Creative Leadersh
Soft Skills Make
Dr. John Fleenor of the Center for Creative Leadership explains
why, in today’s challenging economic circumstances, the CEO’s
“soft” skills make all the difference.
D
uring these tough economic times,
companies are under increasing pres-
sure to improve their bottom-line per-
formance through downsizings, reor-
ganizations, redeployments and other
organizational transitions. Yet
today's leaders are struggling to use
leadership styles that will successfully lead their organiza-
tions through these transitions. Often, these leaders are not
sure how to balance "soft" leadership skills such as trust,
empathy and communication with the more "bottom-line"
approaches typically used in these situations.
A survey recently conducted by the Center for Creative
Leadership (CCL) found that the greater the stress an organi-
zation is facing, the more important a leader's soft skills
become. The survey asked practicing leaders to evaluate
which skills worked best when leading organizations through
periods of transition. Responses from 77 managers who
attended CCL's Leadership Development Program were com-
pared to those of an equal number of leaders who were asked
the same questions in 1996. The current respondents were
also asked to respond to a series of open-ended questions
about leading people through change.
Reflecting today's tough economic times for businesses, the
current respondents identified the greatest challenges for
leaders as:
motivating staff members as they face an uncertain
future,
attempting to communicate clearly and to provide
www.pceo.us
a rationale for organizational changes,
working in a cross-functional leadership role while
still meeting customer demands, and
developing and retaining staff at appropriate levels
36 April 2003
to accomplish more with less.
The survey results indicated that there were three distinguish-
ing characteristics associated with leaders who were most
successful in leading their organizations through transitions:
They were skilled in honest, proactive communi-
cation.
They were willing to articulate clearly the ration-
ale and necessity for change despite the pain those
changes might inflict.
They listened well and demonstrated sensitivity
when dealing with employees.
In organizations undergoing transitions, effective leaders
seem to be able to blend the softer leadership skills-trust,
empathy and genuine communication-with the tough skills
needed to keep an organization afloat during difficult times.
Effective leaders seem better at striking a balance between
providing support and direction that employees need during
periods of uncertainty and the bottom-line goals of the busi-
ness. In contrast, ineffective leaders seem to be poor com-
municators who are insensitive to employee needs and are
generally seen as inaccessible.
The good news is that, overall, businesses today seem to be
doing a better job dealing with transitions compared to organ-
izations in 1996. For example, more than half the respon-
dents in the 1996 survey thought their organization's process-
es for downsizing, redeployment or reorganization were
unfair. According to the current survey, that number has
dropped by a statistically significant 26 percent. The current
survey also indicates that employees now feel safer in
expressing their feelings about transitions, and those who
remain with the organization after a downsizing are treated
with more respect and dignity. Reflecting the changing
dynamics in the workplace, there was a 70 percent shift in the
hip, Tough Times:
e The Difference
number of respondents who believe employees are responsi- become derailed. The researchers found that lower ratings of
ble for their own career planning and development. Nine out organizational culture were associated with a greater likeli-
of 10 respondents in the current survey believed so, compared hood of that the leader would become derailed.
to three out of 10 in the 1996 survey.
To assess the likelihood of derailment, the researchers used
Despite an improvement of more than 15 percentage points Benchmarks, CCL's 360-degree feedback survey that was
over the 1996 survey, more than half the current respondents designed to identify managerial flaws that may result in
reported that derailment. The
today's leaders are derailment factors
still failing to com- assessed by
municate clearly Benchmarks
their rationale for include several of
downsizing and the soft skills that
other organizational CCL found to be
changes. While important for suc-
organizations are cessfully leading
clearly making organizations
progress, they still through transitions,
have work to do in such as "Problems
training leaders to with Interpersonal
manage the 'soft Relationships,"
side' of their jobs. "Difficulty
There is a growing Building and
recognition that Leading a Team,"
weaknesses in soft and "Difficulty
skills areas will pre-
vent leaders from
effectively manag-
ing the waves of change that are part of today's business envi- Changing/Adapting."
ronment.
CCL has uncovered an important link between the soft skills
As the business world has become more volatile with down- of individual leaders and a corporate culture that supports
sizings, mergers, declining productivity and global competi- long-term success. Not only is there a strong correlation
tion, a debate has raged about the impact that leaders' weak- between the skills of a company's leaders and its corporate
nesses have on successful leadership in these tough times. culture, but the strength of this correlation increases with the
Some current thinkers on this topic have suggested that com- level of the executive.
panies shouldn't be concerned with developing their leaders'
weaknesses, but instead, should be focusing only on their This study underscores the consequences for a company's cul-
strengths. A recent study conducted by CCL, however, ques- ture that derailed leaders can have. It highlights the connec-
tions this popular assumption and finds that just the opposite tion between leaders' development efforts and their ability to
may be true. In fact, ignoring a leader's weaknesses may neg- impact the company's culture, and thus long-term success of
President & CEO

atively impact the company's bottom line.
In this study, CCL researchers found a link between the skill
levels of individual leaders and corporate cultures that sup-
port long-term success. What is particularly interesting about
this research is the consistent relationship found between the
culture of the organization and the likelihood a leader would
the organization itself. Weaknesses in the soft skills that lead
to derailment can negatively affect a leader's ability to shape
the culture of the organization, which questions the soundness
of focusing only on the leader's strengths. If deficits in soft
skills are overlooked in favor of strengths, it can impair the
leader's ability to successfully lead the company through
chaotic transitions such as downsizing.

April 2003 37