Soulful Leadership

Executive summary

Soulful Leadership

Developing and nurturing leaders and leadership is paramount for organizations for several reasons. Two stand out – survival and prosperity. The quality and effectiveness of leadership significantly determines whether organizations will have a future, and whether that future will be more prosperous than the present. As leaders plot and chart a course to these more prosperous tomorrows, they are tested, and tested repeatedly. The challenges leaders face in the pursuit of survival, growth, and market leadership test the brilliance and smartness of their minds – their knowledge, their technical and managerial skills and competencies. But they also test something more enduring and fundamental to leadership success – they test leaders’ souls; the wisdom, humanity, and judgment leaders bring to their roles. Traditional leadership training focuses on making leaders smarter, thereby making them more adept at meeting the first type of challenge. But it bypasses the inner, more vital aspect of leaders’ humanity and character, aspects which ultimately have a greater bearing on the survival of prosperity of organizations. It is this hole that this program on “Soulful Leadership” is designed to fill.

Soulful Leadership is defined as: “Purposeful leadership journeys that are guided by an inner awakening for increasing the ongoing prosperity and wellbeing of all – the organization, people (employees, customers, communities and cultures), and the planet (health and resources), not just the leaders.” It is indispensable in today’s Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous (VUCA) world. VUCA events and challenges rarely show up as “either-or” choices; “right vs. wrong” decisions. Instead, they invariably show up as “and” decisions, demanding leaders choose between “right and right.” Today’s leaders, for example, can’t just be idealists or realists; they have to possess the capacity for both and know when to be what. Short-term thinking is not always bad, and long-term thinking is not always good, leaders have to decide when to engage in short-term thinking and when to engage in long-term thinking. Additionally, the choice is not between empower or control, the challenge is when to empower and when to control; when to negotiate when to dictate; when to take a stand and when to straddle fences.

In such an environment, what is vital and critical to help leaders keep moving forward, help them maintain their and their organization’s forward momentum, is an inner awakening, which connects them with their own humanity – who they are, what they really stand for, what they are willing to fight for – so they can make smarter and wiser choices. This program on Soulful Leadership is “unique,” because it relies on the world’s great literatures, notably immortal poems, novels, and stories, to act as a mirror in which program attendees can see themselves and learn more about themselves and their own humanity. They can then embrace what they think is working well for them and change what isn’t. An effort that will certainly result in more meaningful work, a more engaged workforce, and a more satisfied workplace.

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Service Methodology

Service methodology comprises 4 distinct steps.

The first step is a pre-consulting client engagement with key company executives to understand the key focus of leadership training and development delivered in the past, and being currently delivered. The focus of this step is to understand history, momentum, recipient satisfaction with the training received, and company aspirations in terms of fostering and nurturing current and future leaders. This step will also assess company culture and values to assess factors likely to enable, or inhibit, the delivery of the Soulful Leadership program.

The second step will use inputs from step 1, and will establish a solid foundation for understanding the dynamics and DNA of Soulful Leadership. This foundation will be culled from four areas vital for soulful leadership. First, aspects of the leader as a person. Next, how the leader thinks and views the world. Third, on how the leader acts, decides, and chooses. And lastly, how leaders relate to the world that exists beyond their own world – people, communities, and the planet. The purpose here is to hold up a mirror to the attendees, so they can look within, and connect with their own humanity – who they are, what they stand for, what they are willing to fight for. A deeper and more vibrant understanding of one’s own humanity is vital for leaders to transition from a mindset that overvalues “smart thinking,” to a mindset that also values “inner wisdom,” so leaders are more aware of the consequences of their own decision making – who wins, who loses; who is sacrificed for attaining leadership goals and who is not. This foundation will be laid with the help of world’s great literatures, notably immortal poems, novels, and stories, so that program attendees can perceive themselves in ways they haven’t before.

In the third step, participants will use a “plus-delta” framework for reflecting on, and applying the Soulful Leadership concepts and ideas discussed in step 2. The goal is to help attendees become more aware of their own equation with Soulful Leadership, so they can begin striving to become more effective soulful leaders. The “plus” effort will identify areas in which attendees perceive themselves as effective, or capable, soulful leaders, and will focus on how they can become even better. The “delta” effort will help attendees think about ways in which they can become more effective soulful leaders. Initially, attendees will work on this framework individually. This will be followed by brainstorming and group discussion.

The fourth step will focus on cultivating an organization-wide environment and culture friendly to soulful leadership, and capable of sustaining it. Attendees will use a three step framework – think about it, talk about it, act on it – to brainstorm ways in which the ideas and practice of soulful leadership can be disseminated and practiced throughout the organization.

