Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit -- A Grander Vision

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(Here at the Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit in an effort to improve my leadership as a volunteer with Operation Christmas Child.  Learn more about OCC at www.samaritanspurse.org/occ )  Ready to hear about "A Grander Vision" from Don Flow, Allen Catherine Kagina, and Wilfredo De Jesus --

Bill Hybels:  All my life I've been intrigued by people who live at a higher level than their peers.  I call this the "Grander Vision".  For the last two decades I've watched Willow people try to integrate their faith into their work world.  Some of what I've seen isn't pretty.  Many simply give up trying--they have their Sunday faith, their private faith--but don't integrate it into everyday life.

In this session you will hear from 3 leaders who did not give up on the Grander Vision.  They will tell you this is not easy but challenge us to keep trying.

Don Flow --
I've known Bill for nearly 30 years and I thank him for conversations we had on the critical importance of leaders sustaining a deep intimacy with Christ.

How does your faith affect every aspect of your business? -- Work is a place that Chist has called me to--to exercise faith, to bring hope, to create a culture that participates in the redemptive work of Christ in the world-

--through prayer
--through leadership
--through the company culture
--how we relate to customers

My day begins with prayer for our company to be a place that's a signpost for the Word of God.  I pray for specific people at work, to enter into their lives and to pray for their lives.  If I don't start my day like that, I don't have the ability to live love and bring hope

Love should animate Christian leaders.  I need to learn to share the lives of the people I lead.  There's a direct correlation with my intimacy in Christ and my intimacy with others.

I'm called to be a person of truth and grace and not self-seeking.  The company will not be more truthful than I am or more graceful than I am.  This is a high calling and I fail every day but we live under the grace of Christ.

I'm responsible for the culture of my company.  It can be toxic or life-enhancing.

Covenant with our customers -- always tell the truth, do the right thing, keep our promises  (do not take advantage of customers and intentionally limit our profit on car sales)
Community with one another--creating a culture that's inclusive and see each as a member of the body--fitness centers; $3000 college tuition per year per child; flex time;  personal emergency grants to employees; celebrate lives of employees
Commitment to our community--investing in each area of the community; each dealership takes on projects in their communities;  employees who volunteer in the community are paid for their time

What does a business look like in the fullest sense?  -- How much of the curse can be reversed?

We were given a calling in the world--the power to organize all of creation.  Without the fall every person's gifts would have been utilized for the common good.  The world is not what it was supposed to be but the New Testament makes it clear that Jesus Christ changed everything.  It's the role of the church to help raise our visions back.

We are called to be people who live by the vision of reweaving the broken world.  We're to do so in the manner of Jesus.

Employees evaluated on the acronym SERVE

Show Respect
Earn Trust
Reach for Perfection
Value Input
Energize Others

Allen Catherine Kagina--

Most of you have paid your taxes--maybe grudgingly.  I work for the Uganda Revenue Authority and God has done incredible things there.

In 2013 Africa was the world's fastest growing continent.
World Bank expects most African countries will reach middle income status by 2025
An estimated 58% of people in the region were living on less than $2 per day in 2000 but poverty rate is declining
Why is a continent that seems to be doing so well also so poor? -- corruption

My story is the story of how God changed one of the most corrupt institutions in Uganda.  Before 2004 the police and the revenue authority fought for #1 and #2 as the most corrupt.  In 2004 the job I now hold became vacant and I was naive enough to believe God could change anything.  My friends and I had been praying God would change this organization.  I was angry that nothing was happening.  But I believe when you bring God in there can be change.

We began reform looking at two things--
--integrity
--competence

We decided to ask all employees to apply again for their jobs.  We terminated all employees and gave them two months' notice to reapply.  Through six months of interviews they rehired and became a cleaner and more competent organization.  Things like this have to happen if you want to deal with corruption.

We went to the taxpayers and asked what kind of service they wanted.  We asked to serve the taxpayers.  We built online systems for paying taxes and also funded tax education so people would understand their rights.  We then rebranded--cut off old logos and colors and then went into the community to do service.  We began to build trust among the people.

Over the years God has invaded the tax authority and that has resulted in revenue growth of 317%.  God has invested so much in Africa.  We have so many resources.  We just need to get the people to do the right thing.

People who have worked with us have been recruited to head large companies and other civic authorities.

This was always God's idea because He wanted us to serve the people of Uganda and wanted the people and communities to be developed.  I am so convinced that if we will invite God into the public arena and into our churches that God will take over and we'll begin to see better societies.

Wilfredo De Jesus--  (My daughter attended Wilfredo's church in Chicago and we enjoyed worshiping there a number of times.)

In the year 2002 I was approached by the police commander of Chicago because of the prostitution problem.  The church began by praying.  We cannot allow prayer to be a crutch not to do anything.  I told my wife that 600 women were arrested for prostitution and I feel God wants us to buy a farm.

