I so believe in serendipity! I was asked to talk to a large HR team this week. Getting there meant a train trip so I like to have some knitting with me – something to do with a low boredom threshold I reckon! Some people really think I knit! My sort of knitting is reading Harvard Business Review (HBR) and November’s copy had just arrived. Perfect!
So my task was to stimulate discussion and debate around Leadership, Performance Management and HR being an exemplar to their organisation. So the serendipity bit? November’s cover of HBR asks “What makes a great leader?” It is this year’s list of best performing CEOs:
https://hbr.org/2015/11/the-best-performing-ceos-in-the-world
The listing this year has been adjusted from a purely financial perspective to include each company’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance. HBR also changed their methodology to include CEOs who had been in post prior to 1995. The rationale here is about sustainable performance. All of this is refreshing. I then settled down to see who was in the list. It was great to see Lars Sørensen from Novo Nordisk. We were delighted to be hosted by them in the summer for our Circle of Peers meeting. Lars is interviewed in the magazine:
https://hbr.org/2015/11/novo-nordisk-ceo-on-what-propelled-him-to-the-top
This quote made me smile…
“I came from the operational side, so I had to change my personal perspective on what my job was—to be less operational and more involved in setting the direction of the company. I had to focus more on establishing the tone and the values and personally communicating with our employees and stakeholders.” The focus on the tone and values is spot on.
So any further thoughts from me on this – well huge disappointment really that there were only 2 women in the list, both in the States. Is it that the measurement of what makes a best performer does not appear to include more about people? So let’s hope that the 2016 poll will rise to more than 2 women.
This report by Lord Davies has been released today.
As a woman who leads an organisation I know the challenges all too well. I support the drive for more women leaders as long we are not just tokens to meet a target. – I am looking forward to 2016!
We have also produced our popular desk calendar and it is at the mailing house as I write. Look out for it next week!
Here is another reminder about our final Circle of Peers dates for the rest of the year.
November 10th London 10:00 – 15:00 Resilience – can it be developed?
November 14th Abu Dhabi 09:00 – 15:00 Circle of Peers Conference
November 21th Dubai 09:00 – 15:00 Circle of Peers Conference
November 24th Isle of Man 17:30 onwards Circle of Peers Casual Networking
November 25th Isle of Man 12:00 – 14:30 Resilience – can it be developed?
November 27th Reigate 09:00 – 14:00 Resilience – can it be developed?
December 1st Gibraltar 17:30 onwards Circle of Peers Casual Networking
December 2nd Gibraltar 12:00 – 14:30 Resilience – can it be developed?
December 7th London 17:30 onwards Circle of Peers Casual Networking
December 21st London 17:30 onwards Circle of Peers Casual Networking