positive leadership and positive energy

Positive Leadership and Positive Energy

IPPA 2015 1

2017 IPPA Presentation 16 July 2017

Kim Cameron

University of Michigan

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Three Introductory Cases

Kim Cameron, University of Michigan

The Saga •  Head of Operations - Patrick Charmel

•  Viewed by employees as the most effective administrator in the organization

•  Exemplary positive energy and innovativeness •  Forced to resign by the Board of Directors

•  Employees •  Formally appealed to the Board of Directors •  Crashed a Board meeting to protest Pat’s dismissal •  Pressured the current CEO and the president to resign

SOURCE: Cameron, 2013; Cameron & Caza, 2004


The Challenge

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•  Patrick Charmel •  Hired back as CEO and President

•  The Financial Crisis •  Griffin was faced with a several million dollar deficit. •  Within 6 months it seemed clear that the hospital had to

downsize or close. •  This meant that some former employees who supported

Charmel’s return had to be let go.


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Consequences of Downsizing •  Culture: Interpersonal relationships, shared values, trust and loyalty, and consensual culture are

damaged.

•  Communication: Information sharing is reduced; knowledge and non-routine wisdom is lost; secrecy increases; deception and duplicity occur; less documentation exists; formalization, rigidity, resistance to change, and conservatism increase.

•  Emotions: Anger, vindictiveness, contention, and feelings victimization increase; conflict is the first alternative selected.

•  Coordination: Selfishness and voluntary turnover escalate; teamwork and cooperation deteriorate; coordination costs increase.

•  Internal Focus: Replacing concern for external constituencies with internal concerns, including psychological, emotional, and familial trauma; loss of customer concern.

•  Leadership: Scapegoating and blaming leaders; loss of the most effective and most marketable leaders; leadership anemia.

SOURCE: Cameron, 1994, 1998

The Rest of the Story

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Charmel’s Strategy

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•  Focused on positive practices rather than problems alone. •  Emphasized positive opportunities rather than negativity. •  Practiced open and honest communication rather than secrecy. •  Institutionalized forgiveness rather than blaming and resentment. •  Fostered trust and integrity rather than backbiting and

scapegoating. •  Compassion and kindness replaced selfishness and entitlement. •  Abundance language—love, hope, humility, virtue—replaced

cynicism and criticism.


Results

•  Named to the FORTUNE "100 Best Companies to Work For" list for the 10th consecutive year, a feat achieved by no other hospital.

•  One of three hospitals in the USA to be honored with a “Distinction for Leadership and Innovation in Patient-Centered Care Award.”

•  Top 1% winner of “Premier Healthcare Alliance Award for Quality.”

•  Top 5% of “Distinguished Hospitals for Clinical Excellence”

•  Platinum Innovation Prize


OK. But, you’d expect this in the health care industry. What about organizations not inclined toward the saccharine sweet, squishy, positivity stuff . . . such as financial services? When money counts and shareholder value reigns, what is the role of positive practices?


Prudential Financial Services

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Prudential Retirement

•  Consolidation in the financial services industry •  Languishing retirement businesses •  Cigna – Prudential merger (Yankees & Red Sox) •  Major culture clashes •  Cynicism and low morale



Intervention •  CEO John Kim:

“Implementing POS (positive organizational scholarship-informed practices) was initially seen as just being positive—smiles. It became clear, however, that this was a significant change . . . There is no end, no final grade. This is about changing our culture, our strategy, and our approach. It is not a destination or a conclusion but a process. I will know that we have succeeded when customers and employees see us as above average in all the technical aspects of our business, but then by succeeding above all understanding.”

“We don’t debate how we will get there. We just take initiative. If I wanted to stop this movement I couldn’t. It’s way beyond my control. People are doing things now that are self-perpetuating.”


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Results •  Successful culture merger •  From losses to substantial profitability – 20% annual growth •  Kept 95% of clients •  Higher employee opinion survey results •  Now the largest business in Prudential •  Eventual loss of CEO did not alter the course



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Prudential Financial Services Prudential Real Estate •  Current year: $70 million in the red •  Previous year: Loss of $140 million •  New CEO, Jim Mallozzi, trained at Prudential Retirement •  High turnover •  Low morale


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Prudential Financial Services Intervention •  Jim Mallozzi, CEO:

•  “When I took over in the fall of 2009, we were facing a 70 million dollar loss per year. The company had lost 140 million dollars the year before. I harkened back to my Prudential Retirement days and what I learned about positive organizational scholarship. The message was, let's look at what we have as opposed to what we don't have. Let's look at what we can do as opposed to what we don't do. How do we start to take the limits off our company, not in terms of just going back to where we were two years or five years ago, but how do we achieve something that is truly great and never seen before in our industry? We implemented a variety of positive practices and tools, and the results were astounding.”


