Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter (39 page)

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Authors: Liz Wiseman,Greg McKeown

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yin and yang, of debates, 146–49

Young Global Leaders, 97

Yunus, Muhammad, 192

Zenger, Jack, 203–4, 206

Ziob, Lutz, 27, 84–85, 139–41, 144, 151, 155, 247

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I
t should be obvious by now that this book is the work of many people, not just one or two. We are indebted to so many and would like to thank everyone who has offered their insights and put their thumb-print on this work.

The first group is perhaps the least obvious but most essential: the nominators—the original people we interviewed who told us of their experiences working with the Multipliers and Diminishers throughout their careers. The witness protection program requires that we don’t list their names, but they know who they are. This book exists because they have shared their experiences and insights. Of course, there are the Multipliers who allowed us to study them and who have shared their stories. There is a listing of these Multipliers in Appendix C. These leaders, and the other rock stars whose stories we couldn’t fit into the book, were our constant inspiration. It is our hope that their way of leadership inspires countless more leaders like them.

Next, the book was made stronger by a team of reviewers who read early versions of the book and helped us polish the ideas. Your comments both kept us on track and kept us going. A big shout out goes to: Evette Allen, Shannon Colquhoun, Sally Crawford, Margie Duffy, Peter Fortenbaugh, Holly Goodliffe, Sebastian Gunningham, Ranu Gupta,
John Hall, Kirsten Hansen, Jade Koyle, Matt Macauley, Stu Maclennan, Justin McKeown, Sue Nelson, Todd Paletta, Ben Putterman, Gordon Rudow, Stefan Schaffer, Lisa Shiveley, Stan Slap, Hilary Somorjai, John Somorjai, Fronda Stringer Wiseman, Ilana Tandowsky, Guryan Tighe, Mike Thornberry, Jake White, Alan Wilkins, Beth Wilkins, John Wiseman, Britton Worthen, and Bruce and Pam Worthen.

There were several people who went so far and above the role of reviewer that we need to scream out a special thank you to them. These folks gave us new ideas, interesting stories, voluntary rewrites, plus good old-fashioned moral support. If there was a crime scene investigation, the following people would have more than thumbprints on the work—their DNA would be all