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Service Options

Companies can elect whether they just require Appleton Greene for advice and support with the Bronze Client Service, for research and performance analysis with the Silver Client Service, for facilitating departmental workshops with the Gold Client Service, or for complete process planning, development, implementation, management and review, with the Platinum Client Service. Ultimately, there is a service to suit every situation and every budget and clients can elect to either upgrade or downgrade from one service to another as and when required, providing complete flexibility in order to ensure that the right level of support is available over a sustainable period of time, enabling the organization to compensate for any prescriptive or emergent changes relating to: Customer Service; E-business; Finance; Globalization; Human Resources; Information Technology; Legal; Management; Marketing; or Production.

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Service Mission

Billions of dollars are spent globally on leadership training and development, with the US alone spending between $14 to $50 billion annually. Regrettably, these enormous investments have not resulted in glittering gains. News of leadership crises and failures involving high profile global giants like Wells Fargo, VW, and BP routinely flood the news. Within organizations the news is no better. Trust and confidence in leaders and leadership is at an all time low, and employee dissatisfaction and lack of engagement with work and the work place is at an all time high. Words like “soulless” and “dehumanizing” are used frequently by employees around the world to describe their organizations and work environment.

Difficult times demand fresh approaches, new narratives tailored to the circumstances surrounding us. This program on “Soulful Leadership” is a new narrative on leadership. It leads us away from a narrow descriptive focus on what leadership is, to a wider and broader focus on what leaders and leadership should stand for – a platform for increasing the wellbeing and prosperity of the greater many, not just a privileged few. It advocates focusing on the inner aspects of leaders, and learning from new teachers who have the ability to bring leaders face-to-face with their own humanity – who they are, what they stand for, and what they are willing to fight for. Because the greatest asset of leaders is not just the brilliance of their minds, but the wisdom of their souls – what’s within leaders that guides what’s in their minds.

Dr. Bhalla is an experienced leadership, marketing, innovation, and strategy professional with over thirty years of global experience as a multinational corporate executive, business consultant, entrepreneur, academic, and executive education specialist. During his professional tenure he has worked with companies in over thirty different countries on five different continents. His rich and varied experience working with diverse functional groups within companies operating in diverse cultures coupled with his academic and commercial credentials is a powerful asset in enabling companies innovate and implement new leadership narratives. Known as a thinker-doer, he inspires clients to adapt and improvise by listening, engaging, and responding differently to their internal and external environments than they have in the past. He uses a variety of facilitation, consulting, teaching and coaching approaches in his programs. With his passion for application of cutting edge knowledge to real life decision making, he knows how to encourage clients to ask and solve the right questions that have the potential of enhancing their future well being and prosperity.

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Service objectives

The following list represents the Key Service Objectives (KSO) for the Appleton Greene Soulful Leadership service.

