Goffee, Rob, and Jones, Gareth.

, "Managing authenticity: the paradox of great

leadership", Harvard Business Review, December 2005, pp 87-94
 -"-=\<1:
l
I

MANAGING
. '.: lj:ri:-l;
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(lF
PARADtlx
THE
OREAT
LEADERSHIP

Try to leadlike someone else-say,/ack welch,RichardBranson, or MichaelDell_andyou

will fail' Employeeswill not follow a cEo who investslittle of himself
behaviors. in his leadership
Peoplewantto be led by someone,,real."This is partly ra"atronto the turbu_
lent timeswe live in' It is alsoa response to the public'swidespread " disenchantment
politiciansandbusinesspeople. with
we alr suspectthat we,reueingauped.
our growingdissatisfaction with sleek,ersatz,airbrushedr""'o..rr.,ipis what
thenticitysucha desirablequalityin today'scorporations-a makesau-
qualitythat,unfortunately,
is in shortsupply'Leadersandfollowersboth associate
authenticitywith sincerity,hon-
esty'and integrity.It's the rearthing-the attribute
that uniqueiy ienr,., great leaders.

DECEMBER2OO5
6/
 P a r a d o xo f C r e a t L e a d e r s n l p
M a n a g i n g A u t h e n t l c r t y :T h e
will not pro-
of an authentic self is neces- Bill is still at the utility company'but he
But while the expression gressfurther there' Most of I9l haveprobably
met more
of authenticity is
sary foi great leadership,the concept Bill in your organizations. His
themselves' it]un on. failedleaderlike
oi,!.t *i""derstood, not leastby leaders ,-,*y ittr**,es perfectly how difficult it is for leaders to
an innate qual-
ifl.V oft"" assumethat authenticity is expressing their personalities and
not' In fact' au- find a balancebetween
i V]rf-t", a personis either authenticor *"""gi.g those of the peoplethey aspireto lead or at
attribute to you'
itlenticity ii a quality that others must teasti"nRience. Yetthe atility to strikethat balance-and
NoleadercanlookintoamirrorandSay,..Iamauthentic.''
her own' Authen- ,opt"t.tu"one'sauthenticityintheprocess-isprecisely
n p.rron cannotbe authenticon his or what distinguishesgreat leadersfrom other
executives'
peopleseein you
il.itv it largely definedby what other itre ctrattengeof gteat leadership is exactly that of man-
by you' lf
and,assuch,canto u g,."t extentbe controlled ugingon.', iuthenticity, paradoxical though it undoubt-
quality' there would
authenticity were puiely an innate edly sounds.
therefore'little
U. ilof. you could do to manageit and' iet usbe absolutelyclear:Authenticityis
not the prod-
."tfO do to make yourselfmore effectiveasa leader' It accurately reflects aspectsor
V""
Indeed,managers who exercise no controloverthe ex- uct of pure manipulation'
trouble very theleader'sinnerself,soitcan,tbeanact.Butgreatlead-
pressionof their authenticselvesget into personalitytraits they shouldre-
quicklywhen they moveinto.leadership roles'Consider ersseemto know which ca-
They are like chameleons'
in Pittsburgh' veal to whom and when'
iiil, u -unuger in a large utility company pable of adaptingto the demands of the situations they
Billstartedoutasatraineeelectrician,butseniormanage- do not losetheir
talent' The HR iaceandthe'peoplethey lead,yet they
ment at the companyswiftly spottedhis

.,I AMAUTHENTIC.''

