Leader's Edge Column

Six Secrets of Successful E-Leaders

Here are a half-dozen strategies tech-savvy entrepreneurs and execs use to ensure that their businesses are always innovative
By Don MacRae

We've all heard about how technology is revolutionizing the way companies do business. But who are the people leading the charge, the ones who see the tremendous potential that technology holds for corporate growth? We've already coined a name for these renegades: e-leaders (the perfect companion to e-commerce, e-business, and other "e" words of the New Economy). In fact, I've read no fewer than three books, all published this year, about these digital practitioners: e-Leadership by Harvard professor D. Quinn Mills, E Leader by management consultant Robert Hargrove, and Taking Care of eBusiness by Thomas M. Siebel, founder and CEO of software company Siebel Systems.

Based on my reading -- and my own experiences working with executives -- it seems to me that e-leaders take a radically different approach to running their businesses. They're transforming staid, autocratic organizations into powerhouses that hum with innovation. They have a global mind-set that recognizes that the Internet is opening new markets and recharging existing ones. They don't bother fighting mere battles with competitors because they're too busy creating businesses that will surround and destroy them. At heart, they're entrepreneurs, and they spread that enthusiasm for new ideas throughout their enterprises. For me, e-leadership boils down to a few key points. Nail these and you'll be well on your way to becoming the next Tom Siebel, whose company has risen from nothing to $1.8 billion in annual revenues in only eight years, with a software product that manages customer relations.

Create the future rather than a better status quo. .  Let's face it: No matter how successful your business is now, it can be wiped out overnight by the swiftness of the Internet economy. Pay attention to new possibilities rather than simply reacting to today's problems. Rewrite the rules of your industry even as your competitors stick to tried-and-true ways of doing business.

Create a "teachable vision."  When Steve Jobs started Apple Computer, his teachable vision was to develop a computer that was as simple to use as a bicycle. Think about how your organization needs to act differently in order to stay at the top of your industry. Don't try to create this vision yourself. Identify the best and brightest stars in your company and have them ponder the evolution of the business. Have them investigate how your traditional markets are shifting and what new opportunities might be up for grabs.

Follow a strategy your customers set, not you.   Get over your love affair with your own products and services. What matters most is whether your customers love them. Talk to them about their needs and how you could serve them better. Hear them out when they complain about your lousy customer service. Let them set corporate direction.

Foster a collaborative culture. E-leaders don't give orders from the top. They let teams form organically in their organizations and encourage people to question the way things are done. Be open to unorthodox strategies. The most unusual idea may end up being the one that saves the company one day.

Think globally. It doesn't matter whether your company is in Boise or Budapest: Technology allows you to build ties with customers, suppliers, and strategic partners all over the world. Don't neglect the opportunity. Be disciplined about finding the best places to do business and seeing opportunities where they exist.

Thrive on information. And I'm talking about all kinds of information: overnight sales figures, customer-satisfaction scores, employee turnover, on-time delivery rates, canceled orders, and so on. Technology allows e-leaders to track their companies by every conceivable detail. Dig in. Without taking a 360-degree view of what's going on in your business -- and adjusting your strategy accordingly -- you can forget about leading for much longer.

Of course, it's easy for me to sit here and tell you to go do these things. It's quite another to execute. But the payoff will be worth the effort. For budding e-leaders, the light you see at the end of the tunnel represents a long, bright future. For the rest of you, the light belongs to an oncoming train. As Will Rogers once said, "Even if you are on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there."

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