Went to the church and said, "Somebody has a farm.  Give it up!"  After 8 months a woman came to me and said her relative who had passed away had a farm.  The church bought it and 500 women have been rescued from prostitution and human trafficking.

You have to trust God to meet all your needs.  Once the condition of your community is revealed to you, you must move to action.  Ezekiel 22:30 -- Who will stand in the gap? No one was found.

Gaps exist all over in our communities.  God is still asking who will stand in the gap.  As pastors and lay leaders we must engage our community.  Not only those who come to your church but your entire community.

How do I see the entire community?  Do what Jesus did.  Sit with the lost.  Converse with the lost.  Jesus went toward the lost.

Wilfredo told a worker to "Go hire five prostitutes."  He paid them all and then told them "I want you to come with me."  For me what's sacred is the message not the method.  I took the five women into the church and we had linens and candles and roses and for an hour we served them and told them about Jesus.  At the end, through tears, they returned the money.  Some of those women are involved in ministry now.

We must not be afraid to take our faith into our community.  Fear is the opposite of faith.  Reminder of Nehemiah who asked the question, "How's Jerusalem?"  If you're not going to do anything about the answer, then don't ask.  Nehemiah knew he had to do something--with revelation comes responsibility.  Here's what Nehemiah did

1)  He prayed -- he wept and cried for the people;  80% of the world's population lives on $10 a day--there's a gap
2)  He planned -- planning is crucial.  You've got to write it down.  How many of us have been in the huddle for five years.  When is it we're going to do what God has called us to do.  We've gotta get out of the huddle.
3) He proceeded --You have to be willing to sacrifice.  (Wilfredo asked the Mayor of Chicago for two ambulances to take to Dominican Republic.  He was given them!)
4)  He persuaded -- The moment you decide to stand in the gap there will always be persecution.  Nehemiah was a lay person.  This is the season to release our lay people into the gaps in our community to engage the problems.

Nehemiah asked, "How is Jerusalem?"  Ask that in your community today.  That question is relevant regardless of where you live.

Courage is an inner resolution to go forward despite all the obstacles; cowardice is submissive surrender to circumstances. --Martin Luther King

Bill Hybels:  There's a reason God made you.  There's a reason He wired you the way you are.  Something important in this world will be left undone unless you put your hand to it.  There's a Grander Vision somewhere in the world with your name on it.  Someday you will say, "I was born to do this."

"This is the place where my deep gladness meets the world's great need"--Fredrick Buechner

Are you living out the Grander Vision that God has designed for you?  Many of you are--you understand your piece in His greater story.  However, I would guess that a large percentage of you still wander around every day and wonder, "Is this all there is?"  "Will my life ever be used for a higher purpose?"

Look at Ephesians 2:10 one more time.  "We ARE God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them."

The satisfaction you're looking for is never going to come through self-gratification.  Over time, find God's bidding for your life.  Do it by faith.  Serve people joyfully and indiscriminately and the satisfaction your heart yearns for will follow that.  I bet the farm of my life on this and it's true.

For some of you, safety still matters too much.  Some of you are bankrupt when it comes to satisfaction.  It's been so long since you felt it you even wonder if it could be felt.  God loves you and He didn't mean for you to feel bankrupt.  There's a life for you to live and it's truly life.  God made you on purpose for a purpose and when you get in synch with that purpose you will feel it to your toes.

There's not an accidental human being in the mind of God.  You were created for a Grander Vision.  How do I find it?  It's you putting your hand in God's hand and taking a step of faith to see if that's the direction God wants you to go.  You try out various purposes and take that step by step walk of faith and it unfolds.  But you must start.  You must take the step.

Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit -- Patrick Lencioni

(Here at the Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit in an effort to improve my leadership as a volunteer with Operation Christmas Child.  Learn more about OCC at www.samaritanspurse.org/occ ) -- Patrick Lencioni --

 The Most Dangerous Mistakes Leaders Make

Sometimes in leadership we're looking for "what's the key?"  We make a big deal about how we stand or how we look  I want to look at what are the foundational things we do that cause problems for leaders.  These are things that hurt people.

3 most dangerous mistakes (I have made them all.)

Let me tell you a story about a CEO I worked with.  He was a good, humble CEO.  The company was at a billion dollars and couldn't get beyond it so they hired a new CEO.  He asked why real estate costs were so high and then he realized people were always moving offices.  He eliminated office moves.  Two weeks later there was a construction crew in the lobby tearing down the wall of the conference room and moving it to the east.  They found out it was because the new CEO wanted the room to be big enough for his new office furniture.  We all are susceptible to this--

1)  Becoming a leader for the wrong reasons -- many of us are motivated by notoriety, fame, etc.  We tell graduates "Be a leader.  change the world."  We shouldn't tell everyone to be a leader.  Many want just to be known as a leader for prestige.  You should become a leader because you want to sacrifice yourself for the good of others even if you don't know if there will be a return on that investment.   When you choose leadership for the wrong reasons you lose passion and stop caring for the people you are supposed to lead.  If we are doing it for ourselves it's going to leave a trail of tears behind.  ( In the example above, the employees went from being leaders to cynics. )

I'm tired of hearing about "servant leadership" because I don't think there is any other kind.   When people calculate the Return On Investment, it's just economics.

