Rule 22: The Invincible Executive Delves into Specific Problems at Great Depth

SNAPSHOT

Are you a "top level" manager?

Yes: 4 percent

No: 96 percent

Interestingly, while successful executives avoid being labeled micro-managers, they also do not consider themselves to be only "big picture" or "hands-off" managers. Bill Marriott, the CEO of Marriott International, says that some people confuse him with a micro-manager, but in fact, he is not one at all. As a general rule, he picks good people and lets them do their jobs. However, invincible executives like Mr. Marriott cannot rely totally upon delegation—even to very reliable people. As we will discuss below, Mr. Marriott has a couple of exceptions to the delegation rule.

Sam Fox of the Harbour Group notes that a major flaw among some executives who do achieve success is a tendency to stop actively managing their business. They start to pay more attention to other interests and have a tendency to take their eye off the ball. According to Fox, if you are to enjoy long-term success, "You have to maintain a certain level of involvement in the details. I'm not advocating micromanaging. A good executive will know which of the details are significant and need to be understood."

Based on the interviews I conducted, there are four almost universally acknowledged guidelines for when to get into details.

1. Get input from all levels for major changes. Invincible executives often go two or three levels below their positions to solicit input when they are considering major corporate or organizational restructuring. They want to see the potential impact of a major organizational event from every perspective. So they will hold meetings with people at all levels of the organization and ask whether a proposed course of action will help or hurt their abilities to do their jobs.

At least ten people I interviewed described this sort of situation as one where they will in fact get into the details. For example, Ron Gafford, CEO of Austin Industries, firmly believes that micro-management is a bad idea because it limits the span of leadership of the CEO, and it says "you don't trust your people." At the same time, Gafford feels it is essential to long-term success that managers, and especially senior managers, walk the company halls and floors to stay connected to the employees, greet them informally, and get input from all levels of the organization, especially when major changes are under consideration.

Janet Reno told me a story that illustrates this point when she set out to improve the operations of the United States Border Patrol. Rather than make decrees from on high, "I would go out to Border Patrol agents and ask again and again wherever I went, 'If you were the attorney general, what would you do to address the issues that are important to this country and to this department?' And they'd come up with great ideas. The women said, 'We need bulletproof vests that fit women.' I wasn't micromanaging. They knew I cared. The bulletproof vest issue was an example of how we must talk to the front line when we are looking to improve an organization. Interview the field, get their feedback, and then come up with policies."

2. Do spot checks. A significant minority of invincible executives believe that it is important to keep employees a little off guard, so that they do not become complacent about their jobs or their organizations. Admiral Prueher noted that you have to make occasional "spot checks" of your people at all levels. You take a "deep slice" from time to time, just to make sure that things are running smoothly at all levels. Similarly, Bill Marriott will occasionally pay a surprise visit to a distant site or a particular department in the organization. Word gets out that these types of visits are common and people remain committed to unwavering quality. Marriott notes that he has had to send many of his suits to the dry cleaners because he rubbed against hastily painted walls. Apparently, some of his hotel managers (who might, if they are lucky, get a few hours notice of his arrival) call the painters in at the last second. An occasional surprise visit or unexpected meeting will keep the people working for you on their toes.

3. Don't delegate a true crisis. Invincible executives abandon a delegation philosophy at the outset of an organizational crisis. While invincible executives tend to chart the general direction in good times, they manage crisis actively and aggressively as soon as the crisis is identified. Janet Reno had a "war room" during the Waco standoff, and many corporate executives have a similar "war management" mentality when their organization is confronted with a threat. That threat could be anything from an accounting scandal, to a lawsuit, to a project plagued with serious cost overruns.

In fact, most top executives who get fired, demoted, or fall from grace lose their invincibility for failing to act quickly enough to address a growing crisis. Often they deliberately distance themselves from a crisis on the mistaken belief that they can sidestep any adverse consequences by doing so. Bad idea.

Financial scandals in the past couple of years—from the Global Crossing and Adelphia scandals to the WorldCom debacle—have resulted in a tremendous skepticism of senior corporate management by the investing public. CEOs and other top executives have lost their jobs because of a public anger at managers who have allowed their company's financial situation to spin out of control without developing a quick action plan to address the problems. In many cases, it seems as if the managers were almost in a state of denial. In others, as apparently occurred with the ImClone insider trading scandal, the managers looked after their own personal interests but not the interests of their employees or average stock-holders. All of the executives who followed the denial, self-interest, or self-distancing strategies saw their invincibility shattered.

Consequently, it is essential that when a crisis arises in your organization, you: (1) learn about it early; (2) acknowledge it—publicly if necessary to maintain integrity with your shareholders; and (3) aggressively manage the situation at the outset. Now eventually, if the crisis is a long-term one, you can return to more delegation. But at the outset, you have to be firmly in control, know every detail, and yes, micromanage the situation.

Military generals illustrate this point in an unusual but instructive way. For example, Lieutenant General John Sams, a former commanding officer of the U.S. Fifteenth Air Force, made the following observations and suggestions concerning micromanagement. He agrees that it is essential to show trust for those who work for you by giving them responsibility and letting them do their jobs. He does not condone micromanagement, even in times of war. General Sams believes, however, that there are occasional situations, most often during an unexpected, rapidly unfolding crisis, that a general officer must take a more hands-on and detail-oriented approach to management. However, because the military environment is so naturally hierarchical, General Sams emphasizes the seriousness of the situation by managing in a less hierarchical way when there is a crisis. "In those kind of situations, I tend to make myself part of the team. We sit around and brainstorm." He rolls up his sleeves and sits side by side with his subordinates to work on a resolution to the problem. Everyone has a voice—almost an equal voice until the final decision has to be made. General Sams does not micromanage by fiat or by spouting off orders. He micro-manages by consensus. It has always worked very well for him, and it is a good lesson for those of us in the civilian world as well.

4. Recognize the talents of all employees. Executives with staying power recognize that their power derives from the work and intellect of their employees. If managers are to retain the support of their employees, they must communicate with them. Southwest Airlines CEO Jim Parker calls this concept "servant leadership," and it requires a "bypass structure" whereby senior managers communicate directly with junior managers on a regular basis.

"We fire people who lose the support of their people," according to Parker. Executives with staying power are pushed upward from below, Parker adds. In order to rise up the ranks, therefore, it is important that, no matter how high up in an organization you may rise, you retain the capacity and desire to speak with employees at all levels about their individual concerns and proposals for improving the company. This is not micromanagement, which tends to get everyone bogged down. Rather, it is an energizing process that allows managers to stay totally tuned in to the morale of their employees.

As they advance in their respective organizations, invincible executives loosen the reins on their subordinates—both out of management necessity and out of respect for the quality of their subordinates. But they never let go of the reins. And during times of crisis or when specific concerns regarding one part of the organization arise, they are able to resurrect their capacity to bore down into the details of a problem.