From the desk of COO, Shyam Valloornatt
This title, right off the start sounds drifting away from traditionally what “leading” is all about. Besides, appear to posse a dissuasive “disconnect” to the foregone common and normal belief…an anomaly of sorts. Certainly, sounds contrary to most widely respected management principle of “leading from the front” … establishing the “in command” factor.
I consider this “leading from the front” to be an outdated epithet, most beaten track, dead decades ago…
Leading from the front is outdated
Why not “leading from behind” be an acceptable “rule of engagement”? What is so “intriguing” about it?
Traditional leadership theories, have severely been interpreted, over the decades, proven to be inept and much less adaptive, at times, has remained “text-bookish” in content, not necessarily proven to be an impetus to “evolve” …
Does leading “from behind” means abrogating? Absolutely “not” and should never even considered to be so. On the contrary, it is an unenviable task for the leader to envision on how to guide the pack, from behind, letting each one of them to configure their so-called “defined parameters,” using one’s ingenuity, exploring for newer approaches, and finally influencing the rest with ideation on efficacy and execution.
The evolution of leadership — from control to enablement.
Leading from behind is not a simple edict. The principle has quite a complex human value chain of “acknowledging” that everyone is blessed with an infinite innovation DNA within them. Few are on their own, few require to be “sparked” and be left alone for rest of the innovation cycle to metamorphic.
There is plethora of example of “leading from behind,” historically. Few that we have witnessed from yester years…herd of Cattel, out on the mountainside, on a daylong grazing, raft of paddling ducks, gliding in the gentle steam, snugged amongst enchanting greener pastures, flowing for miles, and flock of sheep, soaked in mild sun streaks, grazing with no known boundaries, all head back home, day after day, for sure, with no ”GPS” of their own alone…the shepherd that watches them, is the one that manages them, as well guiding them to reach home safely, “leading from behind”….
The “shepherd” metaphor as a visual anchor for “leading from behind.”
That shepherd, with no modern technology to his aid, executes his customized leadership nuances flawlessly every time, paying greater attention to granular-level details. This classic model of engagement has remained unchallenged to date, does involve an “intra-operable” frequency of communication with the living beings that has not been bestowed with the so called “sixth sense.”
Then, is it not obvious we ought to credit the nuances of the shepherd’s design and his execution mechanics? These designs do require continuous customization, either for the entire pack or at individual levels, to establish a least corrective, repetitive successful workflow frequency, not only to sustain measurable productivity levels, but enable methodical scaling as well. What the “leader” and the “shepherd” deal with is the emotion quotient – “the so called unknown” dimension of any living being.
In your experience, what does ‘leading from behind’ mean? Stay tuned — in the next part, We’ll share what truly defines such leaders.
