All That Jazz

While at the NY Taleo Talent Intelligence event (catch the tour as it continues in Atlanta, Houston, Philadelphia and Minneapolis coming up), I caught some great jazz at Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola…What does music performance have to do with leadership and organizational performance? Consider a formal orchestra with each member a virtuoso in their specialty; however all eyes are on the conductor for cues, and musicians play only what is written in the music. The conductor adds interpretation on the score regarding pace and nuances that can be seen by one who has a view from the podium (do you identify with this leadership style?). In contrast, the leader of a jazz group knows the players well enough to decide which musician’s improv is needed when; and each musician knows how many bars of music they have to improvise in a way only they can; this latitude respects and continues to develop each player’s virtuosity as they co-create the music. The performance every night is fresh and engaging. If your leadership style is collaborative, you might identify with the jazz improv metaphor.

Your style as a leader shapes and creates the performance of the organization, and the experience of external stakeholders (whether they be shareholders, customers or prospects). Hear how learning leaders at Intuit co-create the experience for their customers by treating learning as improv to identify business opportunities. Public leaders live a in culture where it is an advantage to be sensitive to their constituencies; find out why Hay Group research reveals the good old days of one-size-fits-all leadership has been rendered irrelevant by increased demands on leaders and an emerging array of new, highly complex roles requiring unique sets of skills and competencies. Meet up with public sector leaders returning to this year’s Government Summit in Sept.

Do you develop personal performance and shape organizational performance by drawing on the extended enterprise? The wealth of guidance from on-line mentors provides immediate know-how.

Sitting at lunch as I write this, overheard conversation from four executives at the next table- one man stated (only partly in humor), “I need a break; I feel broken.” If you wake up not feeling excited about “making music” and creating the best performance from your organization, you’re among many managers struggling to stay engaged. One way to engage with talent is through collaborating to recognize ethical dilemmas, being a champion of quality and service, admitting mistakes and showing courage over ego; listen in to learn about about ethics in practice among the world’s most ethical leaders.

“Bravado,” is a musical term to describe a showy fanfare or ceremonious flourish; as leaders do you share the fanfare so that talent offers up their best strengths-driven performance?  Marcus Buckingham discusses leading strengths-driven performance, emphasizing factors at play with engaged teams. Re-set your engagement strategy beginning with HCI’s Engagement & Retention conference in Boston in Oct.

Patrick Hopp, this week’s special guest in our Executive Conversation, will talk about what leaders can do to help people feel that their work is important. If you’ve upgraded to Executive Membership, or if you haven’t yet, do so while the $199 special is still in effect; we hope you’ll join the conversation. Get a fresh perspective on solving a business problem by connecting with leaders in other organizations; join a Human Capital Strategist or Strategic Workforce Planning class this summer in cities throughout the US or on-line, while there’s still the summer discount of $199. 

My leadership lesson from jazz? Keep it fresh, keep it real, and pay attention to what influences the strength of your team players, and you’ll pack the house with fans, not to mention the jam sessions that draw a crowd.

photo by gjones