LEADERSHIP DAVID PARMENTER
Part 2: A Viking with a mothers heart Leadership the Shackleton way
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ontinuing the tribute to Sir Ernest Shackleton’s gift to leadership from the last issue of Human Resources. 6. See and own the future The future has to be owned by the leader. The Boss could visualise things ahead and plan accordingly. Extensive planning needs to be performed. The extent of the Boss’s detail in planning included: different gear to avoid the problems he had experienced in past expeditions; provisioning food and equipment that saved their lives many times; packing cases made of ply wood (a new material) that could be reconstituted into building material for a hut.
Bold in planning but careful in execution
The Boss was bold with planning but careful in execution. While the vision must be bold every conservable risk was minimised to ensure a safe outcome. He was over provisioned. His original plans were to be away for just over a year but had wisely provisioned for two years based on 4,000 calories a day.
Equip the team
In providing for the team only the best was good enough for the Endurance 24
HUMAN RESOURCES
WINTER 2019
expedition. And where necessary new equipment was designed. The food on board was fit for a King. Unusual treats that were capable of being stored for years were taken. In the bleakest moments the Boss used a treat to say to his men “There is more of this when we get home”.
ice floe, to the seemingly impossible transverse of South Georgia.
7. Develop, engage and trust
Communicate the (organisation’s) critical success factors clearly to the team to help enforce alignment
Removing barriers of rank to build cohesion
The Boss broke down any and all barriers that would get in the way of a cohesive team. He devised rotas where all team members, including himself, were involved. All members including the Boss did the dishes and cleaned the floors. When it came time to ration the fur lined sleeping bags to the team, straws were drawn, the three main leaders drawing a blank in a rigged draw, benefiting the younger men. The Boss insisted on courtesy and mutual respect between all members of the team.
Motivate others
The team were prepared to take on any task the Boss wanted as they knew he would be in the line with them. It could be the fruitless task spending weeks trying to break the ship free from the ice, the hauling of the lifeboats over the
Fitness and health of the team Being focused on the fitness and health of the team he devised many activities on the ice floe to keep the team in good health.
Shackleton knew the importance of getting the team totally aligned. He recognised intuitively that this happened through understanding the critical success factors and ensuring each day the team planned their daily duties with this in mind.
Cross train and rotate teams to develop staff
Shackleton cross trained and rotated the teams to develop staff. He changed all the given rules for previous expeditions. All staff were required to master new skills, to act as backup in case of injury. For example, the surgeon was skippering the Endurance when it docked at Buenos Aires on the fateful voyage.
