Ego Free Leadership
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ADVANCE PRAISE
“Ego Free Leadership chronicles the dynamic struggle of a CEO as his executive coach helps him face his ego triggers. It is unabashedly authentic, with unbridled self-evaluation and unvarnished honesty.”
—NIGEL MORRIS, COFOUNDER, CAPITAL ONE
“Brandon Black and Shayne Hughes have landed on a key insight: When leaders let go of ego, they unlock their potential. The story of how they improved culture and performance at Encore Capital is packed with useful lessons for coaches and leaders alike.”
—MARSHALL GOLDSMITH, EXECUTIVE COACH, BUSINESS EDUCATOR, AND NEW YORK TIMES BEST-SELLING AUTHOR, RANKED NUMBER ONE LEADERSHIP THINKER IN THE WORLD BY THINKERS50
“An authentic read! I partnered with LaL to lead two large-scale organizational turnarounds: first as Center Director of NASA’s Langley Research Center, and then later as VP for Operations of the contractor operating the Nevada National Security Site for the Nuclear Security Administration. LaL led both my leadership teams through profoundly successful cultural transformations that produced breakthrough business results. In reading Ego Free Leadership, I could easily replace Brandon’s name with my own. This book captures the challenges—and solutions—of leading large scale change.”
—ROY BRIDGES, AIR FORCE MAJOR GENERAL AND FORMER CENTER DIRECTOR, NASA KENNEDY SPACE CENTER AND NASA LANGLEY RESEARCH CENTER
“The framework presented in Ego Free Leadership has had a profound influence on my research and teaching over the past fifteen years. I’m thrilled to see it finally brought to life in this captivating story of one CEO and his team’s transformational leadership journey. This book is a must-read for any leader who wants to make a difference.”
—ROBIN ELY, PROFESSOR AND FACULTY CHAIR, GENDER INITIATIVE, HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL
“I’m a big admirer of the work that Shayne Hughes and the team at Learning as Leadership perform. The practices and concepts for ‘going deep’ in the realm of leadership development are world-class and life changing. What is really happening, inside and out, for a leader trying to create deep change in himself and his organization? And what is happening, inside and out, for the leadership coach who is trying to help him? This groundbreaking book answers those questions by bringing readers into both sides of a transformative relationship. Hughes’ and Black’s story is instructive, rewarding, and inspiring.”
—ROBERT KEGAN, MEEHAN RESEARCH PROFESSOR OF ADULT LEARNING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, HARVARD UNIVERSITY; COAUTHOR, IMMUNITY TO CHANGE and AN EVERYONE CULTURE
“This gripping story is propelled forward by the alternating perspectives of a CEO’s candid rendition of his and the company’s journey and of a deeply insightful executive coach. Black and Hughes share insights and tools that helped change the company—as well as Black’s life. The book immediately had me thinking of situations I am dealing with as a leader and how I might manage them (and myself!) differently.”
—JEFF BRADACH, CEO, BRIDGESPAN
“Black and Hughes offer an indispensable introduction into the power of authentic, ego-free leadership and the impact this can have on creating truly inspired organizations. If you can’t attend a Learning as Leadership course or get Shayne as an executive coach, this book is the next best thing!”
—LEE RIVAS, PRESIDENT, ELSEVIER AND LEXISNEXIS HEALTH
“Ego Free Leadership provides a blueprint for transforming you and your organization. Filled with practical, real-life examples, the authors walk you through a process that surfaces the pain points leaders and organizations have and provides counterintuitive ways to resolve or even transcend them. Anyone can benefit, regardless of culture or background.”
—MARTIN N. DAVIDSON, JOHNSON AND HIGGINS PROFESSOR OF BUSINESS, DARDEN GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS; AUTHOR OF THE END OF DIVERSITY AS WE KNOW IT
“Hughes and Black do an outstanding job of bringing the power of the Learning as Leadership methodology to life in this captivating and authentic account of a CEO’s journey for true leadership excellence.”
—STEVE MACADAM, PRESIDENT AND CEO, ENPRO INDUSTRIES
“Learning as Leadership has had a profound impact on the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation and on me personally as well as professionally. Reading Brandon Black’s and Shayne Hughes’ account of one CEO’s experience with the program deeply resonated with my own, and I highly recommend anyone interested in building strong, resilient leadership teams to pick up this book immediately.”
—NANCY ROOB, PRESIDENT AND CEO, THE EDNA MCCONNELL CLARK FOUNDATION
“Black and Hughes use real-life challenges to illustrate how the ego gets in the way of effective leadership and teamwork. Ego Free Leadership is an invaluable read for anyone interested in building a successful leadership team or organization.”
—KEVIN PEARSON, VICE-CHAIRMAN, M&T BANK
“This book is an engaging and entertaining read, and much more. It reveals wise and powerful insights about how, despite our best intentions, we can be the biggest obstacles to our own success and the success of those around us.”