We don't need to look far in the Bible for selfless leadership.  Imagine Peter--was he a successful leader?  He was crucified upside down; suffered constantly; most people thought he was a fool.  The only payoff for leadership is eternal.

Another CEO I worked with was famous, brilliant, and intimidating and no one ever challenged him.  The head of HR said you need to do something because no one is talking to you.  They did a 360 survey which he shared with no one.  The head of HR told him he needed to share the results.  He shared the results at a meeting and all the employees told him only what he wanted to hear.  That CEO was making the second major mistake of leadership

2)  Failing to embrace vulnerability -- The CEO in the example above should have admitted to his mistakes and told his team he would try to improve.    I don't think you can be too vulnerable.  People have a right to expect us to be competent but they don't expect us to be perfect.

What does it mean to be a vulnerable leader?  Tell people you're sorry, ask them to help you, admit when you don't know.

In the above example the entire economy of a state was undermined because the leader was not vulnerable.

3)  Making leadership too important -- Most of the time when we're thinking about leadership we're thinking about work.  If we make it too important, that means our identity can get wrapped up in being a leader instead of a spouse, a child of God, a parent, etc.   Our primary vocations may be ignored.  We need to go to our families, our spouses and ask, "Do you think my job and my employees are more important than you?"  The cost of failing in those relationships is so great.  At the end of my life I don't want my employees to come around my bed and say what a great manager I was.  We get more feedback at work sometimes and that makes us put more effort there.

It's all about PRIDE--

Pride is what all of these dangers have in common.  Jesus introduced humility as a virtue and in doing that He perfected leadership.  We will never be done with working against pride.   Do I think my success as a leader is about me doing things well?

My success is being docile to the will of God.

Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit -- Bryan Loritts

Note:  It's meaningful for me to hear Bryan Loritts because the church I attended most of my life supported Bryan's father, Crawford Loritts, from the time he started in ministry.  I remember Bryan growing up and am eager to hear him speak about

Instigating Change Through Personal Sacrifice

I am thrilled to come and share thoughts on leadership.  I am an African-American preacher and we like to open our sermons by thanking everybody.  I was preaching in a North Carolina church and the pastor said, "Brother, we are a Spirit-led church.  Time means nothing. .....But the people leave at twelve."

The insightful words Jesus said before He went to the cross about how His organization is to be run.

Matthew 25:31-46

Jesus does not want His church to be monopolized by the affluent.  He wants it to be an inclusive organization that includes "the least of these."

William Wilberforce -- I encourage you to drink deeply from the life of this leader.  At age 21, he was at a party with William Pitt and in the middle of this party they decided to run for parliament.  William Wilberforce ran, won the seat, and would never again lose that seat.  At age 25 he experienced the "train wreck of the gospel" and came to understand the love of God and asked Him into his life.

Now in 1787 at the height of slavery in England, Wilberforce decides to quit parliament and become a pastor.  Then his mentor John Newton, who had once been involved in slave trade himself, said to him, "It is hoped and believed, young William, that the Lord has raised you up for the good of the nation."  William then stayed at parliament and on Christmas Eve gave a six hour address citing his goal as the abolition of slavery.

William Wilberforce believed it in his gut.  He didn't ascribe to a church that catered to the affluent.

When we get to heaven we will see William Wilberforce because he understood the blessings of God were not to be hoarded.  Our vision as leaders has got to be more than the stuff that will perish.  Jesus says to His leaders, if you do not share the goods of this world with people in need, you will enter into eternal punishment.  He is not preaching salvation by works.  God does not give the ten commandments first and then open the Red Sea. He opened the Red Sea first.  His laws are never "have to" but "get to".

Rom. 5:8 "While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."   I will never be able to work and do enough good things.

The Matthew text deals not with the root of salvation but the fruit of salvation.

I prayed to lead a multi-ethnic church.  This comes from Jesus' command to "love the world."  I wanted to give a piece of heaven on earth.  Started with 26 people (I was the only piece of chocolate in the room.)

From Genesis to Revelation there are over 2,350 verses that talk about God's heart for the orphan, alien, widow, and the poor.  You can't claim to have God's heart and do nothing for the least of these.

God's welfare policy was different than the US policy.  Let the poor come and work your field.   The 2014 principle is that we leave margin to spontaneously and generously give to the least of these.

John Wesley at age 18 or 19 looked at his finances and decided what he needed to live on and then gave everything else away.  One year he made 1500 pounds from the sale of his book.  He still lived on only 28 pounds and gave the rest away.  John Wesley wrestled with the question of "enough".  How much is enough?  How much is enough house?  How much is enough purses?  How much are enough golf clubs?

