Five Things a Leader Cannot Delegate to Someone Else
In Bowen Family Theory, differentiation is all about defining yourself relative to others around you. When a person differentiates themselves within a family system, the anxiety and conflict in that system tend to dissipate over time. The role of defining oneself is central to creating boundaries that inform others where your persona and work begin and end – the areas that you control and those you do not.
I will submit that one of the best things a new leader can do as they commence their work is to define themselves relative to the other roles and problems the team or organization is facing. In simple terms, you can think of this differentiation as the new leader defining their swim lane and then staying within it.
A business can be viewed as a complex family structure, comprising many members. While “family” might be too strong a term, Bowen’s concept of differentiation and Cloud’s concepts around boundaries are helpful for a new CEO or leader as they embark on their journey within an organization.
In many privately held businesses, most processes and decisions are routed through the leader. While this might seem like a good idea to the leader, the reality is that when all processes and most decisions route through the leader of the organization, you’ll find a leader who lacks boundaries. That lack of boundaries creates unhealthy fusion in work relationships, where employees don’t know where the leader’s role ends and their role (and value) begins.
This lack of clarity creates conflict within the organization. It also limits the organization’s ability to grow. For example, the organization hires a competent Sales Manager, yet the manager must “check in” with the owner to obtain “sign off” on simple decisions, such as which salespeople attend which show or what percentage of discount is to be applied to an individual sale.
You can see how demoralizing and demeaning it would be for the Sales Manager. I can easily understand why the manager might become combative and challenging to work with when they disagree with one or more decisions. The manager is trying to determine where the leader’s role ends and the manager’s role begins. Tension and conflict may escalate because the leader lacks clear boundaries.
So, if you’re coming into a new setting as the CEO, President, Pastor, or leader—especially one in which there might be high conflict—then one of the best things you can do is to define yourself and your role. Overtly articulate the areas you will control and the areas you plan to have others control. Such articulation will help calm the waters and reset the organization, clarifying what to expect from your position.
Global Leadership Definitions
In any business or ministry leadership position, I believe five things cannot come off the leader’s plate. I’ll describe these five elements from the perspective of a CEO in a for-profit business, but all of these elements can be applied well to ministry roles.
Public Ambassador for the organization: This role doesn’t mean that all exterior relationships route through the CEO, but it does mean that the CEO is the ultimate representative of the business.
Culture: Culture is a combination of core values and core processes. How we treat each other as we perform our core duties results in the organization’s culture. Regardless of what the CEO says, does, and how they treat other people, these actions will set the culture for the organization. The CEO must embody the stated core values; otherwise, they will become worthless. Just read Snakes in Suits if you’d like a further treatment of this topic.
Vision: The leader, in conjunction with senior management and the Board of Directors, sets the vision for the organization. Answering the question “Where are we going and why?” gives purpose and direction to the organization.
Risk mitigation: No one can mitigate risk like the CEO because no one has the power to make broad decisions like the CEO. I recall that when Paul O’Neill became CEO of Alcoa, he told the unions that he would negotiate anything they wanted, except for safety. How could the union disagree? As a result, Paul was able to drive better safety and higher profits. Only a CEO can make this kind of a decision and set this type of broad, company-wide boundary.
Holding Senior Management Accountable: Again, only the CEO can hold the next layer of managers in the organization accountable to achieve their goals and directives.
Given this list, I would advise new leaders to define what they do in these broad terms: They mitigate risk, lead the effort in developing a vision, live out the culture, and hold others accountable to live out the same culture, among other responsibilities. Underneath all of this is the leader’s ability to connect authentically, to see things as they are (not as they wish they were), to be growing professionally, and to face the negative by tackling conflict and problems as soon as they arise. If you’re coming into a new position of leadership – whether it is a team, project, department, division, or even a company – you’re welcome to use these ideas to help you get established in your new role. I would also recommend two books by Henry Cloud: Integrity and Boundaries for Leaders. You’ll be glad you read them.