1. Reimagining Leadership
   The purpose of this service objective is to help companies reimagine the role of leaders and the goals of leadership. Today’s organizations are fascinated with leaders and leadership. So it is not surprising that the two words have become imbued with meanings and interpretations that actually distort their fundamental nature and purpose. For instance, lately, leadership has become more of a morality tale. There is excessive concern with the virtuous aspects of leaders – empowerment, authenticity and charisma – and correspondingly less concern with what leaders should be doing. There is also excessive attention paid to the personality aspects of leaders – personality tests and profiles – and less attention to how work actually gets done, and what leaders need to do to further existing histories and write new chapters for future histories of their organizations. Consequently, it is important to help attendees re-imagine leaders and leadership. Leaders are not necessarily heroes. Frequently, they are ordinary people who are asked to play a role for a finite amount of time. During this time, they are charged with moving their organizations forward toward some desired strategic destination. The personal assets that leaders bring forth to navigate these leadership journeys are critical, and will form the core of reimagining of leadership and leadership roles. In keeping with the essence of the program, this reimagining will be fueled by appropriate examples from poetry and literature. Several examples of real life leaders will be provided to help attendees acquire a different perspective on who leaders are and what their roles should be. This will set the stage for the service objectives that follow.
2. Soulful Leadership
   This service objective will help lay a foundation for clients to understand the dynamics and DNA of soulful leadership. Key concepts and ideas that give Soulful Leadership its unique character will be presented and discussed. The discussion will be concrete, not abstract. Specific examples from the day to day lives of organizations, involving routine and non-routine decisions, like job promotions, use of robots instead of human beings, and sponsoring community programs in tough economic times will be used to establish the idea and practice of soulful leadership. Specific factors enabling or inhibiting the practice of Soulful Leadership will also be discussed. These factors will be drawn from three main categories – who the leader is, how the leader thinks, and how the leader acts. Consideration will also be given to the environment comprising of communities, cultures, and the planet to illustrate how soulful leadership can be conceived and implemented. In keeping with the essence of the program, the ideas and practice concerning Soulful Leadership will be appropriately supported and illustrated with examples from poetry and literature. Examples of real life leaders who practice, or have practiced Soulful Leadership when they were active will be used to inspire and inform program attendees. Lastly, this foundation will serve as the basis for further exploring key dimensions of Soulful Leadership in the service objectives that follow.
3. Inner Awakening
   The purpose of this service objective is to help clients focus on a vital, but neglected aspect of successful leadership. Traditional leadership training has paid scant attention to the inner aspects of leaders. It has focused instead on leaders’ heads, attempting to make them smarter and instilling in them relevant task related skills and competencies. It has also focused on designing appropriate incentives and regulations for promoting the “right” kind of behavior. But in today’s content rich world, these types of competencies can be readily purchased and don’t offer a sustainable source of competitive advantage. Neither can a focus on incentives and work processes lead to engaging and satisfying work places. What can’t be bought, and what differentiates successful leaders from the not so successful ones is what lies within them. The commitment, the caring, the passion, the discipline, the dedication to constantly learn, grow, and become a better human being, and therefore a better leader, can’t be bought. But it can be nurtured through an inner awakening, which motivates leaders to understand who they are, so they can make not just smarter, but also wiser, more enlightened choices. This inner awakening is the bedrock of Soulful Leadership. In its absence leadership would remain a vehicle for the self-serving interests of the powerful and privileged not the platform it should be for the wellbeing and prosperity of the many. Here again, as in previous service objectives – and the ones to follow – the dynamics and benefits of inner awakening will be illustrated and supported by examples from immortal poems and literature, and from case-studies of past and current leaders.
4. Sacrifice Framework
   The purpose of this objective is to emphasize the importance of one of the most vital elements of soulful leadership. Leaders are appointed to act; doing nothing is not an action. The bulk of leader’s actions revolve around generating forward momentum for their organizations and themselves. This forward momentum is usually toward what leaders – and hopefully, the organization – considers a better future. But each time leaders act, they have to sacrifice something, or someone, or someone’s interests. For example, leaders can sacrifice people, resources (which includes the planet), or some aspect of themselves; usually it’s some combination of the three. It is impossible not to do so, because pleasing and satisfying everybody is not feasible. Since who to sacrifice, how much, and when are not trivial decisions, Soulful Leadership requires leaders to be guided by an inner awakening so that no one group of people or resources are sacrificed disproportionately for the gain of a privileged few. Historically, leaders have often used their power and privilege to sacrifice others – including resources – for their own wellbeing and prosperity. But Soulful Leadership sees it differently. It considers leadership as a privilege of a different kind, as a force of doing good, and a platform for increasing the wellbeing and prosperity of the greater many. The discussion on the sacrifice framework will also be illustrated and supported by examples from poetry and literature, and from case-studies of leaders who have exhibited an uncommon awareness of the sacrifices inherent in their own decisions, and modeled exemplary behaviors concerning the sacrifice framework.
5. Implementation Dynamics
   New narratives and ideas benefit leaders and the organizations they lead only when they are implemented. Merely talking about them accomplishes little. Consequently, the purpose of this objective is to present and discuss a three-step framework for disseminating the idea and practice of Soulful Leadership throughout the organization, so it becomes an integral part of the organization’s operating culture. The first step in the framework is to “Think about it.” This step enables attendees to reflect individually on the various aspects of Soulful Leadership and on their own equation with it, so they can determine where they could adopt and embrace it more fully. The second step, “Talk about it,” transfers this individual assessment to a group discussion on how and where Soulful Leadership can and should be implanted. The third step, “Act on it,” translates the brainstorming from step 2 to an action agenda, with the emphasis being on exhibiting behavior that will lead to Soulful Leadership becoming an integral part of the operating culture and DNA of the organization. Collectively, the three steps should bring about a greater awareness, appreciation, and implementation of the ideas and practice of Soulful Leadership.

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Testimonials

Deloitte

”Dr. Bhalla designed and delivered two sessions on Leadership (Trusted Business Advisor) for our senior managers through his association with ISB. Senior Managers at Deloitte play a pivotal role in the organizational strategy, direction, and success. They form the leadership pipeline and are future Partners and Directors of the firm. Given their significant role and responsibility, their development is a strategic and critical function in the firm. Dr. Bhalla was extremely professional and easy to work with during the design and delivery of these programs. He took time to understand our context and needs in detail. This time spent upfront helped him design a very focused program for our senior managers. The program delivery was very interactive and highly effective. Dr. Bhalla was able to connect with all participants through his delivery style and relevant content. The post program survey was a testament to the program effectiveness with most participants agreeing that it will have a positive impact on their work.”

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eknow

”Dr. Bhalla facilitated yet another outstanding leadership training workshop. His theme this time was “Leadership Learnings from Immortal Poems” and he once again demonstrated his passionate and captivating presentation style in bringing his subject matter to life. One of his key assertions was that “the most important asset of leaders is not their minds but their souls” and that “the immortal poems can help awaken them.” He also made the case for leaders to “bring their head and their heart into greater alignment.” Dr. Bhalla showcased his own soulful leadership and powerful facilitation skills to actively engage our group in a very stimulating dialog.”

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