Explorers as Leaders: The Lewis and Clark Expedition
The Happy Workaholic: A Role Model for Employees
Women and Leadership: New Management Program
Humble Leadership: Sovereign Bank's Jay Sidhu
Leadership Education: A New International Journal

EXPLORERS AS LEADERS: The Lewis and Clark Expedition

By Dayton Duncan

As explorers and commanders, [Meriwether Lewis and William Clark] have few peers…. [Their] expedition crossed their continent, accomplished their mission, made more friends than enemies among the natives they met, collected valuable information, lost just one man (to a ruptured appendix; this was eighty years before the first appendectomy), and returned with the captains not only alive but having forged one of the great friendships of all time. Passed down through two hundred years of history, their success sometimes seems matter-of-fact, almost inevitable, when in truth it was spectacular.

Leadership is what created Lewis and Clark's success, a quality of leadership that separates them so distinctly from all the others whose expeditions turned out so differently. It's also a style of leadership they're still willing to share with anyone who cares to read their journals and study their lessons. Embedded in the story of the Corps of Discovery (the title they gave their expedition) are ten clear and common sense rules…

Rule 1. Have a clear goal and make sure everyone understands it. If the expedition had been a corporation, Thomas Jefferson would have been its founder and chairman of the board. Even though he never left the board room to visit the factory floor, everyone recognized his central authority. It was Jefferson's idea to mount an American exploration in the international competition to locate the fabled Northwest Passage, the trade route that would unlock the wealth of North America for whichever nation discovered and controlled it. In fact, he had already launched three previous "start-ups" (in 1783, 1786, and 1793) that never got off the ground. By the time he became president in 1801 and found himself in the position to try again, he had given the strategic business plan a great deal of thought and could express its overarching goal in one clear sentence.

"The object of your mission," he wrote Lewis in his final instructions on June 20, 1803, "is to explore the Missouri river, & such principal stream of it, as, by it's course and communication with the waters of the Pacific ocean . . . may offer the most direct & practicable water communication across this continent for the purposes of commerce."...

In several passages, Jefferson admitted that he couldn't foresee every contingency the expedition would face and assured Lewis that he trusted the young captain's judgment in making the right decision -- but urged Lewis always to "err on the side of your safety" and to remember the importance of getting information about the expedition's discoveries back to Washington...

From the comfortable confines of the White House and Monticello, Thomas Jefferson…led the Corps of Discovery across a broad continent and back. Through simple clarity of purpose he was with them each day, pointing them forward, keeping them moving, and helping them measure their progress toward a goal they all shared.

Note:  This article is adapted from the forthcoming book by Dayton Duncan, Scenes of Visionary Enchantment: Lewis and Clark and the Journey of Discovery. Permission by the University of Nebraska Press; copyright 2004 by Dayton Duncan.

THE HAPPY WORKAHOLIC:  A Role Model for Employees

By Stewart D. Friedman and Sharon Lobel

Business books are filled with common-sense admonitions insisting that leaders be role models. We have reason to question whether this common wisdom is truly wise.

Can a workaholic executive be an advocate for something that does not mirror her own personal lifestyle choices without appearing hypocritical? The executive we call the "Happy Workaholic" values work over other activities and invests her time and energy accordingly. Contrary to popular belief, "Happy Workaholics" can advocate for employees to realize both their company's goals and what matters to them in their personal lives. They serve as role models, not for "balance" in the usual sense but, rather, for authenticity.

Authenticity means knowing what you truly care about and devoting your attention and activities to these ends. Research indicates that people find a sense of fulfillment from being true to themselves. Happy Workaholic executives know that when employees feel fulfilled in all aspects of their lives then they are better able to add value to their companies.

We conducted about 100 interviews in 25 organizations over a period of 4 years (1999-2002) to find out how Happy Workaholics, who willingly subjugate personal priorities for the sake of their careers, create and sustain cultures in their businesses that support employees' fulfillment of work and personal life goals. How do they do it? Here's a summary of what we found.

