A Convergence of Thought

So another interesting week. I enjoyed the desert, but I didn't go to Las Vegas. The stock market has been mostly up the last few days. Is this a trend or are we grasping at straws?
I really like the website BNET.com. It typically has great articles on it. Sometimes it is practical advice, sometimes it is just interesting insights. I enjoy the McKinsey Quarterly as well.

This week I had a chance to read two different pieces that caused me to pause and muse. The first was a piece by Jeffrey Pfeffer, the professor of management and author from Stanford University. Professor Pfeffer was lamenting and commenting on the loss of personal accountability in our culture. His point was how everyone from politicians to business leaders don't seem to accept any personal responsibility for either their actions or the impact of their action or inaction on their companies, their employees, and their shareholders. I don't think this is limited to politicians and business leaders. This may be impolitic, but right now it isn't very popular to assign any of the responsibility for the housing crisis to the consumers who purchased real estate far beyond their ability to pay for it in the hopes that "appreciation" would create enough value to protect them. I am not excusing the bankers who made the loans, I am just sharing some of the responsibility.

I kind of see the situation with AIG in a similar light. We have the CEO saying I know that we drove our business off the cliff and the taxpayers have bailed us out for billions of dollars, but we promised these executives millions of dollars in bonuses for "performance" that has nothing to do with reality or share holder value. I have to pay it out.

I hear employees,students, and regular "folks" taking the same approach. It isn't my fault.

I got to read another interesting piece with a woman who runs a philanthropic venture fund. Jacqueline Novogratz, CEO of the Acumen Fund, has a perspective I find both intriguing and inspiring. Her position is that traditional philanthropic giving can rob people of their self respect and create a kind of codependency. She actually invests philanthropic contributions in for profit businesses to create a return. She even goes further and suggests giving away services, even basic services is enabling rather than empowering. She uses the example of the slums as an experiment in capitalism. She describes the bartering and trading that goes on among even the most destitute.

Any of you that have had a chance to read my ideas on moving from compliance to commitment know that one of the key principles embedded there is the principle of respect. Respect for your self and respect for others. You need to respect yourself enough to engage and to perform the tasks of your job and your life to the best of your ability. We need to respect others enough not to make excuses for their shortfalls. We all have limitations, but there is a profound difference in recognizing that I will never play in the NBA and my expecting society to take care of me.

My friend and colleague Reut Schwartz-Hebron takes a similar approach with her model of KindExcellence. She feels and I agree that you need to create a balance of the two. They are inextricably linked.

I had a chance to work with my son on a paper discussing Aristotle's concept of moral virtues. Aristotle describes the difference between three different dimensions; faculties which he would describe as innate, emotions, which we endeavor to control, and moral states. His position is that a virtue must be a cognitive choice and it must be on a continuum. We must find the "golden mean". It must be learned and practiced.

All of these things converged for me with the concept of personal competence. They all embed rational, thoughtful behavior and personal responsibility. Aristotle went so far as to say that the pursuit of virtue is really the only thing that distinguishes us from other plants and animals. We are conscious. We make choices and we accept accountability for those choices.

Maybe I am reaching, but we seem to have entered a space where we debate whether leaders are "born" or taught. We seem to want to absolve ourselves individually and collectively for responsibility for outcomes.

Our economy is in turmoil, but maybe Pfeffer, Novogratz, and Aristotle are right. If we look to the government and/or philanthropy in its traditional form to "fix" things have we stripped ourselves of personal competence and dignity. I wonder.

Certification- Is it Really Value Added?

It seems certification of one kind of another has become a growth industry. My question and thought; is it really improving the quality of practitioner and services to clients? I look at it particularly in two arenas I feel somewhat comfortable in talking about- Coaching and Human Resources.
Both of these fields have much to do with interpersonal interactions and effectiveness. In particular the human resources field has disciplines and dimensions that are quite technical and compliance oriented. These areas require training and skills development.
I look at other areas and say that the ability to pass an examination does not guarantee the ability to communicate and build effective relationships.
I would say the same for "coaching". I think there are tools and processes and techniques to identify certain styles and development needs of people and organizations, but is that the complete picture?
Does a law degree and being admitted to the bar make you an effective counselor or litigator? Does an MBA really prepare you to lead an organization?
We write and study and discuss effective management and "leadership" ad nauseum. Does certification teach those skills or attributes?
I believe you can certify "competency" the achievement of completing a course of study, but that is not the same as effectiveness. What do you think? Should we use "certification" as a screen in non licensed professions?