Is reality TV finally living up to its name? Most of what we are served up under that rubric is actually the farthest thing from reality. The exploits of Snooki, Jake the Bachelor, and all those Real Housewives hardly reflect life as most of America knows it and lives it… Enter “Undercover Boss,” the new CBS reality show in which corporate CEOs don disguises and spend a few days experiencing what it’s like to be a low-level worker at their companies. Arrianna Huffington
Procter & Gamble Co.’s Bob McDonald is going undercover in Latin America next week. Posing as a market researcher, the chief executive officer will accompany shoppers to stores or make home visits. The trip, to Brazil, Mexico and Argentina, will be his 59th since taking charge in July and is central to his plan to reach 1 billion new customers by 2015. (P&G’s McDonald Pins Growth on Closer Shave Than Mumbai Barber by Mark Clothier)
Leaders understand that what happens and what is known, can be odd bedfellows. For some leaders, its the ultimate defense for the leadership gaffs we’ve experienced in recent years. Companies like Toyota, GM, the SEC (The Securities & Exchange Commission) and others come to mind. Just having at one’s disposal a, “I didn’t know that…” can be sacred shelter to the psychic of a weak leader.
However for most leaders, the “I didn’t know…” is cheap rhetoric and a feeble excuse. They actually want to know and understand what is really going on, how people really feel about their jobs and the company’s products, and what lurks silently in the corners. For they know that to lead, they also need to know what is really going on. They actually fear the silent problems they may not yet know or be aware of. How can they achieve this? Here are a few suggestions I make in my Silent Problem presentation.
- Be an outstanding listener. And the best way to becoming an outstanding listener is to be excellent at asking insightful questions.
- Shadow: Become the undercover boss that sees the business from the eyes of the employee or the user of your products & services.
- Conduct regular One-to-Ones: Don’t ask for fancy powerpoints. Simply ask, “Tell me what is going on.”
- Create a culture of candor: The door into your office needs to be every bit as large for bad news, as it is for good news.
- Management by Walking Around: It is highly effective and well worth the effort and time. Check out this link, Doing the Walk Around
- Be constantly searching for silent problems and be diligent in solving them (more on this in the book Without Warning).
CBS’s show Undercover Boss is simply another variation of reality TV that is trying to expose a unique angle on life. Is it cheesy? Yes. However, it does expose the gap between what can happen in the organization and what the leader knows come to life. And there is a lesson in this. Part of being an effective leader is being an Undercover Boss.
