Social Distance Can Really Disrupt Your Work
One of the foundations of Approachable Leadership is the idea of “power distance” (click here to read how power distance destroyed Nokia). Power distance describes how different people react to people in power. Some are intimidated and defer to people in power, while others don’t seem too concerned.
We believe that shrinking this gap is essential to maintaining organizations that thrive, innovate, and develop employees.
Harvard professor, Tsedal Neeley, studies a very similar phenomenon called social distance. In a great HBR article she describes the problem of social distance in the workplace, Neeley explains why social distance, or “the degree of emotional connection among team members,” can create huge disruptions to the flow of healthy work environments. Neeley recommends ways to shrink social distance between different cultures (Hofstede’s power distance research focused on the same problem) in global companies. I believe her recommendations can be applied to any company, big or small, remote or not.
Neeley lays out 5 sources of social disruption with the acronym SPLIT:
- Structure
- Process
- Language
- Identity
- Technology
Structure and the Perception of Power
Neeley says, “to correct perceived power imbalances between different groups, a leader needs to get three key messages across:”
- Who we are. Despite differences in individual members of the team, it’s important that they all understand that the team is one entity. “The leader should encourage sensitivity to differences but look for ways to bridge them and build unity.”
- What we do. As all the individual members make up one whole, they all share one purpose. Leaders must remind the team of this and “direct their energy toward business-unit or corporate goals.”
- I am there for you. People need to feel that they have a connection with their leader, that they can rely on him or her.
Process and the Importance of Empathy
“It almost goes without saying that empathy helps reduce social distance. If colleagues can talk informally around a watercooler—whether about work or about personal matters—they are more likely to develop an empathy that helps them interact productively in more-formal contexts.”
The job of a leader here is to create “deliberate moments” that include:
Feedback on routine interactions. People often send the wrong signals without even realizing they’re doing it. These issues need to be brought to light in order to develop “reflected knowledge,” or “awareness of how others see us.” The more you are able to create a space where employees feel comfortable giving feedback to you or each other, the more this “reflected knowledge” will develop on its own in team members.
Unstructured time. Create and allow time for personal (non-work) interactions and communication. “Unstructured communication like this is positive, because it allows for the organic unfolding of processes that must occur in all business dealings—sharing knowledge, coordinating and monitoring interactions, and building relationships.”
Time to disagree. “Leaders should encourage disagreement both about the team’s tasks and about the process by which the tasks get done.” Neeley suggests framing these conversations as brainstorming sessions or meetings specifically to evaluate agenda items in order to “take the heat out of the debate.”
We here at Approachable Leadership are big believers in the importance of empathy for healthy relationships in life and at work. (Click here to learn more about how to be more empathetic using our Empathy Tool from our upcoming Approachability Playbook.)
Language and the Fluency Gap
“Good communication among coworkers drive effective knowledge sharing, decision making, coordination, and, ultimately, performance results.”
There are many causes for communication gaps among coworkers, but no matter the cause, the effects are the same. No “knowledge sharing” leads to poor “decision making,” lack of “coordination,” and reduced “performance results.” Neeley recommends mitigating these effects by focusing on the three rules when communicating as a group.
- Dial down dominance. Don’t let the strong people, or the ones with power complexes monopolize the meeting.
- Dial up engagement. Make a point to actively seek out contribution from all members of the team.
- Balance participation for inclusion. “Monitor participants and strive to balance their speaking and listening.”
Identity and the Mismatch of Perceptions
“Teams work most smoothly when members ‘get’ where their colleagues are coming from. However, deciphering someone’s identity and finding ways to relate is far from simple.”
How do you do it? You ask questions. And you encourage team members to ask questions.
“In this model, everyone is a teacher and a learner, which enables people to step out of their traditional roles. Team members take on more responsibility for the development of the team as a whole. Leaders learn to see themselves as unfinished and are thus more likely to adjust their style to reflect the team’s needs. They instruct but they also facilitate, helping team members to parse their observations and understand one another’s true identities.”
Check out our Approachability Window tool for more guidance on breaking down barriers and increasing communication and understanding.
Technology and the Connection Challenge
As we all know, “technologies can both reduce and increase social distance.” Emails can get misinterpreted. Video conferences, on the other hand, can allow people to see body language cues and better understand the emotions and feelings behind the words.
