The 5 Laws of Leadership: Succession

What HBO's satirical black comedy-drama television series created by Jesse Armstrong, taught me about navigating politics, strategy, communication, crisis management and proper --succession--planning.

Using drama to illustrate the executive leadership skills that need to be developed as part of a plan for professional success in the real world.

The Lone Wolf Dies, But The Pack Survives: Collaboration is key to success. Isolation is dangerous. Building a fortress to protect yourself, cuts you off from information you need and alienates people who would be allies. When real danger arises, you are less likely to be able to see it coming. Patriarch Logan Roy's inflated ego and the selfish need for control help to manufacture his conflicts.

Unsurprisingly, his children Kendall, Siobhan, Roman and Connor exhibit the same destructive behaviors. Each episode demonstrates a see-saw of power, but it's clear that no family member can achieve success without the help of the others. We see in each character, pride and self-serving ambition that undercuts the success of Waystar Royco. Take this as a sign to foster a culture of team work rather than discord. [Season 1, Episode 1: Celebration]

Make Decisions Based on Logic, and Data --Not Emotion: The moment of victory is often the moment of greatest peril. In the heat of victory, arrogance and overconfidence can push you past the goal you had aimed for. By going too far you make more enemies than you defeat. Do not allow success to go to your head. There is no substitute for strategy and careful planning.

Set a goal, and when you reach it, stop. Logan and his progeny are set up to make impactful, business-altering decisions based on emotion, don't take this tactic into the real world. A culture of allowing personal motives and emotions to govern power, result in both fiscal and structural damage to an organization. What if they replaced that emotion, with logic and data? Guide the ship with rational, measured thinking instead. [Season 4, Episode 9: DC]

Shed Your Ego To Make Room for Growth: Self-confidence is an important factor in effective leadership. But there's a thin line between, confidence and condescension. The egoic leader seeks consensus, constant validation, approval and praise. They outweigh being “right” to create an image of invulnerability.

The best leaders keep themselves adaptable and flexible. Accepting the fact that nothing is certain, and no law is fixed. Never betting on stability, or lasting order to rest on their laurels. The best leaders know that everything changes. Logan Roy finds it nearly impossible to shake this chip from his shoulder. When the going gets tough, his obstinance makes it tougher.

Ego can only get you so far, until you are able to acknowledge other's strengths and empower them to fill the gaps you lack. An inflated sense of self-importance can be detrimental to leadership, resulting in arrogance, defensiveness, and a unsustainable work environment. Listening to and learning from critical feedback can be difficult, but it's important. Be aware of your energy and actions and how they impact others. Let go of control. [Season 3, Episode 2: Mass In Time of War]

Instilling Fear Doesn't Result In Motivation: Win through your actions, never through fear. Any momentary triumph you think you have gained through fear is really a Pyrrhic victory. Fear disempowers. The resentment and ill will you will stir up is stronger, and lasts longer than any momentary gain. It is much more powerful to get others to work with you through your actions, through earning their respect.

Demonstrate, do not explicate. If there's one thing Logan Roy is an expert at, it's instilling fear. Often, leaders who have reached a point of desperation will resort to leading with fear. Sure, his methods did earn him billions of dollars but it only engendered a company culture of secrecy and toxicity, Logan finds joy in pinpointing his kid's weaknesses and exploiting them for control. Leading with fear breeds anxiety, cynicism, distrust, and intimidation, all of which can be poisonous to any team or organization.

These consequences make transparency and honesty nearly impossible, killing necessary forms of communication. You see a continued struggle for power, as the siblings team up to overtake their father. In this case, fear did motivate--but not the way it was intended. Fear-based leadership isn’t true leadership; this is a style that occurs as dominating others, bossing people around and barking orders, seeing constituents as commodities to be used for their personal purposes. Real leaders empower the people around them. [Season 4, Episode 1: The Munsters]

Have a Plan to Hand Over the Reins: The foundation of strategic leadership, the most essential skill, is the ability to plan. According to HBR there are six skills that, when mastered and used in concert, allow leaders to think strategically and navigate the unknown effectively: the abilities to anticipate, challenge, interpret, decide, align, and learn.

An adaptive strategic leader—someone who is both resolute and flexible, persistent in the face of setbacks but also able to react strategically to environmental shifts—has learned to apply all six at once. If there's one major takeaway from the show, let it be this --start with a plan for the future.

Do you have the right networks to help you see opportunities before competitors do?

Are you comfortable challenging your own and others’ assumptions?

Can you get a diverse group to buy in to a common vision? Do you learn from mistakes?

Strategic leaders are constantly vigilant, honing their ability to anticipate by scanning the environment for signals of change. At the start, Logan assuming his mortal end launched his family into a campaign for power with no clear course of action, giving rise to mayhem within the organization. Logan never had a plan for who would take over, so that once those around him had a taste of power in the vacuum that existed without him, there was no turning back.

While it requires time, effort, and commitment, the benefits of strategic planning are clear. It creates a unified vision, addresses biases in decision-making, enables progress tracking, and sets the organization on the path to achieving its long-term objectives. With the right approach and commitment, strategic planning can transform an organization and propel it to new heights of success. Make a plan. [Season 4, Episode 10: This is Not For Tears]

Meet The Writer

Nira has more than two decades of leadership expertise in product, technology and operational strategy. Working closely with leaders and their teams, she plans, designs, launches and supports the delivery of high performing products. Motorsports fan, voracious reader, innately curious, regular mom to three super humans --she is passionate about helping technical teams deliver value and cultivating strong talent.