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and folds her hands indefinitely,
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but what I am saying
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is that if she doesn't engineer
learning and practice
learning and practice
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right into John's day today,
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he'll never be able to do what she does,
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much less do it any differently
than she does it.
than she does it.
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Finally, since we're going to be pushing
both of them outside their comfort zones,
both of them outside their comfort zones,
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we need some outside coaches
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to make sure this isn't a case
of the blind leading the blind.
of the blind leading the blind.
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But what if instead of using coaches
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to coach each one of them
to individually be more effective,
to individually be more effective,
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we started coaching
the interactions between them?
the interactions between them?
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If I could wave my magic wand,
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I would have coaches sitting
in the occasional team meeting
in the occasional team meeting
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of Jane and her direct reports,
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debriefing solely
on how well they cooperated that day.
on how well they cooperated that day.
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I would put a coach in the periodic
feedback session between Jane and John,
feedback session between Jane and John,
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and just like a couples' therapist
coaches on communication,
coaches on communication,
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they would offer advice and observations
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on how that conversation
can go better in the future.
can go better in the future.
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Was Jane simply reinforcing
what Jane would have done?
what Jane would have done?
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Or was Jane really helping John
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think through what to do
for the organization?
for the organization?
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That is seriously hard
mentorship to provide,
mentorship to provide,
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and even the best leaders
need help doing it,
need help doing it,
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which is why we need more coaches
coaching more leaders,
coaching more leaders,
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more in real time
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versus any one leader behind closed doors.
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Around 20 years ago,
Warren Buffet gave a school lecture
Warren Buffet gave a school lecture
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in which he said, "The chains
of habit are too light to be felt
of habit are too light to be felt
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until they're too heavy to be broken."
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I couldn't agree more,
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and I see it happening
with our future leaders in training.
with our future leaders in training.
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Can we and they be doing more
to build their leadership capabilities
to build their leadership capabilities
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while they're still open, eager
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11:27
and not too far gone down a path
of bad habits we totally saw coming?
of bad habits we totally saw coming?
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I wish my college roommates
and I called each other out back then
and I called each other out back then
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for the dishes.
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It would have been so much easier
to nip that habit in the bud
to nip that habit in the bud
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than it is to change it today.
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But I still believe in a future for myself
full of gleaming sinks
full of gleaming sinks
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and busy dishwashers,
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and so we're working on it,
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every day, together, moment to moment,
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one dirty dish at a time.
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Thank you.
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(Applause)
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Elizabeth Lyle - Leadership development expertBCG's Elizabeth Lyle challenges top leaders to create high-performance, future-ready organizational cultures.
Why you should listen
In the midst of transformations, Elizabeth Lyle challenges top leaders and their teams to double-down on creating high performance, future-ready organizational cultures -- and to start by evolving their own day-to-day leadership behaviors, which sit at the core of how organizations work (and whether or not they can successfully transform).
Lyle has helped the leaders of some of the oldest, largest and most complex organizations in the world to think differently about their most valuable asset: people and their talents. She has pioneered approaches that enable leaders to change how they connect with, invest in, grow and deploy that all-important asset to unlock strategic advantage and competitive potential.
Lyle is a partner and managing director of The Boston Consulting Group, based in the firm's Boston office. She is a founding member of BCG's Leadership & Talent Enablement Center in North America. She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BS with Distinction from the University of Virginia's McIntire School of Commerce.
Elizabeth Lyle | Speaker | TED.com