Thriving Organizations
Every organization goes through a natural life cycle, initially flourishing and growing, maturing and then calcifying, and then often ending with its decay, and usually, its demise. Lawrence M. Miller wrote about this progression in 1989 in his book “Barbarians to Bureaucrats”. He noted that while this cycle is likely, it is not fated, and with the proper interventions, the organization can be revitalized.
Lawrence Miller stated that “If the wealth of corporations did not contain the virus that caused their death, there would be no Enron, Lehman, Bear Stearns and hundreds of others we forget.” He alludes to the Greeks, the Romans, the Mayans, and the Aztec. All great societies possessing immense wealth, power and influence and yet all casualties of time and internal decay. The reality is that this list could be expanded to include hundreds if not thousands of examples of cultures, civilizations, nations, empires, religious organizations, corporations, businesses, non-profits, political parties, families, and even individuals who all at one point at another felt that they had conquered their respective worlds, and yet all fell prey to the inevitable decline.
Part of understanding the rise and decline of an organization is to understand what types of leaders emerge from these organizations, and to take note of their strengths, weaknesses and how these leaders are best utilized.
The Right Style of Leadership at the Right Organizational Development Stage
Movements, industries, companies, militaries, churches, social organizations, and government organizations all have various level of complexity. To assume that one single style of leadership is appropriate for all of these types of entities would be a mistake.
The dialogue around leadership development is currently focused on individual. The individual should look to themselves and determine what type of leader they are, where their gifting and talent lay, and then maximize their individual strengths. There is some truth to this, as there are a wide variety of leadership styles, and a broad spectrum of leaders have been successful throughout history. However, the issue is that we often overlook the organizational context that a leader succeeds in. Conversations revolve around the historical context (think World War II, or the American Revolution) and the immediate situational context (think the advent of the internet, or the expansion of colonialism into South East Asia) and often neglect the organizational life cycle.
When stunningly large companies fail, the reasons behind the decline are often minimized or ignored. The final collapse is noted, but the organizational factors that contribute to that decline aren’t ofen evaluated.
Consider the Dutch East Indies Company (also known VOC, 1602-1799) which at one point employed 36,000 people, and was worth more than Apple, Microsoft Google, Amazon, Meta, Berkshire Hathaway combined (an estimated $8 trillion). Yet when people discuss why the company went bankrupt, its labeled “bureaucracy” or “governmental meddling” however with organizations spanning nearly 200 years, neither bureaucracy nor governments are a sufficient answer. Organizational leadership is underemphasized or ignored, even though that organizational leadership is one of the essential elements which could have saved these organizations from collapse.
Having the right type of leadership that coincides with the organizational maturity is essential for an organization to continue to thrive. Each of these types of leadership is important and effective in the right context. Individuals have skills that fit within this frame work, and while they can learn to flex into a different leadership style, they are likely to have default leadership style where they thrive and have a disproportionate impact.
| Leadership Style / Role | Attributes | Leadership Strengths / Weaknesses |
| Prophet – The Creative Visionary Think: Elon Musk Steve Jobs Thomas Edison Organization: Start-up Informal Just an idea Duration: Short, may be a singular occurrence | · Has a vision of what could be · Disrupters that cause chaos at times · They inspire disciples more than create organizations · Follow a withdraw / receive vision / engage / inspire pattern · Long-range thinking · Visionary · Sacrificial · Quirky Personality · Disorganized Impatient with details / administration | Strengths: Inspirational Maverick Give the organization their “why” they exist Create Excitement Weaknesses: Difficulty in building partnerships Hard to work with Narrow vision Neglects other aspects of organizational leadership |
| Barbarian – The Commanding General Think: Andrew Carnegie General Patton Ray Kroc Organization: Small Young Duration: Short, may be reoccurring in times of difficulty | · Has internalized the vision · Action Oriented · Disciplined · High Energy · Decisive, comfortable making decisions · Present during the initial growth of an organization and during times of refocusing · Lead people into action · Intimate personal relationships with their people · Military-style leadership · Willing to leave behind those who cannot keep up Initially expands the organization, but later will restrict growth due to the need to lead / control / influence personally (as opposed to principles-based leadership) | Strengths: · Mission Focused · Effective · Decisive · Bold · Energetic · Focused · Aggressive Weaknesses: · Abrasive · Unlikely to form consensus · Bad at collaboration · Poor communicators · Reliance on Personality Little patience for planning or administration |
| Builder & Explorer – The Specialist & The Expansionist Think: Ferdinand Magellan Skilled Teachers Organization: · Maturing, systems, and organization appearing · Leadership more collaborative · Delegation appearing · De-centralized decision making | Builders: · High technical capacity · Specialization in skillset and role · Collaboration · Less charismatic · Enjoys the “real work” of the organization · Measures Outcomes · Not a visionary, but implement the visionary’s vision · Able to exist within the systems needed for a large organization, but doesn’t enjoy committees · Unlocks growth potential through training, specialization, culture transfer, collaboration Explorers: · Excellent, enthusiastic communicators · Create excitement · Longs to move to new areas · Curious about new opportunities · expand influence of the vision · Integrating diverse people Finding new audiences | Strengths: (Builder /Explorer) · Highly Skilled / Specialized (B/E) · Collaborative (B) · Coordinator (B) · Innovative (B) · Efficient (B) · Hard working (B) · Initiative (E) · Explorer (E) · Instills passion (E) · Enthusiastic Communicator (E) · Boldness(E) · Energetic(E) Weaknesses: (B/E) · May lack the personal charisma of the prophet / barbarian · Less Decisive Specialization may mean weaknesses in other areas |