leadersremain fo-
identitiesin the process'Authentic
universigr' from which
department persuadedBill to go to cusedon where they are goingbut never
lose sight of
he was
tre'graduated with a good degree'.Afterward' wherethey camefrom' Highly attuned
to their environ-
job' His work at the utility
,ruJ-fy welcomed back to his -.t tt, tttay rely on an intuition born of formative' some-
and he be-
."-p*V often involved managing projects' to understand the expectations
His techni- times harsh experiences
."*i at assemblingand leadinCJlu*t of the people they seekto influence'They
"a.p, and concerns
. u r u u i r i . i . ' a n d h i s h o n e s t y w e r e h i s b i g g e s t l e a d e r s h i p i*in ,t.i, distinctiveness asindividuals'yet they know
attributes.
to the head how to win acceptance in strongcorporateand socialcul-
Things started to unravel when Bill moved asa basis
of the most senior t-uresanAnow to useelementsof thosecultures
office and became an adviser to some for radicalchange.
to Bill that this
executives in the company' HR suggested In the followingpages'we'llexplorethe
qualitiesof au-
for a.major leader-
new joU would be good preparation five years of research
But the head office thentic leadership,drawingon our
;hip ;osition back on the front lines' at all levelsof or-
talk hit many aswell asour work consultingto leaders
wai political, and Bill found that his straight ganizationsin diverseindustries'To illustrate our points'
that he didnt
wrong notes. He started to get feedback and reflections
and that he we will recountsomeof the experiences
fully inderstand the complexity of situations and studied' We
skills for influencing others' Bill of the authenticleaderswe haveknown
should develop better
never mimic his don'tpretendtohavethefinalwordonthesubject'of
tried to curb his directness,but he could .ourr". Artists,philosophers, and socialscientistshave
behaviors' He started to lose
sawy centuries'and it
,up"riorr'politically
beiween indecision' while he tried debatedthe conceptofauthenticity for
He alternated this discussion
would be foolish for us to imaginethat
his way.
the offlce politics, and suddenbursts of out- else' Nonetheless'
io.,rtA.rttu"d by us or anyone
struggled with his old forthright- .oriJ rc synthesized
uggr.ttion as he to a better
.igtn
doubt his abilities' we believethat our reflectionswill contribute
ness. He began to seriously
at LondonBusiness
behauior schoorin England'Gareth
(rgofee@rondon.edu) is a of organizatio.nar
professor
Rob Goffee France,andafellowof theCentreforMan-
i, o vk'itingprofisor"atInseadinFontainebreau,
(garethjoutinternei.ci^l development at Henley
Jones a formerproprsi of organizatbnar
schoor.He is arso
agement Deveropment ot tonaon Busineis Management Associ-
of Creative
Collegem oxfordshire, England'G"t" 'ia mei o" tneTouiaingpartiers
Management
consultingJirm
in organizational
ates, in London'
HAII.VARD BUSINESS REVIEW
88
 ManagingAuthenticity:
T h e P a r a d o xo f C r e a t
to- understanding Leadership
of the relationship
betweenthe expression
re of selfand the exercise of leadership.
Iis how to managetheir authenti.itv r-"Ji.i *rro f,r,o*
to *jrr uJi] ,r," .o.. .r
betterabte to b"th;"";;i;. una.",uin
ld ffi*:fr:it, rovur
at
There,sno one right wayto establish
Id and manageyour
authenticjty.
But thett areconscious
ry perception
flanaging the
stepsyou cantaketo
helpothersoaraa,u.
S. asan authenticleader'
Establishingyour atrthenticity thesestepsentairburY someof
t- as u leaOe. is a two_part up knowledgeaboutyour true
chailenge.First,
you haveto ;";il ,ir. sell some,nuo,u.,.u'loinn
rnrngmoreaboutothers.
with your deeds;ott;.*i;, uor. wordsare
t- consistent
folrowerswill
authentic.r vervon
e acr<n
ffi "Jrl.t"rij#1 i: owreage
I
s Get to know yourself
and your origins better
'f
t-
i,,g",tr,..,t-il'itl,,iT::f,
f TH:',.':?.,',HL*r,,i,"7
. Exploringyour
yourdentty,,..n"il"_u#lf
autot.
by:

lust pay lip serviceto it.

He wiff Uveitlvery moment
of
;llli:::l:f:T::iJ,n
that shapedyou.Share
the day.Indeed,it,snot an thesediscoveri.,*,rn
.""**"."'ri# io sayttrat a great who havehadsimilarexpenences. *n.r,
teaderis obsessive,U"r, ."rUi?riig"rri s Ueriers. i
. Returning
to your roots.Takea holiday
Considerthe c;
ce
nrythen. j?:l*:i;?'l*:_Xil Spendtime awayfrom
with old frrenos.
the normaltrupping,oiti,.
"o,.l."nil :::il
rad; .,,JuJ;",,ionut. #;
. Avoidingcomfort
zon
om*
routines,seek
:1,:1.an
atlng :",]"0r(ingdom.
academicinstitutionwheri uuout..._ new adventurer,.r, ;t;.t::L:":ofvour
andadministrators stuOents,
teachers, i . Gettinghonest
feedback.Askfor
respected oneanoth;r andtheir envi_ from ciosecolieagues,
36o-degree feedback

XJ'
:"'nr il'*:T *"Tf
l'#'l.::fl i:ffiT.ffi
friends,family,.r; ;";."

