Leadership, George Bush & “The Vision Thing”

A leader who isn’t giving direction and communicating progress isn’t leading.  For how can there be real leadership if there’s no direction, no vision, no sense of destination?

Stewards

People who carry the title of leader, but don’t offer direction are not leaders – they are stewards.  They look after the organisation’s procedures, assets and results, they solve problems and they make the best of current circumstances, but they are not leading.  That’s because the first dimension of leadership as explained in my new book, The Three Levels of Leadership, is agreeing a purpose and direction that people support.  So if the organisation isn’t going anywhere, if there’s no shared vision, leadership is missing.

Yet many leaders pay no attention to vision.  They concentrate on cutting costs, improving efficiency and solving problems as they arise, but they don’t move their organisation or nations forward.

George Bush

One famous example is George Bush, president of the United States from 1988 to 1992.  An article in Time magazine in 1987 by Robert Ajemian, when Bush was vice-president, carried this quote:

“Colleagues say that while Bush understands thoroughly the complexities of issues, he does not easily fit them into larger themes.  This has led to the charge that he lacks vision.  It rankles him.  Recently he asked a friend to help him identify some cutting issues for next year’s campaign.  Instead, the friend suggested that Bush go alone to Camp David for a few days to figure out where he wanted to take the country. ‘Oh,’ said Bush in clear exasperation, ‘the vision thing.’  The friend’s advice did not impress him.”

The press soon noticed Bush’s remark about “the vision thing” and it became a frequent focus of criticism.  But President Bush is not alone among leaders who prefer stewardship to leadership.

Why is this?

The Problem with “Vision”

One reason is that “leadership vision” has gained a bad name in some quarters and this allows those who prefer to act as stewards to point the finger and argue that vision is not all it’s cracked up to be.  And it’s true, many so-called visions have basic defects.  Many are:

• Bland: some visions are so uninteresting they make no difference to the organisation’s action agenda.  This can happen when managers confuse a vision with a mission.
• Superficial: some visions are built on sand.  The people at the top have put little effort into defining their organisation’s future with any imagination or rigour.  Witness the, “We wish to be the preferred partner. . .” style visions.  These usually lack the answer to why the firm will be the preferred partner.  Alternatively, you’ll see versions of the, “We will achieve excellence, our customers will love us, so will our suppliers and we’ll all go to heaven” variety.  I know from experience that these evoke either disinterest or a belly laugh from those in the front line of the business, usually behind the top managers’ backs.
• Too centred on shareholders: sometimes you see visions focused on shareholders’ concerns.  For example, they may stress earnings per share or market capitalisation.  But they rarely help to chart direction and don’t motivate most employees, especially those outside the top tier.
• Empty: you see visions like this when there is no blueprint for action and no determination to follow through.  This is when the attractive-sounding vision is hollow and it’s revealed for what it is – hot air.

The Way Forward

What is the way forward?  I suggest there are two sides to it.

First, those who wish to lead organisations or nations must come to recognise that, like it or not, part of their role is to ensure there is a vision or sense of direction that those they are leading want to follow.  And for those who want to offer transformational leadership, vision has to be central to everything they do.

Second, leaders must either spend time thinking through on their own the vision they want to bring to fruition or instead learn how to create a vision with their colleagues.

How a leader can create such a vision with their colleagues will be the subject of a future blog.