 If that is the case, it is extremely important to study, the key elements of how to create an organization where the culture of collective leadership is nurtured and the organization encourages an attitude of openness.In this article, I attempt to broadly outline few important topics which may help organizations to develop this approach. 1. Many in body, one in mind - Many in body, one in mind meanings that people with different background, culture, personalities, characters come to work and have a role to fulfill whereas -One in mind means sharing the same basic sense of purpose or values. It also means cherishing a shared wish and aspiration to realize a common goal for the company. The explicit acknowledgement here is that although people may be many in body they can still work and contribute to a common goal. It is not a unity based on "Conformity" but unity based on diversity. In other words, though they may share the same purpose or aspiration, there is no need for them to suppress or deny their own individuality. By each of them uniting together and fully expressing the potential, they can manifest and contribute to the common goal. 2. Central figure: In any organization, the quality of leadership is the key. Although people may want or desire to support the leaders, it is equally important that unless there are quality leaders, people will be demotivated. The attitude of leaders in general is the crux of organizational success. This may seem somewhat contradictory but unity actually begins with a central figure taking a stand and rallying others around them. It leaders are earnest and dedicated, they will find resonance with many others, and this will give rise to diverse individuals uniting in a common cause.On the other hand if leaders are authoritarian or irresponsible, they will not be able to foster authentic teams around them. Generally if leaders possess exceptional abilities, they also tend to justify their abuses towards others and develop a habit of denigrating their subordinates as useless and boasting of them own prowess. History teaches us that there is no true or lasting organization has been created under arrogant leaders. 3. Importance of listening: This brings to me my next point. If leaders are arrogant and selfish, they will never come to know of the truth. The reason is simple. They will always be surrounded by people who will say that the leader wants to hear. The arrogant leaders ruthlessly purge or eliminate any one of their employee who dared speak out against their behavior and as a result only sycophants skilled in the arts of flattery and subterfuge remain around them.A leader taking action based on self-motivated attitude is fundamentally different from a leader behaving as a dictator. Naturally there will be times when it is necessary for a person to make bold decisions for their organizations but that will be based on sense of responsibility than to show their arrogance. Intelligent people discern situations and use it. It is critically important that leaders at all levels of the company freely discuss topics with each other and open dialogue to expand sense of solidarity among all employees. 4. Power of dialogue: Most often than not, we underestimate the power of dialogue and let the situation the way it is. Responsible leaders always engage in a direct dialogue and talk about topics even if they are negative or hard in nature rather than putting them under the carpet. Delaying such discussions only add to anxiety, mistrust, demotivation and loss of productivity. Great leaders always give constantly thoughts on what to communicate and how to communicate so that each employee stands up with conviction and commitment to the company. 5. Transmission of information: Another vital element for creating and maintaining a winning organization is transmission of information. In my opinion, those who fail to transmit matters of vital important to the organization and its leaders are like enemies. We all know that a lion has no fear from external beasts but it is inside insects that kill him. Those who lack unity of purpose and refuse to support the central figures, are bluntly speaking, people who destroy their own organization from within and helping competition to become better than to working for their own companies. 6. Cross purpose employees: while it is expected and continue to work on creating unity of purpose in the company, it is also important to bring people who are focused and clear of their purpose. If people wish to purpose a different goal than the organizational vision or values, they will be at cross purposes with the company and never give their true contribution. We can safely conclude that no meaningful work can be expected from a person who is conflicted about which path to pursue. That only stands to reason. If employees cannot make up their mind, they cannot have firm resolve to perform and they will always be swayed by their environment and loose steam soon. It is critical for leaders to constantly evaluate their employees against the values and culture. In companies where leaders do not take corrective actions for cross purpose employees, they also demotivate employees who are focused and wish to contribute. 7. Become a uniting force than dividing reason: it is only natural that people have different personalities and temperaments. But that does not mean that because people are different from us, we should discriminate again them or exclude and reject them. The important thing is that we respect each other and accept each others differences with an all-embracing mind. The intent of making distinctions of self and others lead us to isolate from the environment and provides a breeding ground for contempt, hatred, jealousy, resentment, indignation, arrogance, malice, sullenness, gloom and so forth. Whereas if we become a uniting force as a needle with thread that brings all diverse personalities together for a common goal, we will become a unity force than a dividing reason. The simple way to practice this is give respect to absentee and never speak ill or anyone. Also continue to see how as leaders we can use each unique talent of the team member to the best for the organization. Fortunately, in India, we are blessed with inherent desire and ability to work with diverse individuals since our childhood. But this ability is put on test in our multinational work environment. We are now at a stage where people around the globe in our respective companies are taking positive note of our abilities and it is immensely critical for us to practice it even harder. Dialogue and communication among various locations are becoming increasingly significant and indispensable for the future development of organizations. Anil Sharma December 2011 Experts on HR
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