Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

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Department of Health and Human ServicesCenters
for Disease Control and PreventionAgency for
Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
Harvard University HARVARD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC
HEALTH AND THE KENNEDY SCHOOL OF GOVERNMENT
Meta-Leadership and the Challenge for Public
Health
Joseph M. Henderson, MPA Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention Mid-America Regional
Pubic Health Leadership Institute October 27,
2006

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First things first.

• What is a successful leader?
• When have you been inspired by a leader?
• Who in history do you feel was a great leader and
  why?

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Public Health Leadership Challengesa select few

• Building/sustaining public health
  infrastructure at a time when resources are
  shrinking and burdens are increasing
• Recruiting and retaining a competent workforce
• Getting, Being, and Staying prepared for every
  possible public health emergency

How can leaders transform themselves and their
organizations to address these challenges?
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Consider Meta-Leadership

• Defined as
• Leadership that connects the purposes and the
  work of different organizations or organizational
  components to achieve a greater good
• Leaders able to influence and accomplish such
  collaboration of effort across organizations
  multi-jurisdictions, multi-agencies, and
  public-private entities motivating inter-action,
  enhancing communication, and engendering the sort
  of cross-organizational confidence necessary for
  effective action

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Meta-Leadership (continued)

• Traditional Leaders vs. Meta-Leaders
• Traditional leaders derive their power and
  influence from within their organizational silos
  (i.e., job description, authority of position,
  expectations of supervisor and subordinates)

• Promotes a related set of functions
• Controls a related set of workers
• Is the sum of all the parts - Newtonian Systems
• Supports a structured/familiar Organization
• Operates under a defined set of principles
• Is tied together by a unique culture

LEADING IN THE SILO
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Meta-Leadership (continued)

• Meta-Leaders strive to influence what happens
  within their organization by seeking credibility
  from others outside their office or organization
  where common goals or a sense of purpose are
  shared they lead across the silos

COMPLEX ADAPTIVE SYSTEMS More than the sum of the
individual parts
Meta-Leadership
LEADING IN THE SILO

• Big picture
• Multi-dimensional perspective
• Comfortable with the unfamiliar
• Recognize cultural value
• Can integrate diverse goals

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Key Characteristics of a Meta-Leader

• Understands their Emotional Intelligence (EI)
• Courage to take risks and manage consequences
• Sensible in understanding and managing various
  organizational cultures works inside and
  outside the silo
• Curious asks good questions
• Connects all the pieces
• Conflict Solver recognize, manage, and solve
• Focuses on the complex problem and larger
  solution

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The 5 Dimensions of Meta-Leadership

Lead Up
The Event
The Person As Leader


Optimal Result
Lead
Connectivity
Lead the Silo
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The Person as Leader
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THE MIND, THINKING ACTION OF THE LEADER
Intellect/ Creativity
Protocol/ Familiar
Primitive Reaction
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THE MIND, THINKING ACTION OF THE LEADER
REACTING TO A CRISIS

• Fear
• Trauma
• Fatigue
• Lack of Exp.
• Poor Info.
• Mistakes

In a crisis, the situation can take leaders to
the basement
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THE MIND, THINKING ACTION OF THE LEADER
TAKING COMMAND

• Structure
• Procedures
• Management
• The Familiar

In a crisis, the leader can gain control by
implementing protocol
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THE MIND, THINKING ACTION OF THE LEADER
GENERATING ACTION

• Highly rational
• Connects
• Leads
• Impacts

In a crisis, the meta-leader generates a
creative connectivity that drives action
KEEP IN MIND THE PROCESS IS DYNAMIC
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Staying out of the BasementEmotional
Intelligence (E.I.)

• Awareness of Self
• Know thy self moods, emotions, sense of humor
• Self regulate disruptive impulses think before
  acting
• Goal is to develop self-confidence
• Awareness of Others
• Social awareness empathy, organizational
  sensibilities
• Relationship management inspire leadership,
  influence and develop others, be a catalyst for
  change, manage conflict, and build teams

The value of a shadow
Goleman, 2004
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Staying out of the BasementEmotional
Intelligence (E.I.) and Fear

• Fear is one of several emotions (i.e., courage,
  sadness, love, joy, pleasure) that affect
  decisions
• Impact on Self
• Can motivate action (good or bad?)
• Can cause paralysis (good or bad?)
• Impact on Others
• Can contribute to chaos or panic
• Can provide an opportunity for the leader to
  command
• Time experience genetics
  Confidence/Security

Goleman, 2004
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ACTIVE AND PASSIVE LEADERSHIP

PASSIVE
ACTIVE
Empowers others Wont micromanage Methodical
progress
Commands/Acts Charts the course Thinks
fastforward
GOOD
Ego driven Alienates subordinates High Emotions
Indecisive Risk averse Seems confused
BAD
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ACTIVE AND PASSIVE LEADERSHIP

