There are followers in almost every organization who remind us “how hollow the label of leadership sometimes is—and how heroic followership can be.”37 But standing up to the boss isn’t easy. Finding the courage to effectively manage up comes easier when you realize how much leaders depend on followers.38 It’s a fact that our bosses typically have more power than we do. Yet subordinates have more power than many people realize.
Sources of Power for Managing Up
Exhibit 7.4 outlines several sources of power that can be used by followers to man- age up.
Personal Sources One personal source of upward influence is the follower’s knowl- edge and skills that are valuable to the organization. A subordinate with useful knowledge is of real benefit to the leader, and his or her departure would be a loss. In addition, someone who has a demonstrated record of performance often develops expertise and in this way can influence the boss’s decisions. A record of successes and a history of contributions can gain a follower expert status. When someone is recognized as an expert, that person often can influence activities because he or she becomes an indispensable resource to the leader. The power to influence is also associated with the effort followers put forth. By demonstrating a willingness to learn, to accept difficult or undesirable projects, and to initiate activi- ties beyond the scope of expected effort, people can increase their power.39
Another way to influence up with is persuasion, which refers to the direct appeal to leaders for desired outcomes.40 Rational persuasion—using facts and reason—is typically the most effective approach when trying to manage upward. By treating the issue in a business-like manner, formulating a carefully crafted argument and supporting it with details, followers gain attention and respect.41However, followers can use a variety of influence tactics, depending on their own personalities and styles
EXHIBIT 7.4 Sources of Power for Managing Up
In many ways, great followership is harder than leadership. It has more dangers and
fewer rewards.
Warren Bennis, leadership expert;
author ofStill Surprised:
A Memoir of a Life in Leadership
©CengageLearning2015
208 PART 3THE PERSONAL SIDE OF LEADERSHIP
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and the preferences and style of the leader.42Chapter 12 will discuss influence tactics in detail.
Position Sources A follower’s formal position also provides sources of power. For example, certain jobs or physical locations can render the follower visible to numer- ous individuals. A position that is key to the flow of information can establish that position and the person in it as critical—thus, influential—to those who need the information. A central location provides influence because the follower becomes known to many people and contributes to the work of many. Access to people and information in an organization provides a means to establish relationships with a broad range of people both inside and outside the organization. With a network of relationships, followers have more clout with the leader and more opportunity to persuade and make significant contributions.
Necessary Courage to Manage Up
Some people tend to think, “Who am I to challenge the CEO (or director, or team leader)?” Yet leaders depend on followers who are willing to step up and challenge them when it is in the interest of the organization. Good followers are not yes men (or women). They are people who think for themselves and conduct their work lives with courage and integrity.43The discussion of courage and integrity in Chapter 6 applies to followers as well as leaders. To be effective, followers have to know what they stand for and be willing to express their own ideas and opinions to their lea- ders, even though this might mean risking their jobs, being demeaned, or feeling inadequate.44 Effective followers have the courage to accept responsibility, chal- lenge authority, participate in change, serve the needs of the organization, and leave the organization when necessary.45
The Courage to Assume Responsibility The effective follower feels a sense of per- sonal responsibility and ownership in the organization and its mission. Thus, the follower assumes responsibility for his or her own behavior and its impact on the organization. Effective followers do not presume that a leader or an organization will provide them with security, permission to act, or personal growth. Instead, they initiate the opportunities through which they can achieve personal fulfillment, exercise their potential, and provide the organization with the fullest extent of their capabilities. Emiliana “Millie” Barela has been cleaning rooms for 32 years at Antlers at Vail, a Colorado ski lodge. She takes pride in her work and sees her job as an important part of creating a good experience for guests. Barela takes it upon herself to get to know guests and put their interests and needs first.46
The Courage to Challenge Effective followers do not sacrifice their personal integ- rity or the good of the organization in order to maintain harmony. If a leader’s actions and decisions contradict the best interests of the organization, effective fol- lowers take a stand. Obedience is considered a high virtue in military organizations, for example, but the U.S. Army teaches soldiers that they have a duty to disobey illegal or immoral orders.47 Good leaders want followers who are willing to chal- lenge them for the good of the organization. At Tyco International, which was one of the few large corporations that got caught up in the accounting scandals of the early 2000s and managed to restore its reputation, “the only career-ending move [today] is to not bring bad news forward,” says Laurie Siegel, senior vice president of human resources. It is a guiding principle at Tyco for leaders to surround
NEW LEADER ACTION MEMO
As a follower, you can assume responsibility for your own personal development, behav- ior, and work performance.