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Results •  JD Power Award for Service

•  93% of employees trained in POS in 80 days

•  Employee opinion scores increased in 9 of 10 categories

•  From $70 million loss to $20 million profit

•  Achieved 2 times business plan

•  Voluntary turnover declined

•  Stock value higher than parent firm



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•  But, how about the not-for-profit sector—such as government organizations—where unions, bureaucracy, and recalcitrance are often major barriers?

Yeah, But . . .


Rocky Flats Nuclear Arsenal

•  Mission: Beginning in 1951, produce triggers for nuclear weapons. Keep the world safe for democracy during the Cold War.

•  Location: 16 miles west of Denver, Colorado.

•  Size: 385 acres surrounded by a 6000 acre buffer zone.

•  Buildings: 800 structures, or 3 million square feet under roof.

•  Workforce: 3500 highly skilled unionized employees.

•  Ownership: U.S. Department of Energy.

•  Jurisdiction: Atomic Energy Commission. •  Security: Tight security clearance required of workers.

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Rocky Flats Nuclear Arsenal •  Fearing pollution, the EPA and FBI shut down

the facility in 1989. •  Employees immediately lost their mission, and

were transformed from patriotic heroes—keeping the world safe for democracy—to accused environmental criminals.

•  A “hot shutdown” created a more dangerous condition than when the facility was fully operational.

•  Weekly protests, state and federal government harassment, private citizen lawsuits, and constant negative press created a siege mentality.

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Rocky Flats Nuclear Arsenal •  Expenditures totaled $700 million per year to keep

the facility. •  The Department of Energy’s estimate of closure

and clean-up in 1995: 70 years and $36 billion—to be completed in 2065. Thirteen other sites received similar estimates.

•  Through a competitive bidding process a privately-held company received the contract to clean-up and close the Rocky Flats Nuclear Arsenal.

•  No such task had ever been accomplished any place in the world. No procedures or processes had ever been developed.

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Condition of the Site in 1995 •  21 tons of weapons-grade nuclear

material.

•  100 tons of high content plutonium residues with no treatment or disposal path.

•  30,000 liters of plutonium and enriched uranium solutions in tanks and pipes, some of them leaking.

•  More than 258,000 cubic meters of low-level radioactive waste.

•  Nearly 15,000 cubic meters of transuranic waste.

•  A special Nightline program rated Rocky Flats as the most dangerous buildings in America.

•  More than a dozen rooms were labeled “infinity rooms.”

•  Contamination existed in walls, floors, ceilings, duct work, surrounding soil, and, potentially, ground water.

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The Rest of the Story

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•  Time Frame: Completed 60 years early (2005) •  Budget: $30 billion under budget •  Standards: 13 times cleaner than required •  Protestors: Adversaries and antagonists are, by

and large, advocates and supporters •  Labor relations: “The best in my career” •  Safety: Twice as good as the industry average •  Unions: Enthusiastically worked themselves out

of a job •  Innovations: 200

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Rocky Flats Nuclear Arsenal - 2005


Empirical Findings in Organizations

•  Seven matched organizations in the transportation industry •  Intervention studies aimed at culture change •  Public and private companies in 16 industries •  The airline industry after 9-11 •  Financial services performance •  Health care

•  Conclusion After 15 Years: Implementing positive, virtuous organizational practices are significantly and positively related to profitability, productivity, quality, innovation, customer satisfaction, employee retention.


Performance in Financial Services Organizations

Improvement in Positive Practices

Voluntary Turnover

p < .01 Employee

Engagement p < .0001

Customer Retention

p < .01

Top Management Evaluations r = .75

Six measures of Financial

Performance

R2 = .45

SOURCE: Cameron, Mora, & Leutscher, 2011


Performance in Health Care Organizations

Patient Satisfaction 26

Willingness to Recommend 26

Voluntary Turnover 8

Climate 36

Participation 38

Quality of Care 29

Manager Support 38

Resource Adequacy 34

12 Physician/Nurse Relations

Percent improvement over a two year period.

SOURCE: Cameron, Mora, & Leutscher, 2011


Positive Practices Predictive of Performance

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•  Gratitude and Appreciation •  Dignity and Respect •  Support and Compassion •  Caring and Concern •  Meaningfulness and Purpose •  Inspiration and Positive Energy •  Forgiveness and Understanding •  Trust and Integrity


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So how did they do it? What accounts for this success? One of several empirically investigated practices:

Positively Energizing Leadership


Maps of Organizations


Common Bases for Network Maps

•  Information •  Who gives information to whom? •  Who gets information from whom?