She suggests three questions you should always ask yourself when determining which kind of technology to use.
- Should communication be instant?
- Do I need to reinforce the message?
- Am I leading by example?
The most important here is number three.
“A leader who wants to encourage people to videoconference should communicate this way herself. If she wants employees to pick up the phone and speak to one another, she had better be a frequent user of the phone. And if she wants team members to respond quickly to e-mails, she needs to set the example.”
And this applies to more than just how you communicate through technology. Are you prompt at meetings? Do you follow through on your commitments? Do you invite feedback?
“To manage social distance effectively and maximize the talents and engagement of team members, leaders must stay attentive to all five of the SPLIT dimensions. Decisions about structure create opportunities for good process, which can mitigate difficulties caused by language differences and identity issues. If leaders act on all these fronts, while marshaling technology to improve communication among geographically dispersed colleagues, social distance is sure to shrink, not expand”
I really enjoyed this article. After all, it is a terrific run-down of many of the key things we teach in Approachable Leadership. However, it left me a little overwhelmed.Each of the SPLIT dimensions has several points to consider. This is a whole lot for a leader to think about. There is no doubt that doing any of these things will improve your leadership. But trying to remember it all might give you a headache 🙂
That’s why I suggest if you want to shrink social distance you start with one thing: Be more approachable. Do that and you will be well on your way to improving in all five of the SPLIT dimensions. And you’ll save some money on aspirin!
What do you think about the SPLIT dimensions? In your experience, is social distance a real problem in the workplace? What things do you do to shrink social distance? Let us know in the comments.
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By now you’ve probably heard about the Panama Papers – the 11.6 million files leaked from the database of the world’s fourth largest offshore law firm in, you guessed it, Panama. The documents name a number of notable international politicians, business leaders and celebrities who are said to be using offshore bank accounts to hide their money or avoid paying taxes. Click here to brush up on details of the scandal.
Leadership Lessons from the Panama Papers Scandal
One important leadership aspect of this story was first called out by Geoff Colvin in his Fortune article. He states that discoveries like the Panama Papers – where we find that our elected leaders aren’t what we thought they were – are becoming less and less of a “scandal.” Sadly, we are beginning to expect this kind of reality from our leadership. This begs the question: “Are today’s leaders more corrupt, venal, or dishonest than yesterday’s?”
“Human nature being what it is, it’s hard to believe that they are,” Colvin writes.
But they appear to be. And that’s all that matters.
The reason leaders appear more dishonest is simple. Technology. It’s easier to get caught. Papers can be transmitted electronically. Financial records can be reviewed by computer programs. If it had been left up to a team of real live people to examine the 11.6 million files that were leaked, we still wouldn’t know about the Panama Papers or the leaders who engaged in financial corruption for who knows how long. It would have taken years to analyze all that data. Instead, with the help of data analytics software, it took one year.
Technology isn’t going anywhere. People are going to continue to trust leadership less and less. So what can we – leaders who are good people, who want to be trusted, who want to be great – do to combat this and get our people trusting us again? Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz recommends being more transparent.
“The currency of leadership is transparency,” he said.
3 Tips to Increase Your Transparency
I agree. Transparency increases trust, and trust is so important to good leadership. If people don’t trust you, they won’t follow you. And the only way people will trust you is if you show them that they can. Schultz recommends to be more transparent. Here are 3 tips on increasing your transparency:
- Don’t be afraid to “get naked” with your employees: No, I am not recommending that you take off your clothes at work. But you should be able to bare your authentic self with your employees. Don’t feel like you always have to have the answers. Be a normal human being, with normal human flaws. Be your authentic self with others. The more you are able to let down your guard with coworkers, the more likely they will be to trust you and come to you with problems.
- Look for signals of power distance: How do you know if someone has trouble trusting you? Very few people will come out and say it, but if you watch and listen carefully they’ll tell you. Look for physical behavior that suggests avoidance. Listen for things like mitigated speech or “beating around the bush.” These are signals of mistrust and lack of connection.
- Shrink any gaps you notice: If you notice behavior like this gently remind the person that it is OK to tell you like it is. That you want their candid feedback. Tell them a story about a time another person opened up to you and how it helped you. Open up yourself and encourage them to open up with you.
