Tipping the scales

I'll return to leadership later but just now I have been thinking about marketing and what is it really all about? After the dire England performance in South Africa I got to think about the fine balance between Benefits and Cost!

Marketing could easily be described as the art/science of managing this balance!

In the pharmaceutical world the biggest challenge facing the industry is the way that the customers now view this simple equation. In the past an innovation was generally accepted and a hefty price put on to it due to the benefit it brought to the individual and society in general. Nowadays this is coming under greater scrutiny! The first consideration is no longer what is the absolute benefit of this innovation but what is the incremental benefit and how much am I willing to pay for this.

Pharma R&D definitely need to be more connected to marketing to ensure the balance tips in the right direction!

Criticism be the death of you!

First Anelka and then McChrystal fall upon the sword of senior management criticism!

On the face of it we see a leader taking the initiative and removing a dissenter from the ranks ("support your wounded and shot your subversives" ref: Simon Laurie for a great quote) However beneath the headlines do we truly see an unapproachable dictator filled with their own self importance putting themselves above the team rather than leading the team?

Obama came with hope and great quotes! However now we start to see the man emerging; keen for a photo shoot, highly aware of his public persona and willing to wave the sword at dissenters.

Raymond Domenech comes from the opposite end of the spectrum, rather than starting with a bang his plan was to leave with a bang! Unfortunately he left with, what I suspect is the opposite effect to the one he had hoped for!

So what can we learn from this:
1st off a leader needs to be part of the team! Seems simple but in business how many managers are truly part of the team they supposedly lead (it also begs the question can a foreign coach really be part of a national team?)
2nd a leader must be approachable (certainly more approachable than Rolling Stone magazine!) We all hear of an "open door policy" however it is far more important to have an open mind policy to really allow the team in.
3rd a leader must lead! Look to the great leaders from history, they were not known for sacking, shooting or undermining their followers! Usually they were seen as decisive, honest, forthright in their views and loyal to their followers (often they were also compassionate and understanding of their adversaries)

The first task every business leader should undertake is to assess if he/she can honestly fulfil the 3 criteria above and of course here we have the biggest challenge of all! Holding the mirror up and accepting honest criticism is the starting point for many leaders however most believe they have already gone past this point! (well they do keep their door open!!)

Work in Progress!

Leaving one job and then starting up on your own is a true challenge (remember all the pseudo challenges faced in big pharma; how can I persuade x to use the right marketing plan template?; how can I get from Zurich to Madrid for business reviews on consecutive days?; how can we print the presentation when the photocopier is broken! etc.)

Starting up on your own brings home the truth of responsibility and accountability; in big pharma the wheels continue to go around, maybe not as smoothly or as quickly but it keeps going!

On your own nothing happens unless one does something to make it happen!

This made me start thinking about true accountability and the tried and trusted "P&L responsibility".

The key is to look at the ABC of ownership. A: I can directly effect change, B: I can influence an effect and C; it does not matter what I do it is someone else's decision!

In most jobs it is the C's that cause the anxiety and the B's we measure! So advice from someone on a high A! Measure the A's, worry about the B's and forget the C's!

Simple!