Patrick Leddin* elaborates on a famous quote by management consultant, Peter Drucker and explains just why culture eats strategy for breakfast.
Perhaps you are familiar with this well-known Peter Drucker quote about the power of culture — culture eats strategy for breakfast.
My experience suggests that culture has a fairly robust appetite.
Not only does it have the ability to eat strategy for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, sometimes, it can devour a leader as well.
When this happens the team no longer believes in the leader and the leader loses the ability to influence behaviour, deliver results, and develop people.
Culture devouring a leader doesn’t happen apart from the behaviour of the leader. It’s the very behaviour of a leader that often fuels the culture’s appetite.
Here are three examples of behaviour to keep an eye out for in yourself and others.
Playing favourites
Many leaders play favourites, giving the best opportunities and biggest praise to those they like the most.
Sometimes, leaders let their favourites get away with behaviour that is selfish, destructive, and hurtful to everyone else.
In doing so, the leader isolates others, which is the exact opposite of building a great culture.
Failing to adapt to team needs
No team is static — people join and leave, requirements ebb and flow.
A leader must be nimble and adjust to meet team needs.
It’s important to continually assess the needs of the team and to give its members what they need when they need it.
Moreover, it’s critical to stop doing what has helped the team in the past but is no longer needed.
Old habits are hard to break, but a true leader knows to serve the team, not an old habit.
Losing the confidence of others
Leaders need to demonstrate both the character and competence needed to build confidence among team members.
This means sticking to their word, delivering as promised, listening to others, and knowing their stuff.
Maintaining the confidence of others in one’s ability to lead is a continuing effort and the key to successful leadership.
I wish you all the best as you lead others and encourage you to remember how your daily behaviour shapes the culture of your team.
*Patrick Leddin is an Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee, teaching corporate strategy and managerial studies. He can be contacted at linkedin.com/in/patrickleddin.
This article first appeared on Patrick’s blogsite.
