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BY KEN BLANCHARD

Being an effective leader has become an increasingly difficult job.

In this rapidly changing global work environment, leaders

are faced with unprecedented challenges.

They are asked to protect profits, reduce expenses, motivate employees, and maintain corporate culture—all without sacrificing ethical and environmental commitments. Leaders in domestic companies have the advantage of leading employees with similar cultural backgrounds, beliefs, and work practices. Imagine how the challenges multiply when leading a multinational organization that represents several cultures, languages, political beliefs, social norms, and value systems. Even leaders in organizations that don’t have physical operations in other countries are increasingly dealing with suppliers or customers from around the world.

Given the new demands of globalization, how can you, as a leader, bring value to all stakeholders: employees, customers, shareholders, and the larger community? While there are no simple answers, the task will be easier when you employ two proven leadership practices that transcend borders, language, ethnicity, religious beliefs, political views, and cultural backgrounds.

THE FIRST PRACTICE: Servant Leadership The first practice for leading at a higher level in a worldwide market is servant leadership, where leaders focus on the well-being of others. Servant leaders achieve results by teaching, coaching, and training people to attain their goals and the collective vision. By emphasizing the greater good, servant leaders help diverse groups embrace what could be conceived as differences.

Leading and serving at the same time. When I mention servant leadership, people immediately think you can’t lead and serve at the same time. But you can, once you understand that leadership has two parts: vision and implementation. In the visionary role, leaders define the direction and communicate what the organization stands for and wants to accomplish. The visionary role is the leadershipaspect of servant leadership. Once people are clear on the vision and direction of the organization, the leader can focus on implementation: the process of making the vision a reality. This is where the servant aspect of servant leadership comes into play, when leaders listen, praise, support, and occasionally redirect others as they work to achieve agreed-upon goals.

Leading at a HIGHER LEVEL in a WORLDWIDE MARKET

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In a groundbreaking study on The Leadership-Profit Chain, Scott Blanchard, Dobie Houson, and Drea Zigarmi found that while visionary or strategic leadership is a critical building block for establishing the vision and culture, it has only an indirect impact on organizational vitality. The study revealed that the real driver of organizational vitality was in the implementation phase, or what they call operational leadership. In other words, the vitality in an organization depends more on what leaders do during day-to-day operations than what they do in the boardroom.

Turning the hierarchy upside down. How do leaders achieve this vitality in the real world? During implementation, effective servant leaders turn the traditional hierarchy upside down by asking frontline employees what they can do to help them be successful, rather than expecting frontline employees to ask what they can do for senior leaders. Servant leaders exist to serve—not to be served.

In a global context, this means that the leader must listen to what employees around the world have to offer. While it’s important for leaders to set the initial vision, they must respect differences and, wherever possible, work them into the organizational culture in a way that satisfies employees, customers, and the organization.

By listening to others, servant leaders reap double rewards. First, their people will be more invested in the ideas that they helped to shape. Second, their diverse insights and perspectives will actually help to make the organization and its strategies stronger.

THE SECOND PRACTICE: Building Trust The second practice for leading in a global marketplace is building trust. A culture of trust allows people to work together effectively and enables relationships to flourish. Without trust, people become suspicious of one another, projects are fraught with setbacks, and often even the best plans fail.

Sadly, trust is in short supply in many organizations today. Research by Maritz and others found that “only 10% of employees trust management to make the right decisions in times of uncertainty” and only 12% believe their employer “genuinely listens to and cares about its employees” (Maritz Research Hospitality Group 2011 Employee Engagement Poll). Respondents cited “poor communication, lack of perceived caring, inconsistent behavior, and perceptions of favoritism” as the largest contributors to lack of trust in senior leaders.

One of the primary reasons for this epidemic lack of trust is misunderstanding. In our book, Trust Works! Four Keys to Building Lasting Relationships, Cynthia Olmstead, Martha Lawrence, and I found that people see trust through their own filters. In other words, you can be completely unaware that your behavior is eroding the trust of those around you. This is particularly true when people from different cultures try to work together. There’s often a gap between what two people perceive as acceptable behavior.

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THE ABCD TRUST MODEL™ To bridge this gap, we created a common language for trust with the ABCD Trust Model™, which highlights the four qualities of trustworthy leaders.

First, trustworthy leaders are ABLE. They know how to get things done. They can solve problems and produce results. They have the skills to make things happen. They know the organization and understand the special circumstances within geographical locations or cultures. They use their skills to equip people with the resources and information they need to accomplish their goals.

Second, trustworthy leaders are BELIEVABLE. They act with integrity and honesty when dealing with people and situations. They create and follow fair processes and treat people equitably. This doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone is treated the same way in all circumstances, but it does mean that people are treated appropriately and justly. These leaders act in a consistent, values-driven manner and demonstrate their believability by being honest with others in good times and bad.

Third, trustworthy leaders are CONNECTED. They demonstrate care and concern for others by using good listening and communication skills. They openly share information about the organization and about themselves to create a sense of connection. These leaders share plans about the future, especially during times of change. They don’t live behind closed doors or delegate the important task of communicating corporate information to others. They make themselves available to people and they answer the tough questions with clear, detailed answers. When information is shared, they acknowledge that people may have concerns about it and make time to understand any anxieties others might have. They create opportunities for dialogue and really listen to what they are hearing. If circumstances change as a result of the open dialogue, they communicate those changes as soon as possible.

Finally, trustworthy leaders are DEPENDABLE. They are accountable for their actions and responsive to the needs of others. When they promise something, they follow through on what they say they will do. This requires leaders to be organized, so employees can see that their actions are consistent with their words. Even dependable leaders don’t have every answer at their fingertips, but when they say they will get back to someone after researching an issue, they make sure they do so in a timely manner. When leaders keep their word on even small issues, they demonstrate that they can be relied upon when it comes to bigger ones.

How would you rate yourself in each of these four areas? (For an online self-assessment, visit www.trustworksbook.com) If you are lacking in any area, deal with the issues immediately by practicing trust-building behaviors. It’s important for people to see trust in action instead of just hearing about it.

CONCLUSION Not surprisingly, building trust improves an organization’s financial health. When people

“When people believe they are working for trustworthy leaders, they are

willing to invest their time and talents in making a difference in

an organization.”

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believe they are working for trustworthy leaders, they are willing to invest their time and talents in making a difference in an organization. People who feel more connected will invest more of themselves in their work. High trust levels lead to a greater sense of responsibility, deeper interpersonal commitments, and more collective action toward achieving common goals. Although building trust requires patience and time, leaders who do so will be rewarded by employees who stretch, push their limits, and volunteer to go above and beyond.

The barriers to success in a worldwide market can be daunting. Yet by employing these two powerful practices—servant leadership and building trust—leaders can overcome the challenges. MW

Ken Blanchard is the bestselling coauthor of The One Minute Manager® and 50 other books on leadership.

You can follow Ken Blanchard on Twitter @KenBlanchard or @LeaderChat and also via the HowWeLead and

LeaderChat blogs.

Lead more effectively by creating rapport, synergy, and two-way trust. Attend AMA’s seminar Achieving

Leadership Success Through People (www.amanet.org/2128). Focusing skill-by-skill on P.E.O.P.L.E.

(Professionalism, Empathy, Optimism, Partnering, Loyalty and Empowering), this seminar can help anyone in a

position of leadership to better demonstrate caring as well as courage and maximize staff productivity.

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