Today I met Michael Porter!

So it's Day 2 at Harvard and what a day.

Here I am on campus... ready for another day of mental stimulation and reflection...

During our first session with my board of advisors, two of my co-participants in the program shared their business challenge and as a board we advised them on possible paths of actions.  The central theme for all of our challenges is change management and our coach brought along some books and other resources on change to help us.  (I have John P. Kotter's book titled "The Heart of Change" as bedtime reading tonight.)

In class, our first case study was on Morgan Stanley - a US investment bank, where a manager was facing the difficult challenge of whether to promote an exceptionally high achiever who was constantly breaching the corporate values.

Our second case was on Sun Microsystems - a global software company facing challenges in meeting its service obligations due to lack of communication, cohesion and alignment between its global teams.  An interesting case for me since all of my teams work in different physical locations and the plan is to grow our hotel group to 50 properties in 4 continents between now and 2020.

The final case of the day was on the African country of Uganda and in particular the effects of its President of two decades - Yoweri Museveni and the unintended consequences of good intentions in relation to both his leadership and the international aid that this frontier country has received over that time.  The afternoon discussion splintered off on the topic of Microfinance in Uganda and the challenges and benefits Microfinance Institutions (MFI's) have brought to the Ugandan people.

During lunch a photo was taken of our cohort on the steps of one of the many grand buildings on campus.  See below.

I'm in the back-row fourth from the left, next to fellow Brisbane-ite Heather Watson.  Fellow QUT alumnus Marie-Claire Grady is in the front row, second from the right.

After the photo I got talking to the photographer.  During the conversation he pointed out certain landmarks on campus and mentioned that Michael Porter's office was nearby.  As an avid fan of Porter's work on competitive strategy, I jumped at the chance to visit his office and with Marie-Claire close by, the two of us marched up to his office door and I rang the bell.

The door to Michael Porter's Office - labelled the Institute of  Strategy and Competitiveness

To our delight Michael happened to walk out to reception while we were there.  We shook his hand and introduced ourselves and I am trying to set up a quick meeting later in the week through his PA to have our photo taken with him.  What an honour! This guy is a legend.  Many of you will know his Porter's 5 Forces Model and his generic strategy theory on differentiation and cost leadership etc. I believe he's coming to the Gold Coast later this year to speak at a conference for those of you who can't make it to Harvard but would also like to meet him.

My key notes from today's lectures were:

• What do I want leadership in my organisation to stand for?  My choices as a leader will demonstrate that stronger than any mission statement etc.
• When assessing team members' performance, it's important to measure both what they've done and how they've done it. (for cultural alignment)
• Consider the iceberg concept of leadership where just 10% is above the surface and explicitly visible to others through leadership behaviours.  The rest is below the surface and unseen - that's character.
• When rewarding team members, pay them for performance, promote them for behaviour. e.g. in my opinion, a high achiever who contravenes corporate values should not be promoted, but their results should still be acknowledged (and their behaviour actioned).
• One thing that creates a visceral response in followers is surprise.  They hate to be surprised. This emphasises the importance of giving regular, constructive feedback and not waiting until a critical event to deliver an ultimatum.
• Have the fierce conversations with your team members. Don't wait/hope/pray for problems to fix themselves.
• Consider the impact of the LADDER OF INFERENCE and how it can skew our decision making.  The ladder of inference describes how we have beliefs, assumptions and values.  From those beliefs, we select data. We interpret that data and we draw conclusions.
• Many of us are conflict averse, but organisational conflict is healthy and should be encouraged around tasks (what should be done) and process (how we do them).  This produces more effective outcomes.  Where conflict should be minimised is around interpersonal issues.
• THE SPOTLIGHT EFFECT - describes the tendency to assume that our behaviours are more salient to others than they really are.
• When managing distributed teams (globally or domestically) consider how you as the leader can remain visible while not visible. e.g. through instant messaging, weekly communication meetings, video calls, site visits, etc.
• The leader's attitude towards technology will shape the team's attitude towards technology.
• The role of a global leader is to create moments.
• The evolution of team dynamics never stops.  It is self reinforcing.
• It is important to ask, how far can one leader's vision take an organisation?  Know when to step aside.
• Our own life experiences become a crucible for our development as leaders.
• For most leaders, our biggest teacher is ourselves.

I also managed to take a few photos of my room and around campus today to share with you.  So here they are:

My private dorm - simple but adequate.  I also have my own private bathroom (with a shower so complex that I almost need a degree from Harvard to operate it) Spicers crew you'll be quite impressed that they even offer a turn-down service at Harvard!! I was very surprised. 

Each room has it's own computer, phone, wireless internet etc

We have some meals and meetings in this building

We have lectures in this building

With Marie-Claire Grady - fellow QUT Alumnus

So it's been another significant day.  Counting my blessings once again as I prepare for tomorrow.