"Resonant Leadership"

by Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee (Harvard Business School Press 2005)

Leadership is a theme which has launched a thousand books (several thousand!) before and since John W Gardner’s classic treatise On Leadership. We have been exposed to heroic leaders, dynamic leaders and latterly to servant leaders. We have seen the achievements of great leaders, but little about how they made them happen, nor about the setbacks and failures which tested them. Resonant Leadership explores leadership in human terms, both in the experience of selected leaders and of their impact on family, friends and colleagues. Reading the intimate details of Niall Fitzgerald’s ordeal in the crucible of failure gives rare insights into the process of rescuing a life and shaping a resonant leader. ‘‘Resonant leaders are in tune with those around them.’’ Their core skill is developing and sustaining emotional intelligence in themselves and others, creating an environment of benevolence, compassion, optimism and hope in which individuals grow and business can achieve sustainable success.

The authors emphasise the importance of renewal to sustain the effectiveness of leadership. They warn against the intrusion of dissonance into relationships, either due to neglect of the exercise of emotional intelligence or to failure to achieve a balanced life. Overfocus on a single issue creates ‘‘mindlessness’’ and invites failure. Emotional intelligence is nurtured by ‘‘mindfulness’’ (self awareness and awareness of others). A model for this is John Studzinski of HSBC whose lifestyle is all-embracing but carefully balanced and who works tirelessly on personal relationships in order to maximise effectiveness.

Considerable care is taken to describe both the virtuous cycle of renewal and the vicious cycle of stress, sacrifice and dissonance which destroys leaders. One of the key sections of the book is the ‘‘intentional change theory’’ which explores a path to change with five key steps:

1. The ideal self, or what you want out of life and the person you want to be - leading to your personal vision

2. The real self, or how you act and are seen by others; the comparison of the real self to the ideal self results in identification of your strengths and weaknesses - leading to your personal balance sheet.

3. Your learning agenda to capitalise on your strengths and move you closer to your personal vision while possibly working on a weakness or two (or working to maintain the ideal current state of your life and work).

4. Experimenting with and practising new habits or reinforcing and affirming your strengths.

5. Developing and maintaining close, personal relationships - resonant relationships - that enable you to move through these discoveries toward renewal.

This section features a case study of Roberto Nicastro who has totally transformed Italy’s UniCredit Banca and moved it from being a smaller Italian bank into a major force in Central and Eastern Europe. As with other sections it has a personal assessment exercise to help readers develop their leadership capability.

The key message of this book is that organisational transformation can only be achieved through personal transformation. The authors quote Gandhi in the last chapter ‘‘Be the Change you Wish to See in the World’’. This poses the four questions to define a ‘‘resonant leader’’:

• Am I inspirational?

• Do I create an overall positive emotional tone that is characterised by hope? and

• Am I in touch with others? Do I know what is in others’ hearts and minds? Do I experience and demonstrate compassion?

• Am I mindful - authentic and in tune with myself, others and the environment?

The authors invite the reader to undertake the personal transformation to become a ‘‘resonant leader’’, following the rallying call from Goethe

‘‘What you can do,
or dream you can,
begin it.
Boldness has genius,
power and magic
in it.’’

Resonant Leadership is more than a treatise on leadership; it is an invitation to a voyage of self discovery in order to achieve self realisation. It is a challenge to ‘‘armchair’’ leaders to live leadership instead of watching it. Like Gardner, the authors focus on self renewal as the engine for making radical change in organisations through their people; Resonant Leadership is another classic treatise on leadership, showing the agony and the ecstasy felt by leaders and the radical change this transforming experience enables them to effect.

Adrian Davies May 2006