PASSIVE
ACTIVE
Lyndon Johnson Woodrow Wilson Abraham Lincoln
Winston Churchill George S. Patton Thad Allen
(Katrina)
GOOD
Alexander Haig Napoleon Bonaparte Nikita Krushchev
Mike Brown (Katrina) Jefferson Davis Capt. of the
Titanic
BAD
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ACTIVE AND PASSIVE LEADERSHIP

PASSIVE
ACTIVE

• Champion vs. Authority
• Influence vs. Control
• Persuasion vs. Coercion

GOOD
BAD
How do you stay above the line?
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Leadership Quotes
One cool judgment is worth a thousand hasty
counsels. The thing to do is to supply light and
not heat.
A good plan, violently executed now, is better
than a perfect plan next week."
No reason to panic, Im in charge.
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Leadership Quotes continued
Considering the dire circumstances that we have
in New Orleans, virtually a city that has been
destroyed, things are going relatively well."
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BREAK
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The Event
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Challenges in Defining the Event Failure of
Imagination
Scale
Size Scope
Substance Nature
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Challenges in Defining the Event Understand the
Escalating Potential

High
1,000 100,000
Command and control vital to assure wide area
containment
Pandemic Flu
Activate community-wide mass care system manage
great loss
Potential for Chaos Increases
Katrina
Manage high volume of data and information
Number of People Affected
Leadership Pressure
Deliver mass intervention call up reserve
workforce
SARS
Communicate to stakeholders and public enhance
surveillance reporting
Anthrax 10/01
Report Mobilize Response Investigate
Prophylaxis
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LOW
Assess Diagnose Isolate Treat Manage
LESS
MORE
Time To Solve Problems/Make Decisions
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Challenges in Defining the Event The Impact of
Chaos

• Defined as
• A perceived state of extreme confusion and
  disorder Princeton University
• The disorder of formless matter and infinite
  space, supposed to have existed before the
  ordered universe Websters Dictionary
• In Chinese mythology its the name of a god
  Wikipedia.org
• The name of the puppet cat in Canadian childrens
  television program Sesame Park Wikipedia.org
• The final boss in the first Final Fantasy game.
  He is a relatively large demonic figure who
  possesses magical powers as a result of
  apparently being of the Four Friends My 15 year
  old son Nick

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Challenges in Defining the Event The Impact of
Chaos (continued)

• Simple Exercise
• My story
• Key discussion questions
• Describe a situation where you experienced a
  chaotic situation? What was your initial
  emotional reaction?
• How did it resolve? Who, when, how?
• What role did you play?
• What critical lesson did you take away from the
  experience?
• Take 5 minutes to think about this and we will
  discuss

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Challenges in Defining the Event The Impact of
Chaos (continued)

• What feeds chaos
• Lack of control of
• Information (coming in and going out)
• Resources
• The decision process
• Time (cant do much here)
• Command pressures orders from above to perform
• Failure to imagine where an event might take you
  (i.e., Pan Flu)
• Failure to understand the consequences (good and
  bad) of decisions (short and long-term)
• Failure to assume command and assert control

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Challenges in Defining the Event One Solution -
Create an Operational Picture

• Step 1
• Establish operational awareness get information
• This is people, information systems, the media,
  other sources
• Develop a process to question reliability of the
  information
• Step 2
• Create a framework to organize incoming
  information based on time, place, scale and scope
  of the event
• Use maps, graphs and pictures to portray
  knowledge update often
• Step 3
• Based on your operational picture and incoming
  data begin to develop predictions about how the
  event might evolve
• Build decision-process around the operational
  picture

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Leading UpExercise Discuss Promising Practices
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The Challenges of Leading Up Organizational/Poli
tical

• Understand/manage expectations and roles of
• Elected Officials who have authority, can
  exercise options, and are ultimately accountable,
  and
• Subject Matter Experts who have information and
  facts, capacity to analyze, and expertise and
  credibility that create public confidence
• All crisis events are political

What the public wants
What the public expects
FAMILIARITY
ACCURACY
BALANCE
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The Challenges of Leading Up Consequences of
Failing to do this

• Subject matter exerts end up executing poorly
  derived strategies
• Staff moral suffers
• Good science and decision making questioned
• More time needed to resolve the crisis
• Negative consequences much greater

What the public gets
What the public perceives
CONFUSION
INCOMPETANCY
IMBALANCE
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The Challenges of Leading Up What Can and Must
be Done

• Work with leadership to create and understand
  roles before the event exercise these roles
• Emphasize shared responsibility and
  accountability in decision-making processes
• During event Share operational picture
• Manage up one level at a time be courageous

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Leading in the Silo
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Remember the Silo This is a good thing!