| Administrator – Bringing order to chaos Think: Robert McNamara Joseph in Egypt Organization: · Mature, established · Leadership and Management are both present Focused on keeping current position | · Internally focused · Creates systems · Focus on stability · Prioritizes Security · Brings order to chaos · Consistency is important · Focused on reporting (statistics, financials) · More focused on what has happened (past) than what could happen | Strengths: · Required for a mature organization · Reduces chaos, disorganization, inefficiency · Stabilizes the organization · Provides management to implement the leadership’s vision · Integrates the different sections of the organization Weaknesses: · Low sense of urgency on all items other then administration · Low prioritization on expansion or innovation · Stifles creativity and innovation · Increasingly internally focused (neglecting the external environment) · If unchecked, leads to Bureaucracy and the death of the organization If the Administrator becomes the dominant leader, organizational decline begins. |
| Bureaucrat – The Controlling Leader Think: Crassus, the ineffective Roman leader Organization: · Exists for itself Has lost its sense of purpose / vision | · High Control · Loss Adverse · Default response: “No” · Lacks creativity · Requires conformity · Most time spent in meetings · Doesn’t create or innovate | Strengths: · Can maintain status quo (for a limited time) Weaknesses: · Lack of creativity · Lack of urgency Lack of strengths |
| Aristocrat – The Alienated Leader Think: Louis XIV (French Revolution) King George III (U.S. Revolution) Pope Leo X (Luther & the Protestant Revolution) Organization: · State of decline / stagnation · Exists to serve the aristocrat High levels of discontent among the workers | · Self-serving leadership · Disengaged from the people of the organization · Focused on financial or strategic plans Near-constant reorganization within organization | Strengths: · No notable strengths · Creates the conditions needed for revolution / renewal Weaknesses: · Self-serving · Disengagement · Potentially fatal to the organization Has abandoned the vision of the organization |
This progression of leadership style moves in step with the needs and of the complexity level of the organization. However, before an organizational decline gains unstoppable momentum toward its irrelevance, Miller argues that there is the possibility of another leader stepping in and disrupting the organizational decline.
The Synergistic Leadership Role
I would posit that the synergistic leader is less about an individual than it is about a role being played within the organizational leadership. Ideally, the synergistic leader is playing the role of conductor, and much like the conductor, they are essential, but not in the spotlight. Often they will fight to stay out of the spotlight, instead making sure to highlight the contributions of the skilled individuals and teams within their organization. Their contribution is in knowing what individuals are best at a given role, and ensuring that each person has the opportunity to contribute in their own unique fashion. Whereas a jazz band is pure democracy, with each player moving in and out of the contributing role to ensure that there is a well-balanced display of the individual band member’s skillset, the synthetic leader facilitates the organization’s success by allowing each leader to flourish in their appropriate environment. Depending on the needs of the organization and the moment, there may be less “equal airtime” for any individual player, however the ultimate result is a more effective organization that functions more closely to the heart of the initial or renewed vision. Managing personalities and egos are an essential part of this role, as the synergistic leader must ensure that each member of a leadership team knows their contribution, and is valued accordingly. Honor and success are based on the success of the whole, not the success of the individual performer. At the same time, no one ever attended a concert to hear the bass drum player (parents and significant others expected of course!), but where would be the orchestra without that bass drum player? Incomplete, and less perfect than it should be.
| Leadership Style / Role | Attributes | Leadership Strengths / Weaknesses |
| Synergist – The Conductor (aka the Point Guard) Think: (These are often behind the scenes leaders) Organization: · In a position of maturity, but must make decision about stability/contentment or expansion / creativity Organization: · Reinvigorated and Re-energized · Staff Flourish as they contribute and talents are utilized New season of growth and expansion | · Has escaped their tendency toward a single leadership style · Balances and blends the Prophet, Barbarian, Builder, Explorer and Administrator · Works to ensure that the organization is not dominated by administrators / bureaucrats / aristocrats · Able to value, cooperate and collaborate with different leadership styles · Appreciates and leverage different skill sets in appropriate situations · Creates organizational unity focused on the vision · Can extend / reinitiate an era of organizational health · Maintains a leadership team and management team balance · Leverages and integrates the specialized skills in the organization · Surround themselves with people who compensate for their own weaknesses Truly Enjoys diversity | Strengths: · Creates unity within the leadership team · Actively works to ensure balance within the leadership team · Able to appreciate and maximize the strengths of others · Focus on the initial or revised vision · Doesn’t need to be the focal point of the leadership · Engaged at all levels of the organization · Instills a sense of purpose for the organization and its members · Creates a culture that embraces diversity (of ideas, cultures, education, background) · Fosters creativity by encouraging the frank, free-flowing exchange of ideas · Willing to take advice and input from other team members Weaknesses: · Very rare. · Difficult to balance creativity and the need for order. · At risk for being spread too thin and becoming absorbed in administrative / financial / external affairs At risk of being distracted from the real work |
This is a difficult position to fill, and an even more difficult role to play well for a variety of factors to be discussed in another blog post.