walts?Lathamdid.rf you
"tfi
you would probablyhave
pickingup litter rather
visit"d;;,;h#
found ,rifr",
at breaktimes, l
the grounds
Get to know others better
. Buildinga rich picture
othersasone_dimensir
by:
of your environment.Don,t
view
""
than ; hh ffi;;;ehind
;# lillT ::lTlj, f ilo,.''0..o
"It'sthe simple,mundane a desk.
tfrirsri#rn"ner,,,he told
us,
srounds,biosraphies,
"and I personallyfix many . Removingbarriers
day betr yourselfand others'
Thiskind of demonstrated "d;;;.f"re is done.,, tively showu *.uon.rru""n selec-
personar .on'n'iin'"n, to a few
basicprinciplesis essentiaito
urilr.nii. l.ua".rr,ip. approachabir
ity,"
r",;::;:f,'J;jlil:::il:iltJ::'
But it is not enoushjust taries,andsoon.
to o;";;i;;;;t you preach.
To get peopleto foll
rerate '
to,;".;;;j",:.H:f:,il:_n"r."4f,::,,,1.,T#
. Empathizingpassionately
aboutthe workyour people
with your people.Care
deeply
do.
ershipis finding commonground *i,n ti," . Lettingothers
knowwhat,sunique(and
seekto recruitasfollowers."thir;.#r* peopleyou authentic)about
them.Civepeoplefeedback
wilt haveto l that acknowledn.rl"o
presentdifferent faces d a t e st h e i ro r i g i n s . *,,
to different ;liJ;;.r, a require_
maly ReoRre n"d h;i;
f:..::*"jBut,
rlclty. ,;;;;e'with authen_ l
as Shakes
worrd,sasiage-:il;?:T.J",:,"ff
11ff"i11i,1;l;,ll"ii;
Clnnect to the organizational
. Gettingthe distance
context better by:
Suchrote playingdoesn,t right. Be *ury of.r.utinf
tnJ,'
il;;;-;ll'o, inrin..... wrongfi rst impressions.
That'snot to sayit's.1ry_fu.
from
out, peopleinstinctively..".ognir. it. er-*.,u" pointed l yourund
ersta
no,r, rJrlt"?;tli::
fruu;,.* behavior. to separate "r
yourselffrom,
Xiiiff:l :?,
prylc rorethit i,",t;;;;;xpression others.
11""]::::::
nrs l
authentic self,followers
they've been tricked.
will sooner o. 1"r". feel
And once ,h";-;;;rrion
or
like l
. Sharpeningyour
sisnments
ana
socialar

",n";;;::",J; ;T: ;ijJ:::;:;r.

j
there, it's hard for a leader .-.-"'- is out s u b t l es o c i a l c l u et h
sat i
mr
to ,aaou"r.- your success between I
Nestl6 CEO peter l andrairure ;:ff :J[ iinrence
nizes *reil.,fi:LTIi;,Hffi
.that i#J:x,J,:."?"*;
. Honoringdeeplyheld valu
unlikeryto makeconnectiles
and socialmores'Youare
mustbetrueexpressions ornispe;;ffir;;ne cover i ns roushshodover
oneof Nesttd,s of other curtures,s,rornly
annualrelorls d"ililil h.';;:ilrid I
Swissmountains ,ttting tn ttre . Developing your resilience
wearing cli.Ui"g;lother.rui in ,rr"p"g", ence
of TheNesttd
Leadershin
setbacks
when
you
.,#: ;i,-:ilf :y_.:nL,,
anauaiageirrtilirriptrr,ne and cultures.
prepareyourself
dressedin a dark suii andstanding u l by learninguOourr"i"
headquarters. ;;,d; corporare understanding your own vaiues.
Asheexplains,,,r

D E C E M B E R2 O O 5
wa.'tu;;r! tireimaee
il
ji
89
ii
lir
 P a r a d o xo f C r e a t L e a d e r s h i p
M a n a g i n g A u t h e n t i c i t y :T h e
and an-
the environment But it is one thing to developthis complexity
of the mountaineerbecausewater and other thing entirely to wield it effectively'
Usingyour
degreeof self'
",..*otio''ulissuesformanypeople.ButthephotoiSnot
on weekends' I'm a climber' .o-pf.^ ,."1f(or, rather,selves)reOlile.1.a
artificial.That'swhat I wear that
a human beingtalk- t"oitr*, and the willingnessand ability to.share
picture, it's
tn the mountaineering with others,what we call selfdisclosure'
for the institution' I setf-moivteAge
ing. fn ttt" [other picture],I amtalking Thisis not to saythat authenticleadersspend
a lot of time
they both capture
fie photographsare different, but ;;ploti"g theii inner lives through meditation or ther-
,ornalhi.tg
-- essentialabout me'" profoundly self-aware ald essentially
we'll call upy.ff,.V may be
R tong-rr.cessfulmusic industry executive alinentic (in the sensethat we are
givingthe term here)'
his multiple selves'
Dick is al-soa carefulcommunicatorof
occasions in the l butnotbecauseofcontemplationoranalysis;theyalenot
oi.r. i, rrorn,he Caribbean,andon many fllm' Fewauthenticlead-
we have seen charactersin someWoodyAllen
to"gft-una-t"mble of the music business' erswill evenbe conscious that they are engagedin sell
him switchfrom corporate-speak to an islandpatoisliber-
at homein
atly sprinttedwith expletives'He is absolutely "*p'.''io"andself-disclosure,whichisprobablywhythey
are sohard to imitate'
artists and
the cutthroat environmentthat recording par- Sohow do authenticleadersacquirethese
attributes?
itr.it operatein' But, at the sametime' Dick's
"g*"affluent,well-established membersof Caribbean Therelativesimplicityoftheirgoalsoftenhelps.Agreat three
.*t ar! is usuallytrying to accomplishno morethan
,oli"ty, unO,on the occasions that requireit' Dick canplay I leader He is unwavering about these
to create a rapport with the or four big goalsat a time' ques-
aspect of himself them any more than he
il;i;
with whom he must also goals;he do"rr,'tquestion
,n.Aiu moguls and celebrities becausethe goalsare usuallycon-
ring true; his skill l iions'himself.That's
deal.All thesefacetsof his personality nectedin somewayto one or anotherof
the leader'sau-
and when'
is- in aeclOingwhich to revealto whom l
thenticselves.Hispursuitofthegoals'andthewayhe
thought
mrrltiplerolesusuallydemandsa lot of
ptuylt-rg
communicatesthemtofollowers,isintense-whichnatu.
andwork...Beforelgointoasituation,Itrytounderstand