• Promotes a related set of functions
• Controls a related set of workers
• Is the sum of all the parts - Newtonian Systems
• Supports a structured/familiar Organization
• Operates under a defined set of principles
• Is tied together by a unique culture

LEADING IN THE SILO
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Three Phases of Leadership/Followership
PHASE I PHASE II
PHASE III
Operations Execution
Vision Strategy
Impact CQI
Plan Execute Connect Pieces
Monitor Change Measure Productivity Assure
Systems to Support CQI
See Big Picture Know Desired Outcomes Build
Coalitions
WHERE DO YOU LEAD?
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Three Phases of Leadership/Followership
DREAMERS
PHASE I PHASE II
PHASE III
Operations Execution
Vision Strategy
Impact CQI

• If you are only looking at
• Then
• Your vision will not have traction
• You may find your intentions distorted
• Vision legitimacy will be questioned
• During response may not appreciate details

See Big Picture Know Desired Outcomes Build
Coalitions
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Three Phases of Leadership/Followership
CHARGERS
PHASE I PHASE II
PHASE III
Operations Execution
Vision Strategy
Impact CQI

• If you are only looking at
• Then
• High activity/low productivity
• Others wont know direction intent
• Could do more damage than good

Plan Execute Connect Pieces
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Three Phases of Leadership/Followership
BEAN COUNTERS
PHASE I PHASE II
PHASE III
Operations Execution
Vision Strategy
Impact CQI

• If you are only looking at
• Then
• There will be high frustration
• No realistic metrics to assess accomplishments
• The change/impact will be questioned

Monitor Change Measure Productivity Assure
Systems to Support CQI
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Drive the Learning Curve
PHASE I PHASE II
PHASE III
Operations Execution
Vision Strategy
Impact CQI
Leaders drive the learning curve across all three
phases especially during a crisis
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Develop the System to Support Leadership in the
SiloKey questions

• Are our systems that select, train, and test
  leadership able to meet todays decisions
  challenges?
• Are individuals offered the opportunity to lead,
  groomed for greater challenges, inspired and
  incentivized to grow into leadership positions?
• Is leadership an organizational priority or an
  action item we tend to focus on last when leading
  our organizations???

A System of Continuous Improvement
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Wrap-up
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Tools for Your Toolbox

• The Person
• Use structure (i.e., checklists and procedures)
  to gain control
• Control your emotions (Use a Shadow)
• Active/Passive Leadership
• Champion issues
• Influence followers
• Persuade action

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Tools for Your Toolbox

• The Event
• Value the power of imagination
• Understand what feeds chaos
• Create an operational picture

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Tools for Your Toolbox

• Lead Up
• Work with leadership to create and understand
  roles before the event exercise these roles
• Emphasize shared responsibility and
  accountability in decision-making processes
• During event Share operational picture
• Manage up one level at a time be courageous

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Tools for Your Toolbox

• Leading the Silo
• Drive the learning curve (VisionExecutionProgres
  s Measurement)
• Actively create leaders and followers

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Tools for Your Toolbox

• Be A Meta-Leader Lead Connectivity
• Connect the purposes of different organizations
  to achieve a greater good
• Understand and manage Emotional Intelligence (EI)
  
• Take risks and manage consequences
• Be Curious ask good questions always
• Recognize, manage, and resolve conflict
• Focus on the complex problem and larger solution

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The 5 Dimensions of Meta-Leadership Three Key
Questions to ask yourself

• The Person as Leader
• Do you know how to get out of the basement?
• Are you managing your behavior and emotions and
  are you aware of those around you?
• Do you know how and when to be a good
  passive/active leader?
• Lead the Event
• How can you manage chaos?
• Are you using your imagination to see where the
  event may take you?
• Have you created an operational picture of the
  event?

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The 5 Dimensions of Meta-Leadership Three Key
Questions

• Lead the Silo
• Are you driving the learning curve from vision
  through execution to progress measurement?
• Are you building systems to develop leaders?
• Are you developing followers?
• Lead Up
• Have you worked with your leaders to understand
  decision roles and responsibilities?
• Have you established two-way channels of
  communication with leaders to share information?
• Have you provided your leaders with the tools to
  manage up?

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The 5 Dimensions of Meta-Leadership Three Key
Questions

• Are you a Meta-Leader Creating Connectivity
• Are you working to connect the purposes of many
  organizations to achieve a greater good?
• Do you ask good questions?
• Do you recognize, manage, and resolve conflicts?
• Are you willing to take risks and manage the
  consequences?
• Have you developing future leaders?
• Are you successful?

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The 5 Dimensions of Meta-Leadership

Lead Up
The Event
The Person As Leader


Optimal Results
Lead
Connectivity
Lead the Silo
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