What Code do you Uphold?

I can often relate sports reality to leadership challenges.  So while it may seem strange to start this blog with reference to the the NHL playoffs bear with me for a moment or two.  I'm going to reflect back in particular to my beloved Habs beating those beastly Bruins this year, but also drawn upon some other sports stories that came to mind relating to unwritten codes that we enforce or hold on to as part of our sporting culture - and how that might relate to our work cultures.

For those of you who don't follow hockey I'll briefly recap.  This year, Montreal defeated Boston - the best team in hockey over this regular season - in the seventh and final game of their series and did so on Boston's home ice.  This was but another chapter in probably the most storied rivalry in hockey.  As is tradition, every series ends with the obligatory handshake between the teams and is supposed to epitomize the highest level of sportsmanship.  Well in this series it didn't quite go according to script.  One of Boston's star players, Milan Lucic, is reported to have told at least one Montreal player that "I'm going to f---king kill you next year."  Story enough to be sure, but what got at least as much play was that Montreal players came under fire for disclosing this gem of a conversation with the media.  Evidently this was against the unwritten code in hockey which is what is said in the handshake line or "between men" on the ice stays on the ice.  The "code" had been broken.

At about the same time we also saw Michael Alan Sam Jr. drafted by the St. Louis Rams of the National Football League.  Nothing too unique about this event - except that he was the first publicly gay player to be drafted in league history and if he takes the field with the Rams this year will also become the first publicly gay athlete in NFL history.  This, of course, was bigger news than Sam's being named Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Year in his senior year and consensus All-American.  His coming out and willingness to be bold in doing so - including kissing his companion on national TV - clearly were the bigger story than his athletic accomplishments.  He had clearly broken the code of what type of behavior and lifestyle is expected from NFL-calibre players.   This is despite the fact that there are nearly 1,700 players in the NFL each year and over the course of its history the odds are more than one of them has been gay.  The code was be straight or at the very least be silent and discrete.  Michael Sam broke that code.

I also finally saw the movie "42", a 2013 biographical film about the life of baseball player Jackie Robinson.  In 1946, Jackie Robinson became the first black man to play and star in major league baseball - twenty years in advance of the peak of the civil rights movement in the United States, He endured vicious harassment and abuse, up to an including numerous death threats.  He not only got to experience this abuse in the form of anonymous letters and catcalls from the stands - he also was on the receiving end of countless taunts, physical harm (e.g, fastball to the head), and efforts to ostracize him even from his own white teammates.  He had broken the color line in baseball, he had broken the unwritten code that didn't allow blacks into baseball - or mainstream society.

What does this have to do with leadership?  Clearly, at high level for our society, is has everything to do with leadership.  At an organizational level, however, there are clear examples of unwritten codes that we continue to uphold both by our actions and inaction, by our voluntary commitment, and through our own fear and desire for self-preservation.  I was astounded this year (maybe through my own naivety) to learn about the challenges two of my female colleagues were experiencing in their organizations.  They were still falling victim to an "old boys" mentality and blatant sexism.  Their skills and abilities were being dismissed and going underutilized.  An unwritten code about what makes for good leadership and who can take on senior level roles that continues to play out in many business sectors.

More akin to the first sports analogy I started with, is the notion of upholding a code of silence in our organizations.  This manifests in several different ways.  If we consider some of the recent events in government relating to expense scandals and the like, it is clear that a code of silence had been operative for some time.  Individuals in peer positions decided not to confront their colleagues feeling that it would upset other agendas.  Those in subordinate positions likely stood silent for fear of their jobs and careers.  As leaders and professionals we also often fail to deal with lack of performance or poor performance by our colleagues.  Sometimes we do so out of a fear of conflict and confrontation.  Just as often we adhere to a code of silence that suggests a mentality of rallying around a management colleague.  We "hang together" even if the consequences of doing so in the form of staff turnover, grievances, client complaints, financial mismanagement, and more are there for all to see.  In many cases we tolerate and support this code of silence through our lack of action while others pay the price.

This action or inaction also comes despite our many professional codes of conduct that would seemingly direct us to more positive effort for the benefit of our clients/customers, our organizations and our professions.

So what code or codes do you uphold?  How clear are you about the actions you take - or not - that foster and support organizational and leadership excellence?  Are you helping maintain an unhealthy status quo or are you prepared to step up and leave a legacy of your leadership?
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Greg Hadubiak, MHSA, FACHE, CEC, PCC
TEC Canada Chair/Executive Coach/Senior Consultant
hadubiak@wmc.ca

Helping leaders realize their strengths and enabling organizations to achieve their potential through the application of my leadership experience and coaching skills. I act as a point of leverage for my clients. I AM their Force Multiplier.