:
TRUEEXPRESSION
SELF'
OFHISAUTHENTIC
i

l"::,ti, ,; -i::i i.'r': ''

we are talking
preparewhat I am rally promotesthe kind of selFdisclosure
what it is [people]will be thinking' t uUouiuna educateshim further
--W" about his variousselves'
g"i"g-," ,uy unAwho I am going to be in that contextl' keep closeto
ttuu. alsofound that $eat leaders
HR director at Marks &
E-pi"i"t )ean Tomlin, former ttlem peoptewho will give them honest.feedback' As
influential black business-
;;;;"; and one of the most Bill Burns told us"'You have
to be me, but I am channeling I n*t.'pttut-aceuticals head
*o-an in Britain."Iwant want to put
you get is a segnent of me' io f.."p your feet on the groundwhen others
parts of me to context'What ; a pedestal.After a while on a pedestal' you stop
il'h;;.itg andthey
Itisnotafabricationorafacade-justthebitsthatarerel- the truth. It's filtered by the henchmen'
evant
- for that situationl' what you want to hear' You
it possible I t'.J tJ" so well they know
Let'slook more closelyat just what makes .tJ asthe queenbeein the hive, with no relationships
for Brabeck-Letmathe, Tomlin, and executiveslike them "p
- without seeming withtheworkerbees.Mywifeandsecretaryarefullyem-
to presentfragmentsof themselves powered,if they .u., me getting a bit uppity'to give
inauthentic. "!
me a thumping greathit overthe headl'
in to do pre-
As consultants,we often havebeen called
acting both as priests
Know Yourselfand Others cisetytt at for seniorexecutives,
to makeleaders more open to truths
exerciseof leader- and spiesaswe try
It goesalmostwithout sayingthatthe andtheir relationships with others. This
andpractice'Over
tttip it--pfex andrequiresboth skills "uoui,rr"-relves meanhelping these leaders develop
a leaderdevel- doesnot necessarily
time, andthrough variouslife experiences' *or" of tttat psychologist Dan Golemancallsemotional
canmakeher
ops an extensiverepertoireof roles'which it meanshelping them to sharpen
in different situa- ini.ffig"n..t ratter,
,..- u.ry different to different people the emotionalintelligencethey al-
this complexity' ifr"i, i.ifft in disclosing
iions. tndeed,if a leaderdoesnt acquire cangivebetter performancesfor their
only thosepeople readyhavesothey
shewill be ableto recruit asfollowers followers.
common ground'
with whom she already sharessome
HAIIVARD BUSINESS REVIEW
90
 M a n a g i r gA u t h e n t i c i t y :
T h e p a r a d o xo f C r e a t
Leadership
_Consider an executive we,ll -**-**-:--''
call Josh,the CEo of one /-
of the
world's largest TV production
companies for the past
ten
years. When we first
met him,
losh was one of the early inno_ ,\
vators in the field of documen_
tary TV. Over the years,
as he
, nloVed up the corporate
ladder,
he maturedinto a highly
knowl_
eogeable and effective
execu_
tive who, in the process,
became
r a t h e rs e r i o u s _ e v edni s t a n t
and
austere_ in the eyesof
some of
nrs employees.These percep_
weakening
hii abitiiy
:lo::,*"r.
to attract and retain followeri. i
so we coachedJoshto return
to
the mischievous senseof frumor -d&
that he had disptay"d
;;;;
readily earlier in his career. @ i \
He i i
has.anamazing sense \.
of comic '-- \ I
timing, which he tras
tearneJ - -'.------- ./
to ur"-to a"""ririi"g"effect
to
_olsarmopponents anddelight
his followers.At a recent
retire_
ment celebration, for example,
people expectedhim
to deliver
a rather sober speechconcern_
t n g t h e d e p a r t i n gs e n i o r
execu_
trve. Instead,they were
treated
to a comic tour de force,
which
thrilled the retiring executive r
and stunned
/osh's followers.
none of whom would
have guessedtheir bo-ss
was so manager's-formative
years enhancesher
ffiJJ.TT.,,Tif.::lnl:ru:l,rt,:Xciailv impo.I with.difrerent
peopre
ability to read
utation
u'nr"ua". ':t^ "rI.T*r,11,^ and situations.
r.'as
benented
*;;;'d,:: comroi;;;; .""
:t'
in serr- ",#ffi|"#TilT',ffi,rillaiuiauart
.rJ.ilff:,??:',il:::i:J?l:-,S*J"t* ;;; hersociar
whichaspectror ur.ir ;-'rs
recognize ins her+,T1.1p1"""-pJ",deveropea
journevto estatrish sruus aeri.l
particulargroups credibility asa brackbusiness_ 1
of folrowersnr" ,ool,lThentic-selves
"rti;;.;;:r;j11o womanoperatingin an envi.o
highvaeveffi
;"#i:ih#:,,i:T:l:"j::',"ff
ri;f,1};'iti.;:i*,::H?"ditffifJ*l
mix of cognitiveand observatt"""i
t"ittt i" recognize tionsandtreatmentwere
what followersare consciously-andunton"iou'lv--rn- I
#ety torerable,
and severar j
nalingto them. #;r,;r sordiers of
rricide.Brabeck-Letmathe
b" il:ffi11il."ffi:x!"?"Ht'Jn:h:fl:il
,'"""t!fli',::l:i:.'lx#Tt:*:,il:"ffi:ij..::.r,:
tearn to stayoutoftheir;,_ "-,
.
"n..piJ

