LEGACY, RESILIENCE ... AND PLEDGE

Olive Trees in Gethsemane Garden, 1000 years old
Living Symbols of Legacy, Resilience and Promise

One cannot travel to Israel, the Holy Land, without undertaking a personal transformation, a sort of displacement... and also some formidable learning on mankind, organizations, and one-self.

I just came back from a week in Israel, visiting the historical and religious sites of Nazareth, Bethleem, Cana, Jordan River, Tiberias Lake, Sea of Salt ... and most importantly Jerusalem - the Holy City for all monotheist religions (Christian, Jewish and Muslim).

Paradoxically, the etimology of "Jerusalem" is rooted in Foundation, God and Peace. Clearly, it is a sacred foundation town, and also the land of God, i.e.
- The city of King David and King Solomon, who built the First Temple - for Jewish people.
- The city where Muhammad ascended to Heaven, where he speaks to God - for Muslim people.
- The city where Jesus Christ, Son of God, died and resurrected - for Christian people.

Etimology is more mysterious and intriguing on the meaning of "peace":
- The city has been destroyed twice, besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times and captured 44 times!
- Today the city seems quiet on the surface, but the country as a whole is visibly tensed underneath.

Besides a spiritual personal experience in Jerusalem, which is really intense for all visitors and pilgrims (however religious they may be), there are 3 very interesting and profound lessons to draw from the city with regard to corporate leadership and management:

1) Legacy is a fundamental cornerstone in the history and development of any organization.
Jerusalem has been founded about 5,000 years ago, proven by archeologic evidence, dating back to the Bronze Age. The city was later governed and developed through Egyptian, Macedonian, Roman, Byzantine, Persian, Ottoman periods... Under each stage, the city grew in prosperity, recognition, spirituality and tradition, despite the wars. The old city of Jerusalem is magnificient, and you really see, hear and feel the weight of history, the strength of legacy, and the power of tradition.

2) Resilience is the proof and condition of sustainability of any organization.
As I said earlier, the wars and conflicts seem permanent in Jerusalem, often of exceptional violence. The various Crusades that took place to capture and recapture the Holy City are well known episodes of massacres conducted there. Until today there has never been a long period of quietude in Jerusalem, whose people and leaders have always shown extraordinary resilience to survive, and to continue growing. Today the authorities of Jerusalem are still enduring a permanent struggle for peace, in the very sensitive climate that you all know. One place which shows the resilience of the Jewish people is the Yad Vashem memorial to the victims of the Holocaust.

3) Pledge (or Promise) is the source of inspiration for future growth, and for radical optimism.
With such formidable legacy, and their demonstrated resilience, the people of Jerusalem could simply "relax" and take it easy. No way... They maintain the Promise alive, they hope for a better future, they discuss it, they negotiate it, and they all live the pledge of tomorrow's world. All inhabitants (Christians, Jews and Muslims) share a dream of hope, a vision of the future, and therefore ensure long-term growth and progress of the city. The "promise" may be different according to their faith... but hope and optimism are present, and one can feel it deeply anchored in Jerusalem.

Those three essential pillars of Jerusalem - Legacy, Resilience, Promise - are definitely worth considering when leading or managing any organization.

These pillars are key success factors of sustainable growth and development, that can last for millenars !

LEADERS HAVE TO LEAD...

Antony Jenkins CEO of Barclays at One Young World 2013

I watched in amazement the new CEO of Barclays at One Young World in Johannesburg.

All of you know about the trouble which the financial world has caused in recent years. The appointment of Antony Jenkins is no surprise after this turmoil... His vision about the need for change in the banking world, and the case for making the world a better place is fantastic.

You can watch him too on YouTube before reading this post via http://youtu.be/Vj0SknL-bac

His tone and speech in front of 1300 young leaders from 190 countries last week is truly inspiring.