You can look for opportunities to make a difference, seek to meet organizational needs, serve others, and work toward the common good.
To evaluate whether you have ever worked for a destructive boss, log in to CengageNOW to complete the interactive questionnaire.
CHAPTER 7FOLLOWERSHIP 209
themselves with people who will speak up and hold them accountable. Managers’
leadership behaviors are assessed annually and include an evaluation of whether they are willing to challenge their superiors when necessary.48
The Courage to Participate in Transformation Effective followers view the struggle of corporate change and transformation as a mutual experience shared by all mem- bers of the organization. When an organization undergoes a difficult transforma- tion, effective followers support the leader and the organization. They are not afraid to confront the changes and work toward reshaping the organization.
David Chislett, of Imperial Oil’s Dartmouth, Nova Scotia refinery, was faced with this test of courage. The refinery was the least efficient in the industry and the board of directors gave management nine months to turn things around. Chislett’s bosses asked him to give up his management position and return to the duties of a wage earner as part of an overall transformation strategy. He agreed to the request, thereby contributing to the success of the refinery’s transformation.49
The Courage to Serve An effective follower discerns the needs of the organization and actively seeks to serve those needs. Just as leaders can serve others, as discussed in the previous chapter, so can followers. A follower can provide strength to the leader by supporting the leader and by contributing to the organization in areas that complement the leader’s position. By displaying the will to serve others over them- selves, followers act for the common mission of the organization with a passion that equals that of a leader. Laurie Stein, general counsel of Clorox Company, proved her- self to be an exceptional follower after the company hired an outside CEO.
IN THE LEAD
Laurie Stein, Clorox
One expert estimates that managers have a 30Ĝpercent to 40Ĝpercent chance of being fired after a company hires an outside CEO. The best strategy? Make it your job to serve the new leader and help him or her succeed.
That’s what Laurie Stein, general counsel of Clorox, did. Before Donald Knauss even took the CEO job, Stein did extensive research on him to help her know how to work with him most effectively. She learned, for example, that Knauss prefers one-page memos rather than reams of data and informal interactions rather than formal meetings. In addition, she began looking for how she could best serve Knauss and the organization as it embarked on a new path. Even if she disagreed with any strategic changes he wanted to make, Stein believed it was her job to support them.
Since Stein had previously worked in China, she volunteered to informally advise col- leagues about revamping the company’s strategy in that country. Knauss appreciated Stein’s proactive, service-oriented approach. “She will help anyone who asks for help,” he says.
Within months of taking the CEO job, Knauss had broadened Stein’s duties and power.50
The Courage to Leave Sometimes organizational or personal changes create a situa- tion in which a follower must withdraw from a particular leader–follower relation- ship. People might know they need new challenges, for example, even though it is
210 PART 3THE PERSONAL SIDE OF LEADERSHIP
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hard to leave a job where they have many friends and valued colleagues. If fol- lowers are faced with a leader or an organization unwilling to make necessary changes, it is time to take their support elsewhere. In addition, a follower and leader may have such strong differences of opinion that the follower can no longer support the leader’s decisions and feels a moral obligation to leave. U.S. general John Batiste turned down a promotion and resigned because he felt he could no longer support civilian leaders’ decisions regarding Iraq. The role of military offi- cers is to advise civilian leaders and then carry out orders even when they disagree.
General Batiste spent weeks torn between his sense of duty and respect for the chain of command and a feeling that he owed it to his soldiers to speak out against lea- ders’ decisions. Ultimately, believing he could no longer serve his leaders as he should, the general had the courage to leave the job, even though it meant the end of a lifelong career he highly valued.51