Where is the horn that was blowing?

I woke up this morning with the radio alarm blaring KYW 1060, as it does every morning, and it just so happened that by the time I was fully awake enough to shut the alarm off (after the first 4 times it went off and I hit the snooze button on autopilot) that the business report was airing. The announcer must not even have to change his script from day to day, because it always seems like the same news: stock market down, unemployment up, bailout package, etc.


Today, a group of economists called the Group of 30 (very dash-cunning of them, those economists) strongly suggested tighter regulation for the banking and credit sector, citing the past abuses of the system that lead to the downfall of the finance giants and the recent Madoff-lead Ponzi scam. On top of that, Obama is calling for the rest of the $350 billion bailout be released, and has promised greater transparency for how it is being spent. (Personally, I am a little perturbed that no one knows what happened to the first $350 billion. Shouldn't someone be looking for that?)


Now, I have my opinions about the bailout, but I'll leave that for another discussion, and I'm not going to blast the familiar trumpet call of, "Where's my bailout?" I tend to interest myself with the root causes of the issues that we face, not just the symptoms. The market crash, the closure of major investment houses, the housing crisis, they are all symptoms. They aren't the actual problem.


So here is the real issue at hand, the one that has been touched upon, but hasn't really been explored: where have all of the real leaders gone?

I don't care how corrupt, greedy, inept, or just plain lazy the rank-and-file employees may be at any organization (note: I am not saying this is the case at any of the affected organizations); the responsibility always, always falls at the feet of the person in charge. Tasks and projects can be delegated, responsibility cannot.


As pointed out in the book Good to Great, great leaders have ambition, but their ambition for their company always comes before their personal ambition. And that ambition for the company always means taking a long-term view and making decisions that will not put the company at the kind of risk that costs jobs or requires Chapter 11.


This is not to say that excellent leaders don't take risk or make mistakes. Great leaders will always take chances and will occasionally make a mistake, but they all realize something: risks should be calculated, and there is an understanding that the higher up on the corporate ladder that these risks are taken, the greater the consequences.


The big issue here is the constant battle cry of "greater regulation". This is only one way of helping prevent a similar meltdown in the future and to possibly stem the flow of the current economic recession. But no matter how hard they try, no matter how carefully they word the legislation, no matter how much power the regulatory body may have, neither Congress or anyone else in government can regulate a manager's ability to lead. And that is what is really missing here.


Take a look at each and every example of businesses and industries that are directly contributing to our economic woes: Lehman Brothers, the mortgage houses, the banks, all of them that are suffering now have all suffered a severe lack of competent, responsible leadership. The ones that are weathering the storm, acquiring their competitors and doing relatively well all have a steady hand at the helm, someone who thinks about the long-term consequences for their companies.


So, to me, the answer is not just more regulation. The real answer is for people to stop settling for the incompetent leaders who have pushed this economy to the brink of disaster. Now, we are not all in a position to have much effect on the presidents and CEOs, but some of us are in a position to make hiring decisions, and all of us are in control of the kind of leader that we will be. This is what I suggest:

• Hire up. Each person you hire should have the potential to leave you in their dust. Don't be afraid to hire someone better than you. Holding that fear will only perpetuate the cycle.
• Be honest with thyself. Take a good look at the mirror, and be your own harshest critic. Take the time to complete an inventory of your managerial style and your own actions. Then assume that you aren't doing as good a job, and focus on being better.
• Screw intentions. Intentions are worthless. Actions are what count.
• Constantly grow. Pick specific things that you want to improve on as a leader, and then work on those things. Read as much as you can, and get as much exposure to other leaders as possible. This kind of "classical" approach will lead you to be a very well-rounded leader who is capable of handling a variety of situations.
• Seek feedback. This can be the hardest thing for a leader to do, but it is essential that you do it. It doesn't matter what you think you are doing, it matters what your team perceives.
• Communicate in all directions. Mentoring is not just a top-down prospect. You can covertly mentor up by offering feedback to your supervisors as well. When is the last time that your supervisor, or his/her supervisor heard, "You are doing a great job"?

"All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing." Take this to heart. Its is when we, all of us, choose to allow leaders to act in unscrupulous ways, that we choose to ignore when a decision can potentially bankrupt a company, that we choose to not develop our teams to their fullest potential, that the cycle perpetuates. This is not something that we can rely on the government to fix. They play their part, but ultimately, the responsibility, in whatever capacity it may be, falls on us.