Our church is trying to model this.  We started our church with 26 people chasing the dream of inclusivity.  Now we have four services.  I got a nice raise and my wife and I looked at each other and said, "enough." and gave the rest away.  That is what brings joy.

Leaders, would you look around you and at least consider the question of "What is enough?"  Jesus did not consider equality with God a thing to be grasped but emptied Himself.

I have diamond status with Delta which means if there's ever an empty seat in first class I get it.  My wife has no status.  So I've learned when I am traveling with my wife I get the upgrade but I sit next to my wife and ask the person who was to be in my seat to sit in my seat in first class.   I still have my status but I give it up.  That's what Jesus did--He came and died so we could get the upgrade back to heaven.

Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit -- Susan Cain

(Here at the Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit in an effort to improve my leadership as a volunteer with Operation Christmas Child.  Learn more about OCC at www.samaritanspurse.org/occ ) --  Susan Cain speaks:

Quiet:  Challenging the Extrovert Ideal

I'm here because I want to tell you a story of how this quiet revolution has begun.  I went to summer camp at age 9 and my mother packed me a suitcase of books.  Then I got there and the counselor taught us a cheer r-o-w-d-i-e "that's the way to be rowdy" -- And I wondered why we had to do this cheer and spell this word incorrectly.  But I did the cheer and learned to look rowdy.  I was always trying to prove I was an extroverted person and I've come to believe it was a really big mistake.  It's a mistake we're making as a culture.

One half to one third of the population is introverted.  That seems surprising but it's because introverts get into the habit of acting like extroverts.  We need to learn to harnass the power of introverts.

Break up into groups of four and share a story from your childhood that illustrates you.  (I'm just kidding)  But how are you feeling as you hear this assignment?  This is how introverts feel often.

Introverts would rather do their own individual work and then come back and share with the group.

You've probably heard that introverts recharge by being on their own and extroverts recharge by being social.  How do you feel after being at a party for two hours?  That is an indication of how you are.

Introverts are more sensitive to stimulation than extroverts and can't handle as much.  Extroverts need more stimulation.  This can be mapped as early as four days after birth.

In one famous study math problems were given to extroverts and introverts to solve.  The introverts did better with softer noise and the extroverts with louder noise.  There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all environment.  People need to be able to choose their level of stimulation to do their best work.

Asian cultures may value introversion more highly.  In Confucianism there is the idea of yin and yang that is important between introverts and extroverts.

Implications for creativity--

--the most creative people are a blend of extroversion and introversion.  They need to be able to express their ideas but may need solitude for creativity.  Psychologists have shown that brainstorming is not advantageous for developing new ideas.

We are such social creatures that we end up being unconscious conformists.

What do we do to get the best ideas?
--Stop the madness for constant group work (suggest a hybrid process where people go by themselves to think and then come back to share with the group and stop periodically to let people think and process.  Make sure ALL share their ideas)
--Forget networking.  Focus on service.
--Restore quiet to our culture

church culture -- I talked to introverted church members who thought they were connected to God and then saw others in the church who seemed to connect with God in a more passionate manner and began to think they were less pleasing to God because they had more restraint.    Remember Elijah who heard God in a still, small voice?  We need to invite that quiet in.

What makes a "natural" leader?  What was Jesus' main personality trait? -- most when asked think that Jesus was an extrovert.  The perception is you must be extroverted to be a leader.

Jim Collins looked at the 11 top performing companies and he found every one of them was led by a level 5 leader and had 2 characteristics -- Very passionate about their companies but also described as shy, unassuming, low-key

How do we explain that? -- Many introverts get very passionate about a few things in their lives.  Many don't seek leadership for its own sake but in the course of their passions end up becoming leaders.

examples:
CEO of Campbell Soup -- shy, introverted.  During his 10 years he wrote 30,000 letters to employees.  Extroverted leader might use a different method.

US Army General -- always sequesters himself before making a decision

Gandhi -- so shy as a child he would run home from school so he didn't need to socialize.  Passionate about his cause

Take-aways:
--Groom an "unlikely" leader
--Find your complement (no one is good at everything)
--Find a role model

"My role model is my grandfather," Susan says.  He was a pastor who gave gentle tapestries of sermons but had trouble making eye contact with his congregation.  When he passed away at age 94 the police had to close the streets to accommodate the throngs of mourners.

After writing the book I began to get thousands of letters so I started an organization called Quiet Revolution.  They are working on a quiet TV series to interview famous introverts.  They have a Quiet Leadership Institute to train companies how to harnass the ideas of introverts.

www.quietrev.com

Public speaking has been terrifying for me but it is getting better.  I'm asking you all to take a step inward for a moment.  I want to ask you now, "What's inside your suitcase that you metaphorically carry around inside you?"  Whatever it is I hope you'll take these things out and grace them with your energy and your joy.

