Leadership lessons from Formula One (F1) - The most prestigious motor racing competition in the world.

No team in recent Formula One (F1) racing history has had as much success as Mercedes - AMG Petronas. Close to half a billion unique viewers tune in to F1’s television coverage throughout the season, and the action on the ground can attract as many as 400,000 live spectators.

Mercedes - AMG Petronas has managed to dominate F1 over the past decade. It has put together the longest winning streak the sport has ever seen. It’s incredibly hard to win Formula One race even once. The sport is often decided by margins measured in thousandths of seconds.

Although that remarkable series of victories was a team effort, one person was at the helm of the organisation throughout – Toto Wolff. What lessons can organisations learn from Toto Wolff?

1.??????Set the highest standards for everyone.

Wolff is a self-admitted stickler for even the smallest details. When he assumed the principal role in 2013, the team believed it’s the engineering that makes them win. He told them No, it’s the attitude. It all starts with an attention to detail. You can’t have a crumpled Daily Mail newspaper on the reception desk with old paper coffee cups – that doesn’t say “F1”. He also believed, the team couldn’t win with dirty toilets, he hired Miguel Guerreiro, who travels with the team, and who occupies himself with the granular level details of the cleanliness of the toilets. This approach has trickled down to every aspect of the organisation, and has contributed to the emergence of an organisation that is obsessed with excellence.

2.??????Put people front and center.

Wolff is fond of saying “I don’t run racing cars, I run people that run racing cars”. He genuinely believes that each individual he works within the organisation has – hopes, dreams, fears and anxieties, and it is important for him to learn and understand what those are – to learn what drives a person. In a business that is dominated by engineers, Wolff doesn’t know as much about aerodynamics as the engineers do, but he enjoys spending time with them. It makes things easier to figure out the best course of action in tough situations. The team that works best together win races, not the best individual.

3.??????Analyse mistakes even when winning.

After a win most people go home and say “That was a good weekend”. They don’t go home and say, “Why did we win”. It’s only when they loose that most people start to dig deep. Wolff treats wins same as losses. Regardless of the outcome, win or lose, the team holds debrief meetings and always conducts them in the same manner, with a focus on what can be improved the next time.

4.??????Trust superstars but maintain authority.

Its very hard to manage global celebrities, with all the demands on their name that fame entails. The likes of Lewis Hamilton. For instance, in 2018 season, to commemorate the launch of his fashion collection, Hamilton walked the runway at a Tommy Hilfiger show in Shanghai, flew to New York and then to London for a friend’s wedding, and eventually joined the team in Singapore a day before the weekend’s practice session. Lots of people were in disbelief – His performance that weekend was from another world. He delivered one of the best qualifying laps even seen – No one even came close.

5.??????Foster an open, no-blame culture.

Wollf has been quoted on several occasions “When they make a mistake, I want our people to know they don’t need to lie in order to retain their jobs. We live by the mantra See it, Say it, Fix it”

6.??????Relentlessly battle complacency.

In one of his emails to the team ahead of the 2021 season, I quote “F1 is a sport of margins like no other, put the picture of your opponent right infront of you and look at him or her everyday, so you know whom to beat”. Never underestimate the power of collective group that focuses on joint mission and target. If you have won several times like Mercedes, you become the one being chased. But you want to keep the hunter mentality alive. Wolff has been masterful at not getting complacent himself, and not letting anyone around him get complacent either. ?

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