Where is the real Power in management?
With the prospect of working for a leader I did not respect, it also became clear that people who win proposals are often not the right people to perform the work. In fact, the Power quickly shifted from those who were Clever to those who were… well… more predictable to manage. As that was not really me, my friend, the AA put me on another important division project that “needed some cleverness.”…
… our division was created to support the Federal government’s computing needs. As that continued through the ’50s, we became more involved in “classified” work with what are known as “three-letter agencies”. One of them had expressed an interest in a large-scale Parallel Processing project at IBM’s Research Division, and they needed someone to coordinate between Research, FSD, and the customer. IBM also had a long history of seriously investing in career management, and my current Development Plan showed I wanted to work in Research. As such, the AA made the match, and I was set up to talk to the manager of that project…
Often what looks Powerful isn’t…
Lester Young used rhythm in such an elastic way that he seems to careen through his solo, glancing off of the solid rhythmic bass laid down behind him by Count Basie. Young’s sound was what tenor saxophonists call “light,” antithetical to the “heavy,” dense, sonorous sound typified in the swing era by jazz tenor titan Coleman Hawkins. The result of this light sound being allied with great rhythmic elasticity was that Young floated through his solos, whereas Hawkins bustled through with “Power.”
Coleman left Fletcher Henderson’s orchestra, and Lester thought taking Hawkins’ place was a Power move up in jazz. Despite the high hopes of everyone concerned, Young’s entire approach to the tenor saxophone was too different. Young’s employment with Henderson was short-lived and exasperating. Lester requested a letter from Henderson stating that he had not been fired for musical inadequacy, which Henderson gladly provided to him. Young’s playing simply didn’t fit into the Henderson band’s style.
… but can eventually manage well
But with Basie and the Kansas City Seven, Young’s light touch slowly started to be heard by other budding musicians. Eventually, it would morph into the “cool” approach to Jazz. And soon, it would land him working with another giant of music and Jazz…
In the middle ’80s, IBM was undoubtedly the most powerful computer company in the world. There was actually a task force to decide what to do when our gross sales would be more than 10% of the US total GDP. As I said, they took management and people development seriously, investing heavily in an entire process that ensured they had key leaders ready to continue to grow Powerfully. AA’s were a part of that process. Always a rotational assignment, a key leader at the Director level would mirror a Division President (or higher) for a year. Yes, they did a lot of Administrative work, but the real purpose was to see what the top of the ladder looked like, and develop relationships with other AA’s for when they were all at that Poweful level.
How are you managing your Power pipeline?
There is a lot of talk about The Great Resignation, and I am surprisingly glad – it has ALWAYS been the case that if you don’t work on managing and developing your top talent, they will move on. If you are not actively recruiting – ALWAYS – then you will find yourself behind the leading companies that do. What active Development Plans do you have for each of your team members, and how often do you review them? IBM’s Strategic Plan and our employees’ development plans were reviewed together, ensuring we had the talent needed for the strategy. It spoke Powerfully to our investment in the most critical asset to any business – the people. This is what all top talent looks for – not just work, not just a job, but a real reason why they are needed and developed. That is the Power that is now being seen taken back from leaders who have ignored this critical competency for too long.
I was a part of that now, with my friend’s help, managing to get into what would be an interesting next step towards working in Research. Would it be a Power move, or simply a set of interesting stories? At this point, I didn’t care… and it was just like this track from the Kansas City Sessions – Lester Leaps In.
