A quote form Professor Bob Sutton, Stanford University: "The best test of a person's character is how he or she treats those with less power". Like Bob Sutton, I love to study how people with power over others act. It seems that power has a tendency to corrupt. I believe that being cognizant of that, and keeping your ego in check, is one of the most effective ways to become and remain a true leader. A true leader facilitates the leadership qualities in the people around him.
Alan Mulally, CEO of Ford Motor Company is a perfect example of an engaged leader. In an interview with The New Yorker, he said "The most important thing is it has to be safe for each of us to share...as a human being, you're not going to share the way it really is if you are going to catch abuse, be yelled at, or be put down in some way..." This is not a revelation, yet it seems that sometimes people in power forget the importance of empathy.
Alan Mulally is a true leader, and Ford is on its way to becoming number 1 in the auto industry. Ford reflects a new and different corporate culture. And Alan knows the power of human capital, and that is the biggest asset on Ford's Balance Sheet.
The most influential developers of
human capital are teachers!
