Successful executives are not afraid of strong subordinates. Strong
subordinates help executives fulfill their own responsibilities. And giving
subordinates expanded responsibility helps to develop them. Abraham
Lincoln selected as cabinet members four of his opponents for the
Republican nomination for president in 1860. At least two of them, William
H. Seward and Salmon P. Chase, on the basis of formal qualifications,
including education and experience, were more qualified for the presidency
than Lincoln. His second secretary of war, Edwin Stanton, a Democrat and
former attorney general in the Buchanan administration, previously thought
dimly of Lincoln’s ability as a lawyer. Yet Lincoln knew he was dealing with
very serious problems and needed to assemble the most talented team
available to help him carry out his responsibilities.
PICKING STRONG SUBORDINATES
“Making a leader effective.”
Precisely because an effective leader knows that he, and no one else, is ultimately responsible, he is not afraid of strength in associates and
subordinates. Misleaders are, they always go in for purges. But an
effective leader wants strong associates, he encourages them, pushes
them, indeed glories in them. Because he holds himself as ultimately
responsible for the mistakes of his associates and subordinates, he also
sees the triumphs of his associates as his triumphs, rather than as threats.
A leader may be personally vain—as General MacArthur was to an
almost pathological degree. Or he may be personally humble—both
Lincoln and Truman were so almost to the point of having inferiority
complexes. But all three wanted able, independent, self-assured people
around them, they encouraged their subordinates, praising and promoting
them. So did a very different person: Dwight “Ike” Eisenhower, when
supreme commander in Europe.
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• To establish standards, top executives must engage in activities that include
developing, reiterating, and setting examples of the vision and values of the
organization. People quickly forget the vision, values, and standards of an
organization and treat these as “trophies” unless they are reinforced by
management. Reinforcement of mission and values has to be done a number
of times each year by the people in charge of an organization. Such
reinforcements are sometimes referred to as “conscience activities.” They
establish what the organization stands for and aspires to, and its reason for
being
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