Leading Through Challenging Times
November 2022
Think back over your career to the most challenging time you can remember. It may be recent or some time ago. If you were the one leading the way, how did you do it? What were your greatest fears and how did you overcome them?
If you were not in charge, how did you manage to navigate through the chaos? Did the adversity unify your team, or did it divide or destroy the organization?
The entire world has faced unprecedented challenges these past few years—from the pandemic, riots, lootings, and fires, to hurricanes, floods, cyberattacks and more. Some organizations have thrived, some are barely hanging on, and others have closed.
The true test of a leader happens during a catastrophe. Demonstrating strength, vision and compassion through heartbreak and hard times, while keeping the team together and unified—like a mother hen spreading her wings around her chicks during a downpour—proves the mettle of a leader.
Many of the heartfelt leaders I’ve interviewed over the years shared stirring stories of arduous occasions that proved their mettle. One example is best-ever boss Rein Preik, retired founder and CEO emeritus of Chemcraft International, a global manufacturer of industrial wood coatings. I featured Rein in my first two books, The WOW Factor Workplace: How to Create a Best Place to Work Culture and Heartfelt Leadership: How to Capture the Top Spot and Keep on Soaring.
Perhaps Rein’s childhood upbringing in East Germany—where forced evacuations, poverty, and the ravages of war were everyday occurrences under the Hitler regimen in WWII—caused him to appreciate the value of life and the importance of family and friends who protected each other. Today, Rein’s leadership philosophy is simple:
“As far as handling people, what’s important is to have trust. It’s all a matter of trust. People have to trust you, and you have to trust the people.”
As a teenager after the war, Rein emigrated to Canada with just $18 in his pocket. Over the ensuing years he worked hard to build his own company, until one night his factory burned to the ground after everyone had gone home for the day. Rein and his team literally had to start over. Yet, determined to rebuild together, they not only survived but they eventually created a successful global enterprise.
Fast forward to decades later. The firm’s long-tenured chief financial officer, Diana Hyunen, described Rein’s struggle with the decision to finally sell the company and retire:
“I think it was difficult for him because he was extremely loyal to and protective of all his employees.”
One of the most inspiring role models I had the honor of working with during my own corporate career was Stephen P. Kaufman, (now former) Chairman of the Board of Arrow Electronics. Mr. Kaufman inspired me from the outset, beginning with the management orientation session I attended as a newly acquired employee. I will never forget how Mr. Kaufman personally told every new manager the story of “The Great Fire” that had devasted the company two decades before.
The Great Fire happened in a hotel where the corporate leadership team was conducting a multi-day planning meeting. One evening during the event, a flash fire swept through the hotel conference center, claiming the lives of 13 members of Arrow’s senior leadership team. The CEO, an executive vice president, and 11 other senior leaders perished. To this day, that hotel fire still ranks as one of the worst corporate disasters in American business history.
As you might imagine, the entire company struggled to overcome the loss of so many talented executives. It was up to the lone surviving senior executive to hold the grieving company together while he and the board searched for a new chief executive with the right vision, values, and leadership style to shepherd the company out of the crisis. One of their first moves was to recruit a new president who possessed a heightened sensitivity for the value of life and relationships, as well as financial astuteness.
A former partner of McKinsey and Company, Stephen Kaufman, accepted the presidency. Four years later he succeeded the lone original executive as CEO. Eight years after that, Mr. Kaufman went on to become the chairman who was now standing in front of us. He was the consummate heartfelt corporate patriarch.
By the time Mr. Kaufman finished narrating this historic tale of tragedy, there wasn’t a dry eye in the room. The undeniable take-aways from that session were an understanding of how the current corporate culture came to be, and how important, appreciated, and cherished every employee—both old and new—was and would be to this Chairman. As a perfect capstone to the story, the Chairman’s wife brought in a wonderful homemade family-style Italian lunch for all attendees. This management orientation luncheon—homemade and lovingly served by Mrs. Kaufman—was a tradition that endured for as long as Mr. Kaufman was Chairman.
As a result, not only did I (and every other manager) have a far greater appreciation for this new corporate culture, but I was also impressed that after enduring such a tremendous loss, the organization had become a family that grew even stronger together over time.
Mr. Kaufman taught me that you can’t win employees’ hearts and minds without exemplifying heartfelt leadership. Over time, the organizational culture inspired by Mr. Kaufman helped me refine and elevate the level of empathy and heartfelt leadership my consulting teams and I delivered together while working with clients in crisis mode.
Whenever you are faced with challenging times, be sure to think of your own role models, or the wisest person you’ve ever met. Think of how they have listened to you and how responsive they have been to address your questions, your fears, and your ideas. Then simply do what they would do—rise to the occasion, adapt practices, and help your team move forward, unified by the determination to overcome whatever adversity has come your way.
The good news is that challenging times can make you stronger as a leader—if you trust and protect your team, as though they are family. By working together—by trusting, protecting, appreciating and cherishing each team member—those challenging times won’t be so challenging.