In one-to-one interactions with their people, Happy Workaholics respect diverse choices about work and personal life, talk to employees about what matters most, help employees take responsibility for their choices, and foster trust. They:

  o Assume responsibility for helping employees act on their values and priorities.

  o Make it easy for employees to discuss personal life challenges when necessary.

  o Get to know people on a personal level.

  o Stay abreast of employees' personal priorities and ask about them.

Happy Workaholic executives also engender support for their employees through system-wide actions. They broadcast their advocacy for authenticity (making work and personal life choices that are aligned with one's values and priorities); tell their own stories publicly; question basic assumptions about how, where, and when work gets done; actively encourage innovation in the design of work; focus on results, not process; and change performance management systems to support authenticity. Happy Workaholics:

  o Sponsor discussions that address the impact of the organization's culture on the expression of diverse core values with respect to work and personal life.

  o Incorporate support for both work and personal life in the organization's mission statement, vision, operating principles and management practices.

  o Provide resources, financial and political, needed for successful change efforts.

  o Make sure everyone feels free to speak up about new ways of getting things done.

  o Recognize and reward employees for identifying inefficient work practices.

  o Ensure that workloads are manageable.

  o Hold employees accountable for results, not face time at the office.

A new generation of senior executive men and women is on the rise. They represent greater diversity in the choices executives make about how they lead their lives at work, at home, in the community, and for themselves. Our bet is that the market for talent increasingly will favor organizations with the highest proportions of authentic executives. Which type dominates yours?

WOMEN AND LEADERSHIP: New Management Program

Wharton Executive Education is gathering ongoing research data on the complex and evolving role of women in leadership positions today. It plans to launch a new women's leadership program in 2004, and it is seeking participation in a pre-program research study on women's leadership (which can be found here).  

The new program is tentatively titled, "Women and Leadership: Legacies, Opportunities and Challenges," and it will first be offered on June 7-11, 2004. It focuses on the strategies that women can use to optimize their personal leadership style, address organizational challenges, and implement compelling strategic visions. Managers will prepare action plans for executing and evaluating their long-term impact. Information on the program can be found here. 

HUMBLE LEADERSHIP: Sovereign Bank's Jay Sidhu

By Pankaj Dinodia

Rising from a modest background in India to lead of one of North America's major banks is no small achievement. But it is the accomplishment of Jay Sidhu, now chief executive of Sovereign Bank, a super-regional bank with 530 community banking offices, 7,500 employees, and assets of $40 billion. Mr. Sidhu recently shared his thoughts with us on leadership and business.

From the very first days of his modest start in the U.S. as a financial analyst with an annual salary of $8,500, Jay Sidhu has always viewed marketing as the essential foundation for business success. Today, he deems marketing management of Sovereign Bank as just as important as its financial management.

Jay Sidhu has also placed a premium on recognizing and seizing opportunities at they are presented. When attending a corporate strategy seminar at Dartmouth College some years ago, he was by chance seated next to the chief executive of a commercial bank. One thing led to another, and Mr. Sidhu was soon invited to join the bank as an executive vice president. "Don't always look for straight steps leading you to the path of success," he observed. "Just always be looking to do your best and opportunities will be around you." Then, "it's up to you to seize them."

Mr. Sidhu observed that personal capacities are just as significant as individual intelligence for building both a career and a business. As you rise through the management ranks, he has found, people skills and personal empathy become essential. So too is passion to get a job done that exceeds everybody's expectations, especially those of your superiors.

When asked about the success of his company, Mr. Sidhu quickly referred to family values as the foundation of good relationships and success in banking. "You see healthy families that live together and are trying to be the best that they can be," he said, and "they are supportive, they are trustworthy, they are genuine, and they are passionate about their values." And "these are the same things that help create success in your company."

Note: Pankaj Dinodia is an undergraduate student at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and he can be reached at pdinodia@wharton.upenn.edu.

LEADERSHIP EDUCATION: A New International Journal