—JENNIFER CROCKER, OHIO EMINENT SCHOLAR IN SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY
“Ego Free Leadership tells a powerful story of how vulnerability brings us closer to our people, teams, and goals. Hughes and Black offer a wealth of insights to business leaders seeking growth in themselves and their organizations!”
—SKIP POTTER, CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER, NIKE
“In Ego Free Leadership, Black and Hughes take us through one CEO’s successful, inspiring, and instructive journey towards taking responsibility for his own messes. We learn how he put his ego in the service of, rather than in the way of, creating the kind of high-performance, mutually supportive organization to which we all aspire. Damn. I wish they had written it (and I had read it) decades ago.”
—MARTY LINSKY, HARVARD KENNEDY SCHOOL; COAUTHOR OF LEADERSHIP ON THE LINE
“Another self-absorbed CEO with a management guru—what could I possibly learn? Don’t let your ego get in the way! Black, Hughes, and Encore’s bumpy yet remarkable journey provides unvarnished insights and lessons for all of us as we seek personal, leadership, and business development. I benefited yesterday and I will benefit today.”
—SCOTT HUENNEKENS, PRESIDENT AND CEO, VERB SURGICAL INC.
“Ego Free Leadership brings fresh insights into what it means to lead, how we can get in our own way, and how we might help others develop their leadership. Even more, Black and Hughes deliver specific tools for attacking our worst ego-based problems, helping us become better leaders for our teams and organizations.”
—SUSAN J. ASHFORD, PROFESSOR OF MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATIONS, STEPHEN M. ROSS SCHOOL OF BUSINESS, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
“Ego Free Leadership tells a fascinating, real-life saga about how our ego traps us in a prison. So many of us significantly underestimate how our ego hijacks our leadership and organizations, causing us to accomplish much less than we could otherwise.”
—GEORGE MCCOWN, COFOUNDER AND OPERATING DIRECTOR, AMERICAN INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDS; CHAIRMAN EMERITUS, WORLD BUSINESS ACADEMY
“Organizations fail when the ego needs of its leaders hijack its mission. In this compelling, true account, the CEO of a company on the verge of failure is guided through the deep learning that saves his leadership and his enterprise. A powerful, practical story of egos tamed and an organization resurrected.”
—HARRY SPENCE, FORMER COMMISSIONER, MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES; ADMINISTRATOR, MASSACHUSETTS TRIAL COURT
This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher and author are not engaged in rendering l
egal, accounting, or other professional services. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.
Published by Greenleaf Book Group Press
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Copyright ©2017 Brandon Black and Learning as Leadership
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Print ISBN: 978-1-62634-379-5
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First Edition
To Aidan, Gabriel, Jeremi, Leah, and Trevor
May you and your generation be inspired leaders of the future, always seeking to bring out the best in others.
CONTENTS
PROLOGUE
Ending the Unconscious Habits That Hijack Your Business
CHAPTER 1 THAT VOICE IN YOUR HEAD DOES MORE DAMAGE THAN YOU REALIZE
Our Preoccupation with Self-Worth
What Hijacks Our Behavior
Recognizing When We Are Triggered
CHAPTER 2 NO, IT’S NOT JUST YOUR PERSONALITY
We Learned to Behave This Way
What Matters More Than Our Ego
Correcting Our Behaviors Before They Happen
CHAPTER 3 WORKPLACE POLITICS ARE YOUR FAULT TOO
My Reactions Create Our Dysfunction
How and Why We Stop Trusting
The Us vs. Them Epidemic
The Dollar Cost of Cultural Breakdowns
CHAPTER 4 STOP PRETENDING YOU’RE NOT VULNERABLE
The Importance of Emotional Safety
The Power of Vulnerability and Empathy
How to Create a Safe Space
CHAPTER 5 YOU’RE NOT REALLY LISTENING, ARE YOU?
The Toxic Habit of Being Right
Reversing Downward Spirals
Creating Constructive Communication
CHAPTER 6 YOUR EGO LOVES AN ENEMY
The Destructive Effects of the “Offensive” Ego
Taking Back Our Creative Power
CHAPTER 7 WE CAN’T TALK ABOUT “THAT” (MEET AMY ANUK)
Our Egosystem’s Biases and Blind Spots
Our Behavioral Patterns Shape the Course of Our Life
The “How” Makes the “What” Possible
CHAPTER 8 “THOSE” PEOPLE HAVE SOMETHING IMPORTANT TO TEACH YOU
Even the Boss Feels Powerless
Taking Responsibility for My Part, No Matter What
A Rock Can Change the Course of a River
CHAPTER 9 TELL ME AGAIN, WHAT GETS YOU UP IN THE MORNING?
