The conductor
We buy our tickets to go to the Music Center to listen to Esa Pekka Salonen conduct the Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestra. We find our seats in anticipation of the performance. The conductor comes out and bows to the audience. We clap. He turns, and there is silence. Then the music starts and we listen spellbound to the beautiful strains of Brahms while the conductor stands up front and waves his arms around randomly. It looks so easy! The conductor doesn't make a single sound, but he gets all the praise for what we hear. He didn't write the music. We don't even know that he can play an instrument, but we applaud him for the beautiful music he created. It almost seems ironic!
As a leader, what Mr. Salonen does is amazing! He brings good musicians together to do so much more than any could do alone -- produce great music. We don’t see the hours he has trained each of the players in the orchestra. During the performance, he is just directing timing and giving signs – each player has already been instructed to do exactly what he wants them to do.
The players already know their instruments. They have practiced every day for hours, and know how to play anything. Each has the ability to make beautiful music alone, in small groups, or in an orchestra. They can get together with other musicians and improvise. While many can play an instrument, the conductor is looking for those who can give him the sound he wants. The players in an orchestra may be technically perfect, but it's the conductor that brings them together.
The conductor spends hours with them as a group, practicing each piece, telling each of them what he wants to hear coming out of their instruments. He tells some to soften, others to play louder, he makes the timing perfect so each comes in on cue. The conductor brings them together so the entire orchestra plays as one, while each does his own job. Without him they wouldn't have the impact of an excellent performance. The art of the performance really is all about the conductor, but after all the training, his presence in front of the orchestra becomes almost superfluous.
Business Leadership
In the same way, a good leader in business trains his staff to function the way he wants over time. They are all trained individually and collectively so they know exactly what to do. Then, when all is running as it should, he can step out of working in the business and direct the activities. He will carefully follow the business statistics to see that all is running well, making small corrections as needed, or directing them as a group. When he has accomplished this the business will run without him, everyone knows their job and they do it well. He will then be able to use his time to improve the entire business.
A good leader makes an overall plan for the business, including what each team member accomplishes. The business owner needs to know exactly what he wants each person to do so each employee is empowered. Each is talented through their own personal training. Each also knows the "big picture" in how the office is supposed to run in order to function well. They need a leader to show and tell them how to work together to make the business work the way he wants it to work. With a clear vision, a good leader brings employees together, working in harmony to synergistically do what neither the owner, nor the employees could do alone.
Staff training
Just like the conductor in an orchestra, it's all about the leader in business as well. He is responsible for the business. He must train everyone to do exactly what he wants. The employees do as he says, and are empowered to act only within their position. If they have an idea on how the business might work better, they go to their leader to see if it fits in with the big picture. The leader decides what will be done, and how. When a person does something especially well, they get praised, and when they are out of sync, they are told to get back in line. The leader must do performance reviews, the more the better. Training must happen continuously, both as individuals and as a group.
As the leader evaluates each employee, the "cream will rise to the top." Those who are doing what he wants get better. He doesn't compromise his standards. He doesn't allow "the inmates to run the asylum," but rather gives clear direction at all times. The standards are set, and are not moved. Those who are unable to perform to the standards of the leader, and who are not able to be trained, must be let go, and then another will be hired to fill the position.
Finding talent
Over time it becomes clear that a leader is looking for a specific talent to fill a position. There are many who could do the job, but a good business leader is looking for one who can perform excellently, follow directions, and work together with others to form the group into a team, like an orchestra, where each is playing his own part to make the whole business run well. The hiring process requires knowing exactly what jobs need to be done so the right people can be found to fill them. Each candidate is told what is expected and can be hired if they have expressed the desire and shown the ability to do that job. Then they must be trained to act in harmony with the group. Sometimes a person who seems right isn't able to work with the team, or fill the position properly. As soon as it becomes obvious that an individual isn't able to perform, they must be changed, and another must be found that is a good fit. One wrong note can destroy the entire performance! As staff grows, a leader may continually be looking for talent.
A good orchestra becomes great when the conductor is able to bring good musicians together to act as one. Likewise, in business, when there is good leadership with a clear plan of vision and direction, a well-trained staff who knows their own place, and who fit in well, the business doesn't just survive, it thrives! All team members are happy, and work synergistically, multiplying their talents. They grow and "bear fruit, and bring forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty." (Matthew 13:23) Moreover, by the time of the performance the orchestra could play the piece without the conductor. Likewise, because the staff all know exactly what to do, a well-run business frees the leader from continuously “putting out fires” and allows him to “work on the business, and not in the business.”
No comments:
Post a Comment