As introverts you have the tendency to guard your suitcase but occasionally take them out for all the world to see.

I wish you all the best of possible journeys and may you all have the courage to speak softly.

Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit -- Jeffrey Immelt

(Here at the Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit in an effort to improve my leadership as a volunteer with Operation Christmas Child.  Learn more about OCC at www.samaritanspurse.org/occ ) --  Jeffrey Immelt on "Positioning Your Organization for the Future"

Interviewed by Bill Hybels --

Bill:  Jeff, you've been in the middle of one of the biggest acquisitions of your career and you've been flying back and forth to France.  How/when do you empower others to make decisions.

Jeff:  That's a good question.  Teams worked on this strategically.  When's it's the most important thing the company is working on you don't delegate it.  You have the experience and you want to protect your team.  You have to be hands-on at times like that.  We worked together as a team.

Bill:  I read the speech you gave to the French Parliament.  Did you write that speech?

Jeff:  I wrote most of it.

Bill:  You should be a pastor

Jeff:  I said sink or swim, I am going to do this myself.  No job has ever been beneath me.  You've gotta be involved.

Bill:  I was told that you're the purest natural leader this person has ever seen.  When did you become aware you were a leader.

Jeff:  "Thanks Mom!"  I don't think anyone ever thinks of themself that way.  I was an athlete and learned great skills.  From the earliest age I always wanted to do my best and I always tried to demonstrate self-confidence.  My parents taught me not to be afraid.

Bill:  After studies at Dartmouth and Harvard you went to GE.  Did you have a plan when you first joined the company did you have a plan to differentiate yourself.

Jeff:  I think anyone who plans to become CEO is a little weird.  I thought I would learn to be a business person and I got lucky.  I loved the people I worked with and for me it was always about the work--never the career.  It was about creating things.  In a company like GE you can create the future.  Your peers ultimately decide how far you go.

Bill:  As your career was advancing Jack Welch assigned you a terrible job to fix a plant in Kentucky.

Jeff:  I was 32 years old and it gave me the confidence to do what I do today.  Be around a crisis early in your career to shape your leadership.  These three years from age 32-35 really shaped me.  I made everyone, including me, learn how to fix a compressor.

Bill:  You eventually were chosen to be the new CEO of GE.  You may have had the shortest CEO honeymoon in corporate history.  How long were you in this position when 911 happened?

Jeff:  I started on Friday 9/07 and 911 happened the next Tuesday.  We live in a more volatile time today.  When you turn on the news today in 30 minutes you're bummed out.  We're going to live in this time for a while.  People are not going to be given the luxury to go backwards.  I think the best leaders go forward--keep the company safe but go forward.  I've never seen a time when the value of leadership is more important.

Bill:  I read about places where leadership is taught.  GE has a facility for a leadership development university--probably the most famous I've heard of.  Why is that so important to GE?  Why do you put so much time into that?

Jeff:  I lead a big company and you need to have things that drive the oneness of the company so we invest about a billion dollars a year in leadership development.  The campus has been around for 50 years.  Certain values of leadership don't change but you also have to constantly be tuning up your leadership.  We expect our leaders to go to train and teach.  I teach twice a month.  It takes away all the layers as I get realtime feedback.   It's a strategic imperative for the company but also drives the culture of oneness of the company.

Bill:  How do you feel when you invest in an employee and then they resign?

Jeff:  To me it's deeply personal.  We train people because we want them to be self-confident.  I don't want people to work at GE out of fear--let's come to work because I love what I do.  It's my job to make sure they are enjoying what they do.

Bill:  Jack Welch said when someone left the company he wanted to stay in touch with them.

Jeff:  He did after a certain period.  I think it's good you have a change in leadership.  We're not a perfect company but GE is an institution;  it's not about an individual.  There's a camaraderie that exists because of that.

Bill:  When you see _______ quality -- what makes you want to promote them? And what turns you off?

Jeff:  The difference is the willingness to stand apart and buck the system.  How'd I become CEO?  I never took "no" for an answer.   You want someone who questions authority and promotes change.  We bring the top 35 people together once a quarter and I give them a vision  "Let's do it my way".  You have to be willing to stand apart.  Excuses and lack of accountability turn me off.  We don't expect people to have perfect careers.  We expect them to learn from mistakes and get better.

Bill:  Hardest person you ever had to fire?

Jeff:  I had a person who worked for me as CEO but there was something that was missing about how he connected with the team.

Bill:  I am fascinated by this because some years back I had to make a tough leadership call.  My advisors asked if the person was meeting expectations, had high integrity, godly?  Yes to all these.  But the person is not connecting with his staff or with the team.

Jeff:  I said the same thing.  And I was right.  You're in the business of giving people confidence.  You can give negative feedback but want to do it in the tapestry of making them self confident.