Leaders have to lead !
Leaders of the corporate world cannot forego their responsibility. Leaders of today, the older generation, are powerful, and must use their power to play a lead role in transforming society, in solving the world issues, in making a difference for the world. Leadership is a privileged position to make the world a better place. Giving up is not an option for leaders. They must pursue an agenda which is right for the society.

Leaders need purpose !
Too often we have seen failures and crises created by the wrong objectives and goals of the corporate world. It is essential instead to define and achieve the right purpose, above business plans and financial profits. For example, Antony Jenkins has set a new vision and purpose for Barclays in January 2013: Barclays must be the "go to" bank, helping people to achieve their own goals. But he insisted on helping people "in the right way" ! This radical transformation of a 140.000 employee bank is amazing and inspiring, and certainly daunting too for its leader.

Leaders must be authentic and relentless !
These two personality traits are fundamental to meet the above requirements, to lead well and to define the right purpose. Leaders must be authentic because there are many strong opposing forces, that wish to stay in the old system, that wish to avoid change, that wish to make purpose-driven agenda fail... Being authentic is a must-have to stand firm against attacks and temptations.
Leaders must alos be relentless as the journey towards a positive agenda, towards making the world a better place, is very long and complex. Resilience will be key for leaders and even more for future leaders !

Antony Jenkins used a beautiful African quote to illustrate the need for courage and leadership in times of change : "When you are scared, you have to be brave. When you can't be brave, you have to be braver".

These are the words of the leader of an orphanage for babies with AIDS... Imagine her daily fight combat against fear, despair, misery and lethal disease... for orphan babies in Kenya. I think our little problems are in fact very very little compared to her leadership role, aren't they.

And Antony's last words to the 1300 young leaders were exemplary at the end: He did not tell them to "Go from here and lead"... but he told them instead "Go from here with me, with my fellow counsellors, and let's fix things together" !

Inspired and connected !

OUR COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY ! SOME LEADERSHIP PERSPECTIVES

Paul Polman CEO Unilever - One Young World 2013

At the One Young World Summit (OYW) last week, more than a thousand young leaders gathered in Johannesburg to take action. Basically to change the world and make it better. You have read my earlier post about the humbling and astounding testimonials from dozens of those young leaders who are running projects across the world to solve issues of eduction, hunger, poverty, diseases etc

1.300 young leaders is a fabulous force that can really solve problems and transform our society.

There were also some fantastic calls for action from top leaders such as Paul Polman at Unilever, Antony Jenkins at Barclays, Richard Branson at Virgin, David Jones at Havas...

Let me reflect on the main topic of Paul Polman at OYW 2013 : "RESPONSIBILITY".

Clearly, in our volatile and uncertain world, leaders must act decisively, taking into accounts all complexities, and responsibly.

The pillars of this responsibility are the following:

1/ Acting together, playing a collective game rather than trying to optimize locally on your own. Paul quoted an African proverb in Johannesburg: "If you want to go fast, you go alone. If you want to go far, you go together." Partnerships are key to change the world and make it better - NGO's, governments, corporations must act as one, with a common vision and positive attitude.

2/ Acting as inclusive capitalists, not exclusive. Exclusion is a short-term game, bound to fail, because society cannot sustain inequalities any longer. People left out at the bottom of the pyramid will not endure social gaps any more, and violence and revolutions will arise. Best way is to practice and implement inclusion. Leaders must now exercise their power and influence responsibly for the long-term, by including all constituents (the strongest and the weakest), with an ideal of common good in mind.

3/ Acting now rather than waiting. As Paul said, "the cost of inaction is bigger now than the cost of action". He quoted the example of Food Supply Chain total waste globally, worth US$ 250 Billion per year... It is worth acting decisively and responsibly NOW rather than wait. Saving US$ 80 Billion "only" would be amazing, as this amount would allow to eradicate hunger world-wide !

