Team Leadership

Mount Rainier - Photo by Danny Smith

Supervision and leadership are two entirely different things. Managers and Supervisors ensure that policies are properly implemented. Leaders are visionary people who establish policy and inspire others to do innovative things. Both roles are important. A project manager may need to play both roles. In mountaineering, leadership keeps the team inspired to reach the summit; however, management ensures that team members are properly tied in, that ropes are not damaged by crampons, that the proper gear and equipment is carried on the summit attempt.

I will be giving a team leadership lecture tomorrow night at Samford University in the project management course that I teach in Samford's Master of Science in Environmental Management program. We will discuss the traits of a good leader and look at some case studies. We will discuss the importance of honesty, leading by example, and the art of listening. We will discuss the characteristics of an effective manager.

With respect to servant leadership we will look at the example of Earnest Shackleton when he and his crew aboard the Endurance were ship-wrecked in the Antarctic ice. After their ship sank, Shackleton went from tent to tent serving hot milk himself. Shackleton took the first watch himself and took a longer watch when his men were cold and tired.

We will also look at the leadership example Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia from his book, Let My People Go Surfing. He allows his employees flextime to surf when the waves are good or to ski when the powder is great or to stay home when a child is sick. They have no dress codes. His employees are very independent. They might be unemployable at some companies; however, he has created a highly productive culture of very loyal team members.

The students in my class come from countries on four continents. I expect them all to be great leaders in the world.

"The world needs leaders, but nobody wants a boss." - Waite Phillips, donor of Philmont Scout Ranch