I recently read the book American Icon by Bryce Hoffman. Although it is about the Ford Motor Company, it is really about the remarkable journey of Alan Mulally, the former Ford CEO and the folks he worked with, who turned the company around.
Mulally believed in the power of unity, stating, 'Working together always works.'
This is really the foundation of his leadership. At both Ford and Boeing, he emphasised the importance of a shared vision, collaborative effort, and a relentless focus on the end goal. It's a simple concept but one that's often overlooked. Mulally's message is clear, a cohesive team with a single objective can achieve remarkable results.
Here is a quote from the book that stuck with me, which is ‘you can’t manage a secret’, which I took to mean that leaders have to constantly share their message.
Mulally emphasised, ‘We were either going to win or lose together and we were going to do it with complete transparency.’
Now transparency seems to have become a political buzz word lately (don’t get me started!), but this is Mulally talking in the mid-2000s. More importantly, he didn’t just say he was going to be transparent, he was and he expected all of his team to be too. For him transparency wasn’t just a buzzword, it was a philosophy. Mulally encouraged open sharing of data and problems, something that initially was completely unheard of at Ford.
This approach is essential for informed decision-making. In the business world, facts and figures need to be part of that decision making process. Gut feel has a place, but I always default back to the position of trust but verify. Directors and senior leaders should embrace this approach, making data their friend.
Mulally believed in putting the customer at the centre of everything.
He noted, ‘the only plan we had was to serve our customers with the best cars and trucks we could build’. This customer-centric approach was one of the things that led to Ford's success. The lesson here is crystal clear, everyone in the business should never lose sight of the end-user. It's not just about numbers, it's about delivering value to your customers, making them want to do business with you and feeling valued.
It’s not about saying this is how it is, like it or lump it, but engaging with the various stakeholders you work with, be they the team within the business, customers and other stakeholders (maybe something Pharmac should reflect on, based on their CE’s comments in the media lately!)
Mulally recognised the need to innovate, saying, ‘innovation is the key to everything’.
He drove Ford to embrace innovation in both products and processes. This mindset was crucial at Boeing as well. Directors and senior leaders should constantly seek innovative solutions to stay competitive in a rapidly evolving business landscape. Mulally wasn’t content with getting to the top, he was always challenging the team around him to be thinking what is next, how can they get better.
So in conclusion, Alan Mulally's story in American Icon offers invaluable insights for directors and senior leaders. His principles of unity, transparency, customer focus, and innovation are timeless and can be applied in any industry. In a world of ever-increasing complexity, Mulally's straightforward, no-nonsense approach serves as a guiding light for achieving success.
Is this: let's remember these four key takeaways:
These are the threads that wove the fabric of success for Alan Mulally, and they can do the same for any business.
(As an aside, I enjoyed the read so much, I am reading another Bryce Hoffman book, Red Teaming, which is all about getting organisations to look at their decision making, where they actively try and look for flaws and errors before they commit to a course of action. Stay tuned)
