I follow the changing perceptions of leadership with great interest and have asked myself how a holistic and sustainable leadership culture can be achieved across the entire business. It is precisely this aspect which will be crucial in future, to be able to differentiate oneself from the competition with similar products and thus remain a valid player on the market. At times of steady growth in a company in particular, it is hugely important to deal with questions relating to the corporate culture and not just those regarding market development. Otherwise, there is a risk of losing that special something and becoming replaceable.
For a long time, research into leadership has primarily dealt with aspects regarding managers themselves. As such, the focus has always been on the characteristics and conduct required of leaders. However, to a large extent, a holistic approach was lacking. Discussions have rarely touched on the fact that a leader alone cannot guarantee success: a holistic leadership culture in the company is much more important. Of course, such a culture doesn’t come about by itself – managers must set an example. Managers are role models, but the new culture needs to be transferred to employees and supported and embodied by everyone. Only in this way can we create a positive impression for our customers and thus bring about sustainable success in the company.
So, while an inspirational company leadership and management team are indispensable, it also requires the willingness and ability of employees to deal with this environment and play their part. Limiting – often self-related – topics should be less important in discussions, as employees understand the “bigger picture” and follow this out of inner conviction and motivation.
It is not least this aspect that I personally particularly appreciate about the LP3 model. Employee needs are collated and taken into account. Employees are given the opportunity to help shape their environment and the internal culture. To me, this is important for gaining a mutual understanding and achieving a common language, and for ensuring that everyone is heading in the same direction.
Another deciding factor for the integration of the LP3 approach is its simplicity. It doesn’t matter how much experience employees and managers already have in the subject of leadership; LP3 is understood and brings everyone together from different levels. In our company, we started conducting leadership workshops, which included all managers from senior and middle management. We discussed the requirements of managers and were able to identify and prioritize various potentials. All managers fully support the path we have chosen, which – from my point of view – is the most important factor.
The results from the leadership workshop were announced in the subsequent team workshops that we conducted in all departments with the involvement of all employees. There was great appreciation for the line managers’ openness with regard to the findings, and this served as an invitation for others to follow this path and define individual measures.
My experiences to date show that there has been a wide acceptance across the entire company. It would be presumptuous to claim that LP3 has already significantly changed the culture in our company after the first few workshops and just six months. But what I can state categorically is that I had never before experienced such a positive dynamic – often, people feel ambivalent about such subjects and with regard to change in general.
LP3 has been incorporated across a broad base since the beginning and the findings from it are always readily quoted in various discussions and used for decision-making. In the meantime, we, too, have been able to implement initial measures – for example, we have been able to create team visions in all ebi-pharm departments, which show individual contributions to achieving the overall vision.
I consider LP3 a holistic process that helps us all to better understand one another and follow our objectives with the same conviction. Personally, I am confident that it has put us on the right track – in the knowledge that it is a change that will probably never be truly completed as such and will continue over many stages…
