This article is by Nathan Bennett, the associate dean for faculty and research at the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University.
We have an expensive misunderstanding when it comes to developing leaders. The easiest way to describe our error is with a metaphor. Our approach to developing leadership too closely mimics the way rare gems, like diamonds, get to market. Diamonds are precious because they are in finite supply, can be found only in certain places, are difficult and expensive to mine, and after processing can be graded using objective measures of quality. That process serves as an apt description of how companies search for a leader, but it is a flawed approach. We can improve leadership by adopting a better metaphor for understanding leadership development. The metaphor should recognize leadership ability is not so rare. Leaders can be found in many places. They need not be expensive to develop. And we are fooling ourselves if we think that there are objective measures that can predict leader quality. The better metaphor comes from understanding the way a bottle of wine makes it to your table.
Developing leaders is like making wine. First, the raw material, the grapes, matters. Sauvignon Blanc grapes produce a different wine from Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, and it is impossible to make one take on characteristics of the other. So, too, does the raw material of leaders have an unmistakable effect on the final result. However, just as with wine, the final product in leadership is a function of both the grape and the way it has been treated.
Given the grape, the next factor winemakers consider is the terroir, the environmental characteristics that influenced the fruit’s growth. Winemakers view this nuanced challenge as part art and part science. Soil, sun, temperatures, and moisture all play a role in shaping the potential of the grape. Interestingly, stress to the vine is critical in creating robust fruit. And while vines are pruned to focus energy on the production of a smaller, more intense crop, the amount of fruit that is eliminated is generally a small fraction of the total. The final critical decision about the fruit is the timing of the harvest. For example, more time on the vine produces more sugar in the grape. More sugar isn’t always what’s desired.
After the grapes have been harvested and pressed, the winemaker’s efforts continue. How much alcohol should the wine carry? What storage does the wine need to reach its potential? French oak? New oak? Neutral oak? Stainless steel? How long will it take until it is ready? A plan evolves, and the barrel is regularly sampled so that adjustments can be made along the way to help shape the final result. And when the wine matures to that desired result, it is ready for the bottle.
The description above conveys the sorts of considerations, efforts, and decisions it takes to ready a leader. But the leader's being ready is not yet the end of the effort. The next step, pairing, is just as critical. Pairing requires a deep understanding of the characteristics of both the wine and the meal; so too does leadership selection. Current practice involves a great deal of emphasis on studying the leader, and not enough attention is paid to diagnosing the situation. Just as gems are rated with precision on factors unseen by an unaided eye, such as cut, color, and clarity, leadership candidates are subjected to a barrage of assessments designed to quantify the differences between them in ways that support selection decisions. The operating assumption seems to be that the highest score will yield the best results. That doesn’t work for wine, and it doesn’t work for leaders. Oenophiles know that though a high score reflects something about the quality of a wine, it remains one person’s opinion. Further, there are many instances where an admittedly modest wine is perfect for the occasion.
Although a better metaphor can guide us in ways that improve leadership development and selection, it doesn’t guarantee there won’t be bad leaders. Some, in spite of great care taken, will turn out to be spoiled, just as the occasional bottle of wine is corked. However, the parallels between winemaking and leadership development are not difficult to see. Considering leadership this way leads to different ways of developing and managing leadership talent. For example,
• Trim very few individuals from those eligible for development; prune just enough to strengthen the focus on and the resolve of those who remain.
• Understand and engineer the terroir in which each individual’s career grows; events that test the leader produce great depth and character.
• Spending to create experiences for many is a wiser investment than dumping money into a retention package for one.
• Patience is incredibly important; tinkering during the process is critical for getting a great outcome.
• Companies must develop the ability to understand how to pair the result of intentional leadership development with the expert understanding of the context of the leadership challenge; sommeliers understand a wine must neither overpower nor be overpowered by the meal.
It has been said diamonds are forever, but we know leaders are not, no matter what size their retention bonus. That is just one final way to show how the diamond metaphor breaks down. Feel free to reminisce about a depleted favorite vintage, but do what it takes to be sure the next one will present its own version of greatness. Make the patient investments necessary to stock your leadership cellar.