them.w" h#round thatindivid"",,

a greatdealof mobility early *nxijL?ll
in tfreir fivesfossessttrere
Use where youcomeFrom
:li'J:.xi:-ffi:.1ii:T"'l;,1',Un"f"'#;;.;
startoutin sales
unJir,u,mostseniore"".u,,ufl3 tu,9t By thetimea manager
risesto , ,;;
.".','i.,-i#T;;:H!1,il;.,ltil::..'1-""i il;;;; mav
nationar seem
rike-and, .^
'"oli',TllXfi'J1t"i3i;
,""-0.^n,,
'ngs
Expo,.,;;l;; ffi:::ffi?H:T5L:1fl,i:,:
9,ft:ilii::i'*ilJil;;
D E C E M t s E 2RO O 5
*ff:ru:,T:
i:HTt
91
#
 Leadersnlp
T h e P a r a d o xo f G r e a t
Managing Authenticity:

t9 orjSins'The ox-
authenticityis still closelylinked !s "authenticity;'
Di ctionary,ioi"^u*pte' aefines
ford Engtish
'ir we think it is ,
p*q undisputedoriginl'Asa result'
"t;;"f succeed in establishing
fair to saythat no leaoerwiliever hisrela- Critlcsof British Prime Minister
Tony Blair often con-
effectivelymanage
his authenticityunlesshe can to t e n d t h a t b e c a u s eo f h i s d e s i r e
t o m a x i m i z eh i s p e r -
followers'connections
tionshipwith his past and his ,""1, .00..,, Blair movesbetween
different'contradic-
their roots. p e r s o n a lb e l i e f s W ' e
personalhistoriesto estab- t o r y s e l v e sl,a c k i n ga n y c e n t r a l
Authenticleadersusetheir desireto es- * o u l d u r g r . , h o w e v e rt ,h a t
B l a i r ' sw i n n i n g w a y sstem

