Introduction
In this week’s MSLD521 blog I get to tell a
knowledge sharing story within the context of holding a leadership position and
how not sharing values had an impact on my career path. Sharing the same values
between leaders in an organization is critical not only to the organizations
success, but to your own personal success “The performance of a team usually
depends on mutual trust and cooperation among the members, which is more likely
when members have shared values…(Yukl, 2013, p. 411).”
The
knowledge I will share with you may or may not apply to your situation “Knowledge
sharing stories tend to be about issues and difficulties and how they were
dealt with and why the course of action solved the problem.” (Denning, 2011, p.
188). You may need some reflection on your current leadership position to make
this determination, so let me help you get started. Are you happy, insecure,
have anxiety, comfortable in your current position and content? Knowledge
sharing stories are not meant to be exciting or interesting, “As a result, they
aren’t inherently interesting because the human implications aren’t made explicit.”
(Denning, 2011, p. 188). If you’re
currently in a leadership position or are thinking about taking a leadership
position, please read on. This story could have a major impact on your future.
Happy Beginning
I joined the USAF at the ripe old age of 17, I had to grow
up and quickly and I did just that. By the age of 25 I was responsible for leading
roughly 12 aircraft repair technicians on a daily basis. By the age of 31 about
25 technicians and by the age of 34 about 50 technicians. I took care of my
people and they people took care of the aircraft. Where this leadership
philosophy really took hold was while I was assigned to the 309th
Fighter Squadron at Luke AFB (1995-2001). It was in the 309th where I spent
almost 6 years (age 31 to 37) and had no five quality mentors. I still remember
their names and faces quite vividly; MSgt Ralston, MSgt Brockman, MSgt Rubin, MSgt
Kriley and MSgt Klien. Each of these leaders instilled in me the importance of
leading ethically and always putting your people before self-interests. I
always had this in me anyway, but their personal examples emboldened my
confidence in this approach. I thrived in this environment and was never
happier as a leader. Our aircraft were the oldest in the fleet by a large
margin, but we consistently neck and neck with our sister squadrons in
production. Why? Because we took care of the people and they took care of the
airplanes. There was really no need to be “aware of the political environment”
here as there was complete transparency and everyone was upfront and honest with
one another. Upon being promoted to MSgt, I was given my very own section to
lead. It was a small section of about 17 people (some technicians, some supply
folks and some crew chiefs). Our team of 17 quickly was recognized as top
performers within our Wing of 6 other squadrons and it was time for me to lead
a Specialist section of about 50 technicians. The problem was that there was
already a Specialist Section Chief in the 309th. No worries there
was an opening in a sister squadron.
Easy Transition
Our sister squadron had an opening and I met with the
squadron superintendent for an interview. We spoke about expectations and we
were on the definitely singing from the same sheet of music (or so it seemed). During
our conversation, he was particularly interested in how I was able to reduce
the repeating and reoccurring discrepancy rates in my previous squadron. If
repeat and reoccur rates are high, that is a sign that maintenance is not being
performed the way it should be. I assured him that I knew how to implement good
maintenance practices that would bring the repeating and reoccurring
discrepancy rates down here as well. I got to meet the section chief that I was
replacing and the people I would begin leading. The transition took about 2
weeks. Smooth sailing was on the horizon.
Trouble on the Horizon
After two weeks I took the helm as Specialist Section chief
and it wasn’t too long afterwards that signs of trouble would begin to appear.
First time was at the first production meeting (we had them daily at 0700
sharp) with all the section chiefs and the production superintendent. There was
a tension in the air that was not present in the 309th. The room
seemed stuffy and formal, grim faces dominated. I realized then I should pay
close attention to how to proceed. Why? Because this environment was in stark
contrast to the open and glib production meetings in the 309th. Smiles would dominate the room, not grim
faces. People shook hands and asked how you were doing. Perhaps most
importantly, if for any reason someone did not feel an aircraft should be on
the schedule they could speak up and a spare would be put in its place…no direct
fallout. During my interview with the superintendent I asked if this standard
applied and he assured me yes, that is how we do business and I felt
comfortable with his response. I didn’t feel that way after the first
production meeting.
Several weeks passed by without much interesting to report,
until I came in one morning and I questioned the maintenance done on a
particular aircraft that was on the schedule. Wasn’t a safety type issue, but
in my estimation the likely hood the problem was permanently fixed was not very
good. I prepared to present a case to remove the aircraft from the schedule to
have a closer look. When I expressed
concern that the maintenance we did on a particular aircraft needed closer
examination you could have heard a pin drop. I explained that the likely hood a
repeat of the same discrepancy would be high if we did nothing and I was doing
what I thought I was hired to do and that was to bring the repeat reoccur rates
down. I continued to do so whenever it was appropriate (maybe once a month) and
I can tell you I did not make any friends by taking such actions. I did have “quiet”
allies and privately displayed their approval.
The Situation Grows Worse
After about 3 months the superintendent who hired me
retired and a new one came in his place. The “new” guy was full of energy to
the point where he almost seemed hyper. He appeared to be very high strung and
he hinted around that he had aspirations to make CMSgt (the ultimate enlisted
grade in the AF). That should have been a warning sign for me right there.
Typically people focused on only making rank are not concerned so much with
their people. The worst squadron or wing commander to work for is the one focused
on only making the next rank, and the best ones are just waiting for retirement
or don’t really care to get promoted. I worked for a commander once at Hill
AFB. We called it Hell AFB.
Only One Regret – I didn’t Quit First
Within a month or so of taking over as the new
superintendent, you could see lines being drawn that identified the in crowd
from the out crowd. The in crowd were the leaders concerned more about
statistical values and the out crowd were the ones who were people orientated
(take care of the people and they will take care of the mission). I was clearly
in the out crowd and so were my allies. The difference between me and them was
that I was vocal). Being vocal and in the out crowd is good. I recommend it if
you don’t mind moving on. Because if you’re in the out crowd that means
leadership in that organization is not inclusive and leadership that is not
inclusive needs to be exposed. My only recommendation that I wish I had left on
my terms and not theirs. After about 7 months, the superintendent called me in
his office with what I believed to be a very weak excuse for finding me a new
job (according to him I was not authorized to change the snack bar cleanup
schedule!). This incident happened shortly after I defended a group of my
technicians from being publicly humiliated over the radio by one of the junior
production superintendents (he was removed from that position as a result) and
was probably the real reason why I was fired. I had never been “fired” from a
job before. In hindsight, I wish I would have walked into his office on my own
terms and said “You know sir, I just don’t think things are working out here.
I’m just not comfortable operating the way you expect me to. I would like to
find another job somewhere else.” I’m sure he would have obliged and I may not
have fallen from being in a leadership position for such a long time. I hope
you can tuck this story away and never have to pull it out to make an assessment
of your situation, but if you do I’m happy to have told this story for you.
Conclusion
So the lesson to this story is, if the organization who you
work for doesn’t have the same values as you have, decide if you want to align
your values with the organization, keep your values and try and work within the
system or if the values in place just make you uncomfortable to the point you
want to look for other opportunities. First you have to recognize the situation.
You’ll be doing yourself a favor by doing an assessment and it may save you
from being fired. Getting fired is no fun.
References:
Denning, S. (2011). The leader's guide to storytelling: Mastering the
art and discipline of business narrative. San Francisco, CA: Josey-Bass.
Yukl, G. (2013). Leadership in
organizations. Boston, MA: Pearson
