U.S. Election Reflections: Paying Tribute to My Mentors

I recently attended the memorial service for one of my mentors, Bonner Ritchie (see one of his discussions ). Another of my mentors, Paul Thompson, spoke. As I pondered the life lessons they taught me (including—but not limited to—thinking creatively, questioning persistently, acting graciously, serving unselfishly, learning continually, adding value relentlessly, and “don’t take yourself too seriously, but be serious about your work”), I realized that I pay tribute to them by demonstrating a commitment to learning (generating and generalizing ideas with impact).

Thanks to their (and others’) influence, I have spent my career observing and studying organizations to help them create value for all their (human) stakeholders . One of the most visible settings for organization insights the last few months has been the U.S. election.

To pay tribute to my mentors, and for my personal learning, I offer eight election reflections that have implications for organizations. In so doing, I am not making comments on who won or why or how (political pundits are plentiful enough); rather, I am going to be an organization and leadership commentator remarking on learnable lessons from the process.

1.???? Winning an election is the beginning of impact. Elections produce winners and losers. As Winston Churchill said, “This is not the end. . . . [It is] the end of the beginning.” Winning an election does not guarantee influence; being able to govern after being elected determines the potential for impact.

Organization implication: Leaders moving into a new position only begins the challenge of leading effectively.

2.??? Polarities persist and need to be navigated. In elections, moderate positions are often pushed to extremes. Candidates surround themselves with those who share their views, magnifying polarities and encouraging ever more radical stances. Turning polarities into policy comes from navigating paradoxes . In the current political environment, leaders need to replace toxic divisiveness with respectful debate. We are increasingly called to disagree better , disagree and commit (Amazon principle ), and become peacemakers .

Organization implication: Leaders need to manage differences (diversity) to explore options and also build consensus (unity) to increase commitment and deliver results. Learning to navigate paradoxes becomes a key organizational principle and leadership skill.

3.??? Avoid least worst by envisioning a future. Candidates often focus on the flaws of the other candidate more than their positive position and priorities. A few years ago, I worked with a consumer company where the executives essentially said (in private), “If you don’t like our service, try our competitors; we are the least worst in our industry.” For candidates and organizations, being the least worst does not build confidence in the future. To illustrate this, I have used the metaphor, “Some prophets tell people they are going to hell if they don’t repent; others show people what heaven looks like and how to get there.” In this election, having a positive view of the future meant more than denigrating the other candidate (which both did!).?

Organization implication: Leaders can look back to discover what did not work and improve on it. But the lasting impact of leadership is crafting an inspiring vision of the future and building a pathway to that vision.

4.?? Target, focus, and prioritize. In this election, every U.S. citizen gets one vote, but because of the electoral college framework, votes in some states matter more than others. Candidates targeted swing states and subgroups to focus their attention as reflected in their media advertising and personal time. Exit polls showed results by demographic categories to determine if the prioritization worked.

Organization implication: While all employees, customers, and investors deserve “equal” treatment (respect, kindness, and compassion), some receive more attention because of the value they create. Everyone is equal, but equity focuses on some more than others. Prioritization occurs not only for the human stakeholders but also for where to invest in human capability initiatives to deliver the most value. Providing guidance on key priorities helps leaders differentiate where to spend their time and resources.

5.??? Policies count—so does personality. Candidate scrutiny includes examination of both personal traits and policy opinions. Ideally, a voter appreciates both the personal attributes and policy positions of a candidate. If not, making trade-offs determines one’s vote. Some individuals vote on personality—others on policy.

Organization implication: We have often used the effective leadership equation: attributes results. Ideally a leader both possesses the attributes (competencies) required for success and delivers the desired results. We use a “” (multiplier) in this equation because if a leader is weak on either, the overall score is low. We sometimes find HR professionals leaning to the attribute dimension and senior business leaders leaning to the results dimension. Doing both by connecting the two becomes the bellwether of personal leader effectiveness and organization leadership success.

6.?? Support can be determined by a single issue or general patterns. As exit polls showed, some voters were influenced by a single issue (inflation, economy, immigration, democracy, or abortion), and others voted based on an amalgamation of candidate personality and policies. Citizen criteria for voting become very personalized.

Organization implication: Leaders succeed by having strengths that stand out to others. But having a single strength is not enough. Leaders need to have (or surround themselves with others who have) strengths in many areas and the ability to mitigate weaknesses.

7.??? Voting on emotion as well as cognition. Often a citizen’s simple act of checking a box to select a preferred candidate is less intellectually based and more emotionally based. A voter “feels” more comfortable, confident, or aligned with a candidate’s personality or their policies that may not stand up to intellectual scrutiny (see #5 above) . Candidates work to create an emotional connection with voters through their words and actions.??

Organization implication: Leadership often boils down to an emotional connection about how someone feels after an interaction with the leader . In addition, visions of the future need to inspire and provide hope for what can be.

8.?? Move on. Elections are dramatic events, but once decided, we need to move on. Candidates who win move onto governance; those who lose reflect back to learn and then move on to the next life journey. Lingering recriminations distract from the future. Both winners and losers set a tone for the future by how they act in the present. By moving on, the process of a fair election builds a solid foundation and points to a sustainable future for a nation.

Organization implication: Leadership transitions are critical both for the successor and for the leader who moves on to engage in a new agenda. Transitions allow for change and starting anew.

Your add?

To my mentors (Bonner, Paul, CK, Thom):

Thanks for teaching and modeling a commitment to learning. My reflections on the recent election help me better understand how to create organizations and develop leaders that deliver value.

..………

Dave Ulrich?is the Rensis Likert Professor at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan, and a partner at The RBL Group , a consulting firm focused on helping organizations and leaders deliver value.