The Inspiration of a Noble Goal
The Power of Commitment in the Face of Failure
CHAPTER 10 WHY IT ALL MATTERS
Working on Your Ego Is the Highest Act of Leadership
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
INDEX
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
LIST OF BOXES AND FIGURES
“The Egosystem”
“Common Desired and Dreaded Image Duos”
“At the Mercy”
“At the Source”
“Characteristics of Feeling At the Mercy or At the Source”
“Brandon’s Conflict Avoidance ‘Pattern’”
“Goals That Help Us to Be ‘At the Source’”
“Sorting Brandon’s Pinch with Paul”
“Brandon–Dave Self-Fulfilling Prophecy”
“Summary of the Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Loop”
“Individual Self-Fulfilling Prophecies —> Group Us vs. Them Dynamics”
“The Dollar Cost of the Egosystem”
“The Fallacy of Being Right”
“Constructive Communication: Vulnerable, Empathetic, Direct, Exploratory, Caring (VEDEC)”
“Encore India Collection Revenue (2007–2010)”
PROLOGUE
ENDING THE UNCONSCIOUS HABITS THAT HIJACK YOUR BUSINESS
BRANDON
It’s January 2005, and our company is under siege: Industry turbulence has sent costs soaring, and profits are drying up before our eyes. As Encore Capital’s president and COO, I help devise our response to the crisis: Hire top-caliber key executives, start a new business vertical, acquire a company outside our core business, and open an overseas call center. We’ll turn this ship around; we’ve done it before.
I pride myself on having a highly analytical, strategic mind while still being a people person. I know how to guide groups to the right decisions. I’m Brandon Black, age thirty-seven, and thanks to good timing, great mentors, and a lot of luck, my career path has largely been one success after another. I’m expected to replace our CEO when he retires in the fall. I’m ready.
Or so I thought.
By October 2005, when I became CEO of this publicly traded financial services company (Nasdaq: ECPG), the turnaround strategies were floundering. Our new business vertical was going sideways, our acquisition was a cultural and financial misfit, and our call center in India was struggling to get off the ground. Costs of new deals in our core business kept increasing. Our stock price had dropped 30 percent in the previous twelve months. I was rattled.
The shareholders were unhappy, and the board was questioning our decisions. I turned to my executive team for results, only to find that my high-caliber new hires were struggling to understand our complex business. Strategy meetings were constrained by people fighting for airtime or dismissing each other’s ideas. When I met offline with my direct reports to focus on operational issues, they made excuses and pointed fingers.
Determined to succeed, even single-handedly, I went around them—only to confront entrenched silos. Instead of sharing resources and solving problems together, department heads fought over who called the shots, hadn’t delivered results, or weren’t suited to do their jobs.
I initially shrugged off these personality conflicts and turf wars. Similar dysfunctions plagued my previous employers, yet they still succeeded. Our major competitors can’t be any better. A few wins and everybody will be fine.
But market conditions worsened, and the added stress pushed us further into our self-serving corners. Morale was at an all-time low. Grasping at anything that could give me hope, I signed my executive team up for a series of leadership development seminars. I didn’t need the help, but they certainly did.
That didn’t change anything. In poker, they say if you can’t find the mark, you’re it. In leadership, if you look around and think everyone else is the problem, it means you’re the problem. That was me. I first resisted the reality that key aspects of my leadership style were having a detrimental impact on my team. Then, finally, I committed to facing it. That decision fundamentally changed the trajectory of Encore.
Three years later, the financial crisis of 2008 decimated our industry. Ninety percent of our competitors went bankrupt or shuttered their operations. Encore Capital could easily have been one of them.
We weren’t.
During the greatest recession since the 1930s, Encore thrived. Between 2009 and 2013, our revenues and profits increased 300 percent, operating costs declined 30 percent, and the stock price rose 1200 percent. How did we create thi
s miracle?
Here’s what we did not develop:
•A unique strategy—Every industry player was bidding on the same deals and building overseas call centers.
•A hidden source of revenue—Laws and regulations for our industry made innovation nearly impossible.
•A game-changing technology—Our industry-best analytics only heightened our awareness of how dire things were.
•A mercilessly reduced cost structure—We knew asking people to do more for less wasn’t going to save us.
Instead, our competitive advantage came from recognizing and stopping the specific ways in which we were working against each other. This awareness allowed us to take full advantage of the disrupted marketplace and unlock hundreds of millions of dollars per year of enhanced performance. Our journey is what inspired my leadership coach, Shayne Hughes, and me to write this book.
Encore’s transformation began when I acknowledged the destructive elements of my own ego. I learned that my need to be right, coupled with a robust fear of failure, made me defensive and argumentative; unbeknownst to me, these tendencies had far-reaching negative impacts on my colleagues and the company. When I committed to change, I gave my executive team and other leaders in the company the opportunity to openly address their own ego-driven behaviors and skill gaps. We each examined how our distrust and our judgments were fueling the internal politics and divisions we blamed others for. And we stopped it.
A new foundation of trust allowed us to take quick, decisive action on Encore’s most important priorities. We collaboratively solved problems such as how to create an international collection strategy, which no one thought was possible. We prioritized resources throughout the company as needed, and without drama, focusing on the initiatives that would have the greatest benefit.
Our cultural transformation didn’t happen overnight with a series of quick-fix solutions. Over the course of several years, we partnered with Shayne and Learning as Leadership to get at the root causes of our challenges—and eliminate them.