Urh;;;;;. groundwith their followers'The on the altar of electability

not from sacrificinghrmself
employees regular'ap-
as a
tablishhis bonafideswith his 'llt ttzGerald' b u t r a t h e rf r o m h t sc o n s u m m a t e
s k i l li n m a n a g i n gh i s
;uv pronablv explaini *no, g l ed r a m a t i cw e e ki n
;;;i. f
speaksoften and with
in
u u r n . n , , . ' , UH. i s b e h a v i o r
a s i n
a former cochairman ut'unil"utt' how well he doesthis'
and the influenceof his .tt'U lr'n zto5 exemplified
il;;il;;rt his Irish heritage B o b C e l d o f -a n d B o n o -
worldviews'Simi- f h " w e . t b e g a nw i t h t h e
motheron both his moral anJpolitical an eventto raiseawareness
chairmanat Unilever' inspiredLiveB pop concert'
larly,Antony Burgmans, a current by Blair'strip
countryman- asdemon- ubortpou.rty in Africa Thatwasfollowed
obstinately remains ffie Dutch International Olympic Com-
to Singaporeto lobbythe
a g l e e f u j
l i g i n p ublic
stratedinhisdress,*."inhiswalk-despitehiselevated *itt..-, arring whichhe danced
cases, these executives are comfortabledis- C a m e sw a s
,i"i"tlt. u*h con- * h . n t ' t , . U K b i d t o l a n dt h e
z o t z S u m m e r
of their origins'in a very different Alsothat week'he attended the C8 summit
;"tt;il;"thing successful.
their followers'
i"^i, ir-tora., to connectwith in Scotland,where he was able
to makeheadwayin ad-
roots, however' needs to be carefullyhan- concernsThen
Pridein one's dressingsome of his most
passionate
whose CEO trumpets his heritage
dled. An organization L o n d o nb e c a u s o ef t h e
to employees-and B l a i rw a su r g e n t l yc a l l e db a c k t o
may well be intimidatingor offensive
'.'uiio-.rr-*ho terroristbombingsthere'
hail fro-melsewhere' This is one reason
work staycuriousand
to lneachoftheseinstances'Blairplayeddifferentroles
that somany authenticleaders to attractfollowersin d rfferent
ways'Yetdespitethe d if-
Wehaveworkedfor many wasableto commu-
op.n to tf-t"i,followers'origins' ferentbehaviorshe exhibited'
Blair
executiveat a U'S'chemicalscompany'
V"ur, titf"t a senior he alw-ays beginsthe n-icateacoreself;hea|waysconnectedpowerfu||ywith
Whenhe meetsnew ttu- *"tl"tUtrs' p o p m u s i c s' p o r t t' h e
h i s k n o w np e r s o n apl a s s i o n s - f o r
conversationswitr,tr"'esamequestion:..Tellme,howdid and the defeatof ter-
you are now?"He hasan eliminationof povertyin Africa'
," be the kind of guy t h at week wrung
t""'**"
complexfactorsthat re- r o r i s m . l n d e e d ,h i s p e r f o r m a n c e
interest in tlie Rawnsleywrote
;;il;;iable
because he under- praiseevenfrom his critics As Andrew
airect reports come from admiring when they ob-
vealwherehis be morelikely \n the Observef"Peopleturn
standsthat they (anO it-'eorganization)will read' articulate'and mould
with their odgins' serveISlair's]capacityto
i" ,t*..a if they feel comfortable
recognizethat people criticaP l o l i t i c am
l oments"
It is important for leadersto
waysandthat there
frametheir backgroundsin different
cultures'The salient
are differenc.' u-*g and within in-
characteristics tnaifJople useto.definethemselves ity for many' Even so, the
idea that you will get
your
and geography' And these
cludegender,tlu", 'ltt' 'tatus' -through dress'speech' chance remains strong'
may be expressed i" *uny ways remains relatively fixed'
Given these ln other societies, elite status
of walking' individ-
i""'0, *a evenin differeni styies simple For example' the French
business elite comprises
about making from all the same
variables,*. 'r-tottiJut tuuiiout we can .,uir.au.u,.a in the granddcoles-often
societies' though societies'espe-
g"r-,"iufiiutions aboutstatusand In
."tt"t Oti"ifegedbackgrounds' .Asian highlv rele-
d r a w s o m e c o m p a r i s o n s . F o r i n s t a n c e ' Sthat
o m are t i e sd Crtiti ramilv and geographvremain
e s o c i e.i"iiv
p"uflt'' ascribed status-attributes understandingof their odgins'
focusmore on Othersfocus u'J,Jaop.opleis
io particular individuals' has important impli-
perceivedu, innut"
and rolesthat The variability of socialstltus
of Americansoci-
moreon peo pt"'' o'iii"asfatus-attributes At the cations for leaders'Therelativefluidity
own.endeavors' is reflected
individualsattainthrough their ;" avowedemphasison aspirations'
ttutt, e-"itan society placesgreatempha- ;;;,;in ioward their leaders' The Yale-
mostgeneral i;?oil;;"tt' attitudes
W' Bush'for example'
sisonachieveastarus;thebeliefthatwhereyou'regoing the heartof the educatedYankeearistocratGeorge
outweighs*t"tt" yott ut been lies close.to
poseasa regular guy from Texas andbe believedbe-
society can
Americanar.urn.'rni, is not to
saythat American will acceptthat he
commentators cause Ameri.u"', unlTkt Europeans'
Many
alwaysactsaccordingto this belief' cantransformhimself,andtheywillrespecthisaspirati
g'o*i*ng gap between rich andpoor in the simply wouldnt
worry that th"
prospects of social mobil- to do so.That kind ;f metamorphosis
Unitedstates wiliJecit"ut" il"tt
H A R V A R D B U S I N E S SR E V I E W

