As you read my column today, one thing I intend to do is to link two of my previous articles using the stream of the recent result achieved by Ole Gunner Solskjaer, the interim manager of the Manchester United football club. When Jose Mourinho was sacked, I wrote on the result-oriented leadership highlighting how Manchester United FC share dropped under Mourinho and increased to £14.51 from £13.65 on the NYSE at the close of trading on 18th December 2018, the day he was sacked. Mourinho is a leader with a focus on the result at the detriment of other things that matter between the leader and the team. His weakness in level one leadership- the ability to manage his personality and lead others without ego reflected in his time at Man U as it was in all the club he had managed.
Last week, I wrote on how a leader taking a new position or beginning a new project must exude the four elements of leadership effectiveness which are an adaptation, innovation, change and growth. I suggested leaders should measure their direct reports using these elements without losing focus on the key performance indicators of the different departments at the operational levels to guarantee market share growth and other key success indicators.
A result-oriented leader is a leader that achieve result with and through his or her team. The platform for measuring other leaders’ effort in ensuring that the results are sustainable is by assessing if the leaders within the teams encourage innovation, adapt to social and economic events, change to meet the reality of the business and the market, and ultimately grow the company as expected by the stakeholders. Jose lost his role in the Man U dressing room principally for not creating an atmosphere of cordiality where the four elements for sustainable results can be guaranteed. He allowed his ego to kill the emotions of the goose that should be laying the golden eggs for him. His exit was premised on the result, but more to it is the lack of a positive relationship that should exist between the leaders and the followers.
Ole Gunner Solskjaer failed in his previous role at Cardiff FC when he led the team to relegation in 2014 and was sacked due to the poor result at the start of the 2015 championship season. He had, however, had a stint of successes at Molde FK in Norway, a club he had been appointed as a manager in 2011, 2015 and 2019. His success at Molde FK at each of his appointments show the importance of creating an enabling environment premised on the adaptation, innovation, change and growth supported by Ole Gunner’s personality to subjugate his ego even as the number one person in the team to a positive and result oriented relationship in the workplace.
the Baby-faced assassin (as Ole Gunner Solskjaer was nicknamed after his famous winning goal against Bayern FC in the champion league final in 1999) has proved through his success at Molde KF that environment is one of the important platforms for achieving a sustainable result. Ole must have met, understood or established a fruitful work atmosphere at Molde FK to have made the club his success fortress. This might have been what was lacking at Cardiff or his inability to adapt to the Cardiff’s environment. Leaders who are determined to achieve sustainable result must be ready to adapt to the relevant workplace culture and create a performance enabling atmosphere that motivates their team members to be at their best and to focus on the outcome. No doubt Solskjear understood the workplace culture and environment in Man U, having been part of the team for many years. This has helped his quick adaptation to the demands of his role as the interim manager.
No Man U manager had win eight games in a roll except the Baby-faced assassin. What made Ole Gunner different is his ability to develop a mutually beneficial and respect-focused relationship with his players. Paul Pogba who had scored four goals in three appearances for Ole was quoted to have said the players are now playing football with a smile on their face. This is an attestation that the predecessor of the interim coach was a sage on the stage whose word was law. The type of cordial relationship and the team spirit the players are displaying in the recent games shows people who have been given the free will to innovate, change based on reality and growth as evidenced by the result so far. This was the type of relationship that made Sir Alex Ferguson a legend though, with few exceptions which are understandable (David Beckham’s sage and his eventual transfer to Real Madrid).
You may want to argue that Ole’s result is not proven or well tested with just eight games. The fact that the team which was struggling before can defeat the likes of Tottenham and Arsenal football clubs shows the missing part of the machine has been repaired and replaced effectively. With what the interim coach has done for so and the way he had achieved results, the club is in a positive dilemma. The club will have to decide the Baby-faced assassin’s future with the result, a close-knit management team and a pool of enthusiastic players who are happy to play for the manager and the team as points for him ahead of any other manager for the job. Phil McNulty, the British Broadcasting Corporation Chief football writer put the positive dilemma in a better way. He said the discussion about the appointment of a new coach for the team has travelled from “can United really give it to Solskjaer?” into the direction of “can United actually give it to anyone else other than Solskjaer?” The 45years old interim coach has taken his destiny into his hand, thanks to his understanding of the environment, immediate adaptation to the culture of the club, the demands of the role and most important is having result-oriented and positive relationships with his work tools- the players.
This is a call for the business and workplace leaders who want to deliver the 2019 budget to learn from the above football epistolary. You are a workman that must give adequate attention to your tools. Your staff are not machines and the use of verbal, physical and emotional abusive languages cannot produce the desired sustainable results. The relationship you build with your team counts ahead of the environment, your leadership style and experience. Some leaders will claim to have 20years experience in management and treat their staff with disdain while expecting growth. The problem with leaders who are violent and abusive in the workplace is that they don’t have 20 years experience in leadership or management as claimed but merely repeat themselves every year for 20years and will end up damaging the people and the business they want to grow.
Therefore, for you to achieve a sustainable result in 2019 and beyond, give priority to your team members above your position and ego.
Babs Olugbemi
Babs Olugbemi FCCA, the Chief Responsibility Officer at Mentoras Leadership Limited and Founder, the Positive Growth Africa. He can be reached on [email protected] or 08025489396.