Bill:  You've made a big deal for the value of diversity in GE.  How did that value develop in you and how do you foster is?

Jeff:  If you believe in talent and meritocracy you must believe in diversity.  More than half our employees live outside the US.   If people don't see diversity then it's code that you don't care about people.

Bill:  About political diversity -- When President Obama called to ask you to lead in getting more jobs in America--how did that happen?

Jeff:  I'm center right and the president wanted to form a council on job preparedness.  I grew up in Cincinnati, OH and my parents watch Fox every night.  The four of us who did this really wanted to help.  I'm proud of the work we did and I'm glad we did it.  We really wanted to make a difference.  We're a global enterprise but we're proud to be an American company.

Bill:  You talk a lot about simplification.  Can you explain that?

Jeff:  Institutions are all searching in this global world for new ways to run institutions.  Lately I wasn't sensing the joy in work.  I was spending a fair amount of time in Silicon Valley.  About 18 months ago we started on this culture of simplification based on:
--less management; smaller headquarters
--marketplace rules
--test and learn
--network and transparence
 
I respect everyone who wants to be a public servant but the system is antiquated.  Every good institution is trying to find a way to govern itself in a different time.

Bill:  You will need to create a succession plan.  How will yours be different from the one you were subjected to?

Jeff:  The board and I do this as a team.  I think it shouldn't be quite as public.  There are things that don't need to be in the public view that can be done more naturally.

Bill:  So your plan will be more private?  Will it be as long?

Jeff:  It will be more private (laughter)

Bill:  You refused to take a bonus your board offered you.  Did you not need the money?

Jeff:  It's all personal.  It has to be about what I think is right.  I felt this was a way to be accountable for what was happening in the economy and the company at that time.  The constituency you play to the most is not the media--it's your own team.  I said to my team, "Over time you're going to question my decisions but you're not going to question my intentions."

Bill:  I tried to dig up some dirt and the worse thing I could find is you work 80 hour weeks and you only take 12 days off a year.

Jeff:  I love work.  I have a great family.  I have one company, one wife, one daughter.  My dad worked for GE so I know the power of a GE job.  When you walk through a factory people love what they do.  The one thing we can't guarantee is outcomes but we can look everybody in the eye and say we can guarantee process.  No one will ever work harder than GE works.  Everyone from the top of the company down is going to work hard on your behalf.

Bill:  One last question--your wife is a little bit more regular in her church attendance than you are.  If you show up at a church after working an 80 hour week what would you like to experience?

Jeff:  In a big leadership job you're "on" all the time.  After a few years in leadership I started saying less because people hung on my words.  So you need time to regenerate.  Maybe a couple of hours a week is all you need so you can do it again.  The ability to sit for an hour and be at peace and listen to somebody else talk is priceless.

Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit--Carly Fiorina

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(Here at the Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit in an effort to improve my leadership as a volunteer with Operation Christmas Child.  Learn more about OCC at www.samaritanspurse.org/occ ) --  Carly Fiorina speaks on

Defining Leadership

Before I begin my talk I want to tell you about myself.  All of us learn life's lessons from living life.  When I was 8 years old my mother was my Sunday school teacher and my mother gave me a plaque that said, "What you are is God's gift to you; what you make of yourself is your gift to God."  I did not feel gifted.   I went to work out of college as a secretary and the business owners came to me and asked if I wanted to learn about the company.  They saw possibilities in me that I didn't see in myself.  I later became the head of Hewlett-Packard and now serve on the board of organizations that help give a hand up to those who need .  I have seen the look in a child's eyes when they get a brand new backpack full of stuff because it isn't 'stuff' to them.  I've had triumphs and tragedies in my life and I always knew I was not alone.  I've learned a few basic things--

--leadership is the same no matter what the context is
--everyone has potential and more potential than most of us realize--human potential is the only limitless resource we have in this world.  Why do so many fail to reach their potential?  Some don't have a chance because of sujugation or lack of tools or opportunity or because they lost faith in themselves, others, or God.

Some things that crush potential:  fear; bureaucracy (rules-based, process-driven organization)--bureaucracies forget who they are intended to serve

What things unlock potential?--leadership;  The highest calling of leadership is to unlock the potential of others.

What leadership is NOT:

--It is not management-- management is the production of acceptable results within known constraints and conditions;  a good manager can be a leader but management and leadership are not the same;   a leader says "I am going to change these conditions."  Leadership is about changing the order of things.

--It is not necessarily the person in the corner office with a title -- anyone who wants to move persons from here to there by changing the order is a leader

examples:  Martin Luther King who changed the face of the nation but started as a pastor;  Nelson Mandela -- was not a leader because he became president; he became president because he was a leader.  He led as a prisoner while in jail.
Jesus -- symbol of powerlessness as a baby in a manger -- a nobody who recruited other nobodies;  He knew the potential of the poor
You--why are you here?  because a young man several decades ago started a ministry with the view of unlocking the potential of others.