92
 M a n a g i nAg u t h e n t i c i tTy h
: ep a r a d o x
o f C r e a tL e a d e r s h i p
seemauthentic in Britain;
to the working_classvoter,once
an aristocrat,always an aristocrat he preferred the quiet_corrjdors
of headquartersto the
Authentic leaders are comfortable hurly-burly of the marketplace.
in their skin; they c.ufr"_ i"J attempted
know where they comef1""1 to fit in to the dominantculture.
andthey fnrt"uJ, t nad merely
know how to usetheir.back$ounds
""j;;;;il;;., conformed - and lost the
to ;;ill chance ,;;^;; " effective
with followers.Authenticlea*ders rapport change leader.
"
"r. "","ifr.""tened by
with other origins;they welcomJii._. At the other end oftl
l."f]:
sensitivein communicating
of the differences
their
";tgrJs;;
rn.u ur.
are
in culturalattituaes'iowLa*,rr"l.
aware Itl',**; iil;il""i?5i
".fil3lil,ffi
conformingenough.Ashisboss, [ :ff:fl:T
nrr.nr.r irrr"., told Brit_
grounds.As Albert Einstein Uu.t_ rete ra_ilr
newspape
once,aid,l,t ,O"lf, ,o .u.ry- 1!1, s r,,,u. rtu.i.JioTffi .opr"ilr.
one in the sameway,whether wrong way.He was controversial,
he is ii_r.gLU"g"r"n o. and it got worse asthings
wenr on....We'dall take a
bus [at,n.io.porl e retreatl

,, .t 'i. r
iiii. SEIF-AWARE
ANDESSENTIALLY
AUTHENTIC
:'
,liiI l,rii iliri i

the president of the university',

That statement reflects
not only Einstein,scomfort andhe had a limousine;a special
*lt-n f,ir"r"fiJu, ulro with the driver.Everyonehad a
more open societyhe chose walkie-talkie,andyoutrearaipeopteir;;;;,wh"
to live in. wasthis
guy,and why washe demanding
this?ilt i,as a badvibe,
let) o1t it that way."ovitz lastejr4
Conform- But Only Just Authentic leadersknow how
;";;;; at Disney.
,; ;;ik;;
Enough tweentheir distinctiveness balancebe_
andthe culturesin whichthey
When picking which aspects operate.Theydo not jmmediately
of themselvesto reveal,and seekori t.ra_on .on_
to whom, authentic leaders frontationsbecauseth.eyrecognil"
rnrrt i;;.;irst how much irr", ,Li. survivalas
they need to conform to social leaders(and,by extension, theiurviJ
and organizationalnorms.
The challengefor theseexecutives requiresa measuredintroduction,;, "fii"i, iririatives)
is to createjust enough ;;;"ptation oi
distance from the norms the organization,s establisheO
so followers will perceive Uusines,n"*on , and so_
leadersas specialand attractiv". the cial relationships.
,if To inflrrence ;il.ntic teaders
judgment mustfirstgainat leastminimal ",h.;;,
call: Too much conformity "'""ri?ne u.."p,ur*
can render leaiers ineffective; membersof
too little can isolate them. their organizations. ",
Craham, a dynamic salesguy Perhapsthe bestexamplewe've
in a fast_moving,Boston_ seenof this wasthe
basedconsumer goods uusiiess caseof an executivewe,lliall
,h;i;; uo"u,r",provides fvflyuf.o,onJ of the first fe_
a good illustration of what malefinancedirecto
happens ;;;
forms too much. He was,and leader con_
ls,a ue.y efrc.iiu" ,ul"rrn"n,
wasanoutsta,di"sb:::L3JJi:il..T;:T3;?;#'J
albeit in an old_fashioned,in_your_f"* accountingpractices,U-lghrln n"* talent,and
f.irJ"r*ay. Some 11ize 1s
succeeded
people found him brash. in breakingup the cozyriale
We it orgni h.'*"i very bright .uJ"f n, the top.
but a tittle
too forthrigh, r".,rr.llii;;fi. But evenas shebroki
which he worked.We.ulSed cutturein
his managersto givehim a
toqrav
therore
expe;":'l,:,#1#fnf;,'fi:i:i
to grow,though,feelingthriilir"f,igl_,_."ergy settings.
Her situationtrighfightsth.
!h11.. lead_ ,ri"*r", challenge
ership stylecould help bring"about that womenfacein estauusrring
,"_Jn'r.., needed th";;i;;;;s aurhentic
changein the organization. leaders:Unlessfemaleleaders
;f.""*f.j*. lnO validate
Grahammovedfrom.salesto
marketing,then briefly ::Tj^:l,ll.prevaitingorganizationalno.fr
gender ,Jurrounding
into a productionrole at a factory, roles,thev will find it hard
ana th-JnOacl< into a to oUiulnu..eptance
seniormarketingrote.we were from malefollowers.
il;r"; unJ;isappoinred
at the transformationjn him In complexorganizations, Ieaders
*f,.n *" ru*l_,jrnagain.He canselectthe specific
spokein nuancedphrases, normsanderementsthey want
and he *r.irffy *"ighed his to be identifiedwith and
opinionsbeforeexpressing to
them.He defendedthe status ln:,r.ln.U !.ed reject.GregDyke,for_..-ai...,o, g.n_
erat
quo,remarkingthat our proposed of the BBC,one of the wirrdb
changeug"nanfor the l;;;;;oiu o.gu.,i
organization was,,alittle simplisti..,,H; zations,understands verywell fro* to p.fuvjiilr.n,
;td usthat nizationalnormsagainstone o.gu_
";; another.Whenhe took over
D E C E M B E R2 O O 5