Leaders today face a crisis in confidence and trust. Situations like the Panama Papers don’t help. But just like people tend to hate Congress but like their Congressperson, you have a lot of control over how your coworkers feel about you as a leader. Follow these steps and you’ll be taking big steps toward building trusting relationships.
This weekend I subjected my wife and daughter to Batman v Superman. Critics are panning the movie, calling it dark, humorless, and too long. All true. I can pick out many things I would change. Instead let me tell you what I appreciated about it.
This is a big movie that tries to do a lot. Its overarching theme is how powerful people struggle with their power. It focuses on the power triangle of Batman, Superman and Lex Luthor (brilliantly played by Jesse Eisenberg – best villain since Heath Ledger’s Joker, IMHO).
I won’t spoil anything, but let’s just say everybody in the movie struggles mightily with their power (or perceived lack of it). Batman and Superman don’t act that heroic. Lex acts like the good guy (for a while). In the end everyone figures out which side they’re on. But the struggle to do what’s right, to use that power for good, really resonated.
Leadership is a lot like that struggle. You will face choices about how to use your power. Then you’ll have to figure out which side you are on. Sometimes you will be tempted to take the easy way out. You will take the low road, using the power of your position (“If you don’t like it I hear McDonalds is hiring”) instead of relying on the power of your relationship. Each time you choose that path you build momentum in the wrong direction – but choosing the positive path will often seem like a waste of time. Sometimes it will look like the worst move.
Alan Mulally and Positive Leadership
This all reminded me of a terrific article I read recently about Alan Mulally, former President and CEO of Ford. Mulally practiced something he called Positive Leadership (I’d call it Approachable Leadership). From the article:
On his first day as Ford’s CEO in 2006, Mulally asked to tour Ford’s famous Rouge plant where Henry Ford created the Model T. Mulally was informed by one of his top executives, “Our leaders don’t talk directly to factory employees.” Ignoring that advice, he went to the plant immediately to talk to front-line workers.
One of the first things Mulally did when he took over was redesign company meetings. He turned the meetings from negative (one observer called them “arenas for mortal combat”) to constructive. Mulally instituted a “traffic light” system where people would give a signal for their key initiatives. The Fortune article continues:
After four meetings in which all programs were labelled green, Mulally confronted his team, “We are going to lose $18 billion this year, so is there anything that’s not going well?” His question was met with stony silence.
The following week, Ford’s North American President, Mark Fields, showed a red indicator that a new vehicle launch would be delayed. Other executives assumed Fields would be fired over the bad news. Instead, Mulally began clapping and said, “Mark, that is great visibility.” He asked the group, “What can we do to help Mark out?” As he frequently told his leaders, “You have a problem; you are not the problem.”
That’s positive (and approachable) leadership. Positive Leadership is based on the idea of positive psychology, pioneered by psychologist Martin Seligman. Seligman says there are three aims of positive psychology:
- Building human strength
- Making the lives of people fulfilling
- Nurturing the talent that resides in all of us
Or as Mulally described it:
“Positive leadership – conveying the idea that there is always a way forward – is so important, because that is what you are here for – to figure out how to move the organization forward. Critical to doing that is reinforcing the idea that everyone is included. Everyone is part of the team and everyone’s contribution is respected, so everyone should participate.”
Mulally entered into an environment where Negative Leadership reigned supreme. Nobody thought his attempts to change the culture would succeed. I’m sure many scoffed behind closed doors when the traffic light idea was proposed. It took weeks for these high-powered execs to even dare present a red-light to the CEO, and only one had the guts to do it after the whole leadership team had been called out.
It can be hard to do the right thing as a leader. Often the right thing isn’t obvious. Sometimes it looks like the wrong thing. You have to make decisions based on core principles, like those of positive psychology. Build others, make their lives fulfilling, nurture their talent. That is a great place to start.
Eventually the dust will settle. I can’t guarantee that Wonder Woman will be there to help save the day, but the chances are good that you’ll get a sequel.
Questions: Have you ever struggled with your power as a leader? Have you ever taken the “low road” relying on your position more than your relationship? And most important: Are you more of a Superman or a Batman fan?
