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| So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” |
| —John 8:31-32 |
One of the most interesting developmental experiences of my early business life, way back in 1970, occurred when a young insurance engineer from an office many hundreds of miles away received a promotion to District Supervising Engineer and moved to join our local Field Office. As a relatively recent employee, I looked on with anticipation as this newly "knighted" supervisor began the task of coming on board an office that consisted of an extremely closely bonded employees who worked nearly flawlessly together.
To say that the fourteen members of that Field Office were a tightly knit machine was to somewhat understate how smoothly and effectively this group of fire protection engineers worked together. Several employees had labored side by side for over 20 years. As new employees joined the staff, the older members warmly welcomed them and took great pains to instill the "culture" of that particular Field Office into the newbies.
Within the insurance company, that Field Office had a reputation for excellence. It also had the unique position of having within it’s boundaries the widest possible variety of industrial and commercial facilities. That made this Field Office a spectacular training ground. Many top officials in the Hartford, Connecticut, home office had begun their careers in this Field Office
Into this well-oiled fire protection engineering machine stepped a brash newcomer from a faraway office. He came with all the bravado and arrogance that we Field Office workers expected. He was a likeable enough fellow. He had a hearty laugh and a delightful Atlantic coast drawl. He seldom got angry and rarely seemed flustered.
He also brought with him a wealth of learning experiences that I recognized at the time could serve me well when I eventually received a similar promotion. I decided to pay particular attention to this newcomer and learn all that I could possibly learn from him.
(Of course, in fairness as I narrate this story, it is important to note that I viewed the new supervisor’s actions through the lens of a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. I knew that Jesus was the most excellent example of a leader. And, while the new supervisor made no claim of belonging to Christ, I simply could not help but compare his performance with what I have observed about Jesus through my reading of Scripture.)
So, please allow me to narrate some of what I learned by observing all the things the new supervisor did wrong. I know that some may find it annoying that I am choosing to focus on the negative. Nevertheless, it is possible that what I learned by observing the new supervisor’s mistakes will have value to others.
As a newly minted supervisor comes into a new workplace, some business school training and certain management books seem to suggest that he or she should “turn the workplace upside down.” Those sources suggest that the new supervisor should quickly discard as much of the employees’ connections to the past as possible. This may include eliminating rituals or traditions the workplace may have practiced under previous supervisors. It may even include discarding key staff members. It may include making all kinds of decisions, major and minor, with absolutely no consideration for how those same decisions may have been made in the past.
To justify this faulty practice, proponents often quote a time-worn cliche:
“A supervisor should be able to choose his or her own team members.”
I could rather easily argue that this cliche has no basis in actual practice. Harvard Business School and The Wharton School of Business of the University of Pennsylvania have both conducted significant research over a fifty year span of time that validates the best supervisor can and should enter a new situation and assimilate himself or herself into an existing team in such a way that the team becomes strengthened. (Please click here to read just one such report.)
Obviously, without a detailed knowledge of each individual situation, I cannot determine the true motivation of every new supervisor who has chosen to come in and turn the workplace upside down. But, I can make an educated guess. I think it generally stems from a sense of profound insecurity. The thinking goes something like this:
“If I can break all ties with the past, if I can really turn things upside down, then management will not have anything to judge my performance against except those things I have created of my own volition.”
William Shakespeare in The Tempest wrote:
“What is past is prologue.”
The past has a great deal of influence on the present. In fact, as each person walks along the road of his or her life, every moment in the present has inexorable ties to the past. To try to discard the past, to minimize its value and importance, can only end with a workplace consumed by confusion and torn apart by unrest and discord.
As certain employees push back against the changes the new supervisor makes, he or she will try to manipulate those individuals to leave the organization. The new supervisor will begin to marginalize them, speak against them with members of management, remove them from positions of authority, and generally try to turn others against them. Once a new supervisor starts down the road of breaking a workplace’s connection to the past, he or she has little choice but to do everything possible to justify his or her behavior.
George Santayana wrote:
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it,”
I would modify this quotation slightly to assert:
“Those who refuse to honor the past are condemned to be harmed by it.”
Now, I am not suggesting that a new supervisor should never introduce a new idea, a new program, a new policy, a new concept, or a new whatever. Quite to the contrary. Each new supervisor should not see himself or herself as someone who simply maintains what has gone before. Nor should the new supervisor take on the mission of turning the workplace upside down to quickly establish himself or herself as the sole creator of policy and practice.
So, I learned from my experience in the Field Office where I worked that new supervisors, in making changes in any situation where they assume leadership, should carefully consider taking the following careful and thoughtful steps:
- Make every effort to learn as much about the past as possible. Talk to employees who have been around a long time. Explore the reasons behind why policies, practices, and programs exist. Get to know the underpinnings of the workplace. Find out what makes the employees tick. Find out what bonds them together. What are their traditions? What are their common values? What are their common experiences? Get to know the culture of your new workplace. Find ways to assimilate yourself into the very core of the employees who populate your new workplace. Reach out with a gentle, thoughtful caring. Come along side your employees. Treat them with respect. Value their past.
- Make changes very, very slowly and carefully. Don’t change anything, even things that you view as trivial, for at least 12 months. And then, only make changes after carefully exploring those changes openly with your support staff and other members of management. Gauge and anticipate the response of the employees to the changes. In fact, involve as many people as possible in developing the scope and nature of the changes. Norman Shawchuck has long asserted: “People tend to support what they help create.” So don’t be a “Lone Ranger.” Don’t make decisions alone or with just a “Tonto.”
- Whenever you do decide to make changes, do so in a way that acknowledges and honors the past. Give gentle and careful verbal assent to the value of the past practice. Provide a fully truthful, completely accurate, forthright, and totally transparent explanation as to why you have decided to make the changes.
Learning how to become an effective supervisor takes on even more importance if that supervisor happens to be a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Great King sets a very high standard for leadership. His example gives each Christian supervisor a unique insight into how to become an effective leader.
So, consider doing the three simple things I have suggested and you will prove the lasting value of your supervisory leadership. You will build harmony in the workplace. You will win support for your ideas. You will also find that the care you exercise in decision-making will sometimes influence you to change your mind about some idea, concept, policy, or program. And, most importantly of all, you will honor the testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ who lives in your heart by the power of the Holy Spirit.
After all, you should want to learn and develop, so that you can better serve God and the business organization, or company, or church to which He has called you. Don’t ever think that you alone have all the answers. The fact is you don’t. You can’t. You won’t.
You will best serve when you form a prayerful, thoughtful, careful partnership with the Holy Spirit, the employees whom you oversee, your fellow supervisors with whom you work, and with the management of the company you serve. God will reward you for the gentleness and caring you display when you make a conscious and determined effort to honor the past and smoothly integrate yourself into your new workplace.
As a postscript, if you’re wondering what became of the new supervisor, let me share that he continued all through his career to perform with the same Atlantic coast bravado and arrogance that marked his first months as a new supervisor. Still, as a person, he remained quite likeable, warm, and collegial. Sadly, later in his career, he developed a reputation that caused one colleague to speak of him as follows:
“He’s the only man I’ve ever met who burns his bridges before he comes to them."
Nevertheless, I will give him credit, though. He certainly taught me a lot of valuable lessons. I remain ever grateful.
Based on a blog originally posted on Monday, November 8, 2010