93
 T h e P a r a d o xo f C r e a t L e a d e r s n l p
Managing Authenticity:
his language'dressed
across the organi- oclasticinstincts.He moderated
at the BBCin January2ooo'employees the job' moreformallythanwashisnormaltaste,andpublicly
after coming into (notablymuseumsand
zation were unhappy'Shortly .*pi"tJ.O thoseof his interests
andstudiosto un-
ovi." u.g* pokinghisnoseinto offices ;;i;;.. education)that appealed
most to the board' In
staffers'situationbetter'The morevisitshe
J.rri*irrt.
he couldwin broad tfr. ."a, however,the political machination:"f lTju'
made,the more he cameto seethat o"a*naf*.a evenDyke,andhe was
forcedto reslgn'
r"r the major changes he needed to introduce
"i..pi""."
Uiupp.ufing to the organization'sf""k "Ld,lt" cars and of asthe oppositeof
out the Authenticityhasoften Utt"'iottgttt
To that end, Oykeiegan phasing ;;ril. - somethingthat is straightforward'
sincere'and
to each memberof his is not
.f",utff*r, that hadbeen"asigned r"i"*Ot*ed. suithat conceptionof authenticity
producersand support who as-
a*.."rt" board' The program *itpfi"ic, it is alsowrongheaded'
Managers
move: [n an organization
;;;ff"" were pleaseauy tttis sumethat their authenticitystems
"tfy from an uncontrolled
the long line of ex- becomeauthen-
with a strongegalitarianaspiration' hadbeen ;;;;"i"" of their inner selves will never
pensiveblackcarsparkedoutsideheadquarters ii.Ga.rr. creat leadersunderstand
that their reputation
alienation-for many staffers'
a sourceof irritation-even consult- forauthenticityneedstobepainstakinglyearnedand
cut the largebudget spent.on outside
oyL million- carefullYmanaged'
"fto tzz million to rl of honesty"'lf you
ants-in oneyear'it went from The comicGeorgeBurnsoncesaid
generalhad in the equallyhave
,V*f"iiritg the faith the director canfakethat, you'vegot it madeJ'He-could
p."pf" insidethe organization'He wasimplicitly of course'authentic
been talking aoout luthenticity'
"ft""dy
iuying,"rknow we havethe talent
here'" it to make it' but Burns'sjoke res-
f t a.tt ao" ireally fake
Butitwasntenoughtoidentifywithpeoplenearthe it acknowledges.what we might
a typical CEO' Dyke onur., preciselybecause
bottom of the hierarchy'Unlike of I t . ,.tuct"nt to admit - that the expressionof one'sau-
very powerful board
neededthe approvalofthe BBC's tt","ntl. selfis a complicatedandcontrived
act'All authen-
wett aslts chairmanat the time' the patrician
;;;;t;; "t Dykehad ticleadersarecomplicatedandcontrived'ManyAmeri-
acceptance' for his authenticityas
SirChristopherBland'To win their while he cansreverethe late l{onaldReagan
mores even actorto
to showrespectfor their established of most president- but he wasalsothe first
professional
instincts U
*u, upp.ufingto the antiestablishment at makeit to the White House'
For a while' he proved quite adept
of his employees'
rnu*gi"g tf"tisrelationship'In public' at least'he always
qovernorsin for- Reprint RO5l2E
addressed Sir Christopherandthe other order, see Page 155'
to rein in his own icon- To
mal language'He wasalsocareful

&
)Q.
'tf

Ar$fFS*'j
is on to something"'
"DomeafavorandcallBob It lookslike.Jerry

HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW

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