•  Influence •  Who influences whom? •  Who is influenced by whom?

•  Energy •  Who energizes whom? •  Who is energized by whom?

Traditionally, leadership =

influence


Consequences of Expending Energy

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•  Physical

•  Emotional

•  Mental

•  Relational


A Positive Energy Network

“When you interact with this person, how does it affect your energy level?”

SOURCE: Baker\, 2003

= Associate = Associate Principal = Manager

Hierarchy

= Principal & Director


A De-Energizing Network

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SOURCE: Baker, 2003.

= Associate = Associate Principal = Manager

Hierarchy

= Principal & Director


Positive Energy Can Be Developed

The de-energizing network without the supervisors

A De-energizing Network

= Non-Supervisors = Supervisors

Hierarchy


Information Sharing Network

Information flow in de-energizing networks Information sharing network


Positive Energizers

•  Those who positively energize others are higher performers. Position in the energy network is four times the predictor of performance compared to position in information or influence networks.

•  Positive energizers tend to enhance the work of others. People who interact with or are connected to energizers also perform better.*

•  High performing firms had three times as many positive energizing networks than low performing firms.

SOURCE: Baker, 2003, 2004; Owens, Baker, Cameron, 2016


Levels of Separation in Positive Energizing*

SOURCE: Baker, 2017


Impact of Positive Energy on Individuals

Positive Energy of the Unit Leader

p < .001

p < .001

p < .001

p < .001

p < .01

Job Satisfaction

Well-Being

Engagement

Enrichment of Families

Performance

SOURCE: Owens, Baker, & Cameron, 2016


Positive Energy of the Unit

Leader

p < .001

p < .001

p < .001

p < .01

Cohesion

Experimentation/Innovation

Team Learning Orientation

Performance

SOURCE: Owens, Baker, & Cameron, 2016

Impact of Positive Energy on Units


Attributes of Positive Energizers

Energizers

1.  They help other people flourish without expecting a payback.

2.  They are problem solvers. 3.  They see opportunities. 4.  They inspire and provide meaning. 5.  They are trusting and trustworthy. 6.  They express gratitude & humility. 7.  They instill confidence and self-efficacy in others. 8.  They smile. 9.  They are genuine & authentic 10.  They expect very high standards. 11.   They forgive weaknesses. 12.  They support when absent.

De-Energizers

1.  They ensure that they get the credit. 2.  They are problem creators. 3.  They see roadblocks and are critics. 4.  They are indifferent and uncaring. 5.  They are skeptical and lack integrity. 6.  They are inflexible and reject feedback. 7.  They don’t create opportunities for others to be

recognized. 8.  They are somber and seldom smile. 9.  They are superficial & insincere. 10.  They are satisfied with mediocrity. 11.   They induce guilt or shame. 12.  They talk behind other people’s back.


Examples of Questions for Hiring Positive Employees

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•  Look back across your career, and share with me the role you’ve had so far that you liked/loved the most? What was that role and why do you like it the most?

•  Look back across your career, and share with me the organization you’ve work with/for, to this point, that you’ve liked/loved the most? What about this organization leaves you feeling this way?

•  Look back across your career and share with me a project/experience/challenging situation that you believe is an exemplar of where you do your best work? Describe this situation/challenge for me in detail? What contributed to your success? What was your greatest personal learning from this situation? What were your most impactful professional learnings from this situation? If you could do it all over again, what would you do differently?

•  Tell me about the best leadership/management team you’ve ever been a part of; what made this team so special? How did being a part of this team make you feel?

•  Tell me about the best leader you’ve ever worked with/for; what made this leader so special? How have you benefited from this relationship? What were your greatest learnings from this person? What is one “gift” from this person you carry with you today?

•  Share a story with me about a coworker or employee who reported to you who needed your assistance to succeed/flourish? What was the situation? How did you work with this individual? What inspired you to provide support/assistance? How did the situation work out (what were the results)? How did this situation make you feel?

•  Assume you are on a beach, sunglasses on, cool drink in your hand, daydreaming about your ideal future. In this future you must pick a job to do, to earn a living; however you should assume that you have everything you need – credentials, skills, experience, etc. to have your dream job. What would it be? Why choose this job? What about this ideal job interests you? How will you feel when you have this ideal job?

(Laura Kellers Queen, EdD VP, Organization Development and Chief Development Officer G&W Laboratories, Inc.)


“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you

are a [positive] leader.”

John Quincy Adams


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Questions, Comments, Yeah, Buts

Contributions?

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