Leadership is not about a big budget -- it's about unlocking the potential in others.

What do leaders do?--

Leadership Framework --

--Strategy; goals; vision (Where are we going and why are we going there?)

--Organization; team; process (Who is on the team?  What processes are important?)

--Metrics; results (How do we measure progress?  How do we reward success?  What gets measured is what gets done.)

--Culture Behavior (What's it like to work around here?  Ethics?--the leader has to set the tone and model the behavior)

Set the frame and set them free.  Let the people under you reach their potential.

20/20 rule -- When people embark on a leadership journey remember -- 20% of most people in an organization are change warriors -- identify, harness, and enlist those warriors;  20% of people are "hell no, I won't go" people who refuse to change--identify them and resolve because they are the source of resistance.  The other 60% are waiting skeptics and change won't happen unless that 60% get engaged and move.

Everyone has more potential than they realize.  Everyone has the capacity to lead.  Leaders are made, not born.  Leadership is changing the order of things.  Leadership is unlocking the potential of others.

Leadership is a profoundly human gift available to all.  All of us have the potential to make a positive difference, to change the order, to unlock the potential of others.

True leadership requires faith.  A love of God makes leadership easier.  Faith gives us the gift of humility and true leadership requires understanding it is not "about you" but about others and having a servant heart.  Faith gives us the gift of optimism--the leader must know things can be better.

The most important gift is to have faith in others.  You must know people can and will rise to the occasion and will use their potential to make a positive difference.

Faith teaches us that all of us are gifted by God and that knowledge propels a leader.

Leadership is a choice.  It can be exhausting but there is a look that people get in their eyes when their potential has been unlocked and that look is the same everywhere in the world and that look is all the repayment a leader needs.

Choose to lead.  Choose to change the order of things.  Choose to fulfill your own potential and choose to unlock the potential of others.

What we are is God's gift to us;  what we make of ourselves is our gift to God.

Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit -- Bill Hybels

(Here at the 2014 Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit to get some leadership training to help with my job as a volunteer area coordinator for Operation Christmas Child )-- Bill Hybels opens the summit speaking on "Hard Fought Leadership Lessons"....

Everything that matters in this world rises and falls on leadership.  If you care about anything in your community, you'd better care about leadership.  With that premise established, I launched into the first lecture at the first Global Leadership Summit.

World peace rises and falls on leadership as does the eradication of poverty.  As does the raising of kids and grandkids.  I am moved that people around the world are getting this and taking bold steps to better their leadership.  There is so much at stake today.

One of the supreme values of the leadership summit is humility--each of us declaring at the outset we have so much more to learn about influence.  We must cultivate the capacity to learn from a kaleidoscope of leaders.  Pastors can learn from business leaders and business leaders can learn from pastors.  The religious can learn from those who consider themselves less so.

Hard Fought Leadership Lessons--

Some leadership lessons come at very great expense.

First Lesson -- T or F -- All leadership is intently spiritual (TRUE) -- Remember how responses of a negative boss affected your spirit.  Your spirit cannot survive under negative leadership.

Leaders are visionaries and paint pictures that produce passion in other people.  Then comes the adrenaline rush of progress and the vision begins to consume us.  It becomes our identity and affirms our self worth but the condition of our team may fall to second import as we become obsessed with the thrill of the vision.

Often leaders with the highest passion have the lowest level of awareness of the spirit of their team.  The leader sacrifices so deeply for vision achievement that they feel no one else on the team cares as much as they do.  This is crazy-making to a leader.

Once the leader looks at the team through the "they don't care" lens they feel they don't need to be as care-ful for the hearts of the team members.  They feel the team members are expendable or exchangeable.  None of this is discussed openly but everybody starts to feel it.

An employee survey was taken at Willow 7 years ago--the results came and some were positive comments but some sensed a disconnect between them and the senior leaders.  One comment cut me to the core of my being, "I love my church with all my heart but I feel like a grunt."

What God treasures most in this world is people and one of my people felt like a grunt.  I fell to my knees and wept and said 'these things are going to change.' I read the comment at a staff meeting the next day and they were as crushed and agreed things would change and they would transform their culture.

It took me so long to learn this and so many people paid the price of my dim-wittedness along the way.  Don't get so addicted to vision achievement that the people around you feel replaceable or exchangeable or like grunts.