4/ Acting through social media. The younger generation leaders (OYW, Global Shapers, G20 Young Leaders etc.) are digital natives. This is an enormous force, with no frontiers, no obstacles, no limits to communication and collaboration ! Social media enable thousands of young leaders to aggregate ideas and actions to change the world. Digitalization gives more power than ever to the younger generation to take control of their future. As Paul remarked: "The young people represent 50% of the world population today... but they will represent 100% tomorrow".

In summary, our responsibility of leaders is collective and we must then, according to Paul :

• Draw the future closer.
• Make the present reality (the world problems) a reality of yesterday.
• Show mutual trust and respect.
• Seek the common good for all, always.
• Have the greatest interest for the voices of the unheard...
• Work together !

This keynote speech was at least 30 minutes long, and you should have seen the crowd - Amazed, energized and ready for action. With frequent ovations and a lot of respect for a determined leader, who is transforming the Consumer Goods & Retail world, step by step.

Paul has also joined the B-Team recently, the group of World Leaders who are preparing a plan to change the world. Their mission is "to deliver a Plan B that puts people and planet alongside profit"... Watch the space online via http://bteam.org/

Inspired and connected !

1.300 YOUNG LEADERS GATHER FROM ALL CONTINENTS TO MAKE THE WORLD BETTER

One Young World : Counsellor Kofi Annan and Co-Founder David Jones

It is very unusual to attend leadership conferences like "One Young World". Why is it so unusual?

For five reasons:

First, it is dedicated to young leaders aged 18-30 from all over the world. It is an impressive feeling when you get there and you are surrounded by inspiring, game-changing, beautiful young characters ! Aged 42 myself, I sometimes felt like a dinosaur... especially when instead of exchanging business cards the other person takes a picture of you with your name-tag so he/she can find you on Facebook...

Second, the achievements of these 1.300 young leaders are mind-boggling. I watched in pure amazement a 17-year old young leader, basically a teenager, get on stage to talk about his Education charity called Rwanga which runs 32 projects across 4 countries (Kurdistan, Syria, Iraq, Ghana) which he founded 4 years ago, when he was just 13, the age of my elder daughter ! This is truly humbling as well as amazing. This teenager is pure energy, and pure incentive to make the world a better place.

Third, you hear from the young delegates some things that you would not hear or believe otherwise, from 190 countries across the world... Personal extraordinary stories about poverty, child abuse, rape, hunger, disease, disability, slums... dramas against which many of these young victims have decided to stand up and fight. These 1.300 young leaders have only one dream in mind: Eradicate the problems of the world. Idealists? Certainly... but with a clear purpose and really action-oriented mindset.

Fourth, I was amazed by the presence and commitment of a fantastic panel of speakers - the "One Young World Counsellors" - whose names are the Hall of Fame of Leadership: Kofi Annan, Mohammad Yunus, Bob Geldorf, Francois Pienaar, Paul Polman, Ahmed Kathrada, Richard Branson, Jochen Zeitz, Lily Cole, Boris Becker, Antony Jenkins etc. All of them are very inspiring speakers, as they speak from the heart about their actions to make the world a better place.

Fifth, because One Young World took place in Johannesburg, there has been a special tribute to Nelson Mandela, a leader whose perseverance, charisma, intelligence and compassion helped to change the face of South Africa, and to end the infamous apartheid which still existed here until the 90's. The testimonials from personalities who know him well are really moving. It is not often that a Rugby World Cup champion, captain and living legend like Francois Pienaar cries on stage. It is not often that 1.300 people feel touched at the heart by the testimonial of Madiba's friends. It is not often that myself have tears in my eyes when attending a leadership conference.

 

The story of Nelson Mandela, given by his close friends, gave me the ultimate lesson of leadership, and is probably (so far) the peak of One Young World summit !

In my next blog post, I will share some of the best lessons of leadership from the One Young World counsellors… Watch the space and follow my blog. Also on Twitter: @jmliduena

One Young World : Inspiring and Connecting !