What practical steps are required to set the spirit of your team on fire?  Five key commitments--

1)  Used an outside firm to do a survey and interpret the results

2)  Leader and executive team really owned this change (Your culture will only ever be as healthy as the senior leader wants it to be)

3)  Got serious about training everyone on the staff who manages people  (it should be illegal to allow some people to manage other people)  People join organizations; they leave managers.  You will never reach your culture's full vitality potential until every person in your culture leads and loves well

4)  Raise the level of candor in performance reviews.  Jack Welch said, "The kindest form of management is the truth."  Use the words 'start', 'stop', and 'continue'.   (for example--if meetings need improvement--use the 3 M plan for meetings -- Move ahead; Modify; Motivate before the meeting ends--inspire them)  (example;  "Lisa, continue calling the best out of people."  "Paul, your team knows you pray for them; continue leading like that"--the main point is specificity so employees know exactly how to improve

5)  Ruthless commitment to resolving relational conflict regardless of how scary it feels.  "What if we all looked at conflict as a chance to improve relationships?"  from the book 'Reconcile' by ?Ledereck?

Chilling statistics--in the average Christian organization only 54% of employees are truly engaged in their work;  in the US corporate world only 30% engaged in their work; internationally the rate is 1/2 that;  Willow Creek showed 81% are highly engaged but it's heartbreaking that 19% feel either underchallenged or disconnected.  I won't be satisfied until 100% of our staff want to come to work every day.

Second Lesson -- T or F  Great leadership is by definition relentlessly developmental (TRUE)   Many give up on leadership development because they don't know how.  Bob Eichinger? (leadership guru)  5 ways to develop leaders--

--put them in a challenging job
--assign them to a short-term task force
--offer feedback
--provide coaching
--provide courses and seminars

Assigning people to short-term task forces allow you to test drive a leader's ability.  5 criteria-

--success or failure must both be possible
--emerging leader must be in authority
--must work with a broad group of people
--real pressures and a real deadline
--must be evaluated by a senior leader

How resourceful they are is crucial.  Resourcefulness is the greatest tool for a leader.

I was best prepared for leadership by a dad who fostered resourcefulness.  I was sent on an impromptu ski trip by myself as an eleven-year-old.  I had no idea where Colorado even was and my dad said, "Figure it out."  Then my dad said, "Figure it out and don't call me."   Admittedly my dad's approach was extreme and it wasn't nurturing enough but to this day I benefit from his mission to make me resourceful.

You need to know what an emerging leader will do when they don't know what to do.  No senior leader can know enough right now to figure out what to do when thrust into a big role.  Resourcefulness is key.

When is the last time you took the time to assign an emerging leader to a task force test?  Some young leaders have amazing resourcefulness that you can only discern by giving them task force tests.

Third Lesson --  Finding and developing leaders with a legacy mindset

two kinds of shepherds --

 1) hirelings (will not risk anything for the sheep and will leave when something better comes along)

2)  owner shepherd (actually care about the sheep; have a long-term view; will lay down life for the sheep)

Average tenure for a Fortune 500 CEO is 4.5 years;  In faith-based charities it is increasingly common to see 'hirelings' -- quality organizations cannot be built on the shoulders of hirelings.  Need to discern between short-term ladder climbers and legacy leaders

Legacy leaders will ride out rough patches; willing to address long-term economic viability because they are working for the grander vision; run on a higher-quality fuel source (serving God or wanting to leave a legacy)  example--Nelson Mandela was a legacy leader who even in his final years committed himself to leaving a legacy through leadership in his country.

Ladder-climbers--fueled by personal ambition

The Bible makes it clear--we get one shot at life.  Your gravestone will have a birth date and an end date and your life will be represented by the dash in between.  You can lead small and safe or selfishly.  You can choose to be a hireling your whole life.  Or you can be an owner type who leaves a legacy behind when you're done with the dash.  You don't drift into becoming a legacy leader.  The drift is always toward safety and comfort.  Every legacy leader comes to a decision to pursue a grander vision and never looks back.  Have you reached that point in your life yet?  Or can you really just talk a good game?  This is the only life you get to live out.  Don't go to your grave without tasting life that is truly life; a life that leaves something beautiful behind.

Have you given any real thought to what your legacy will be?  What of beauty will you leave behind when your life is done?  We've been praying that God will speak with you and rock your life and when God whispers to you, I pray you wil pay attention and do what he asks you to do.

Fourth Lesson -- Endurance

The grander the vision the greater the price tag.  The single greatest mission was Jesus' redemption that required the spilling of His blood.  Don't be surprised at the cost of being a legacy leader.  You need to develop strategies to endure.  May need more times of solitude to recharge.  It's hard to hear God unless you lower the ambient noise of your life.

Tells story of a woman who tried to row across the Atlantic Ocean and had been alone for 83 days.  She reached for her radio and said, "Help" (have you ever felt that exhausted, discouraged--on the brink of hopelessness)  Imagine her surprise when an 1100 foot ocean liner shows up and stops for her.  They gave her provisions and cheered for her.  She probably thought, "All I did was ask for help and God sent the Queen Mary II to help me."  -- Some of you are exhausted and you need to radio for help.  Humble yourself.  Look toward heaven and say, "God help me."

We have a transcendently powerful God who will rescue those who are crushed in spirit.  You might be one prayer away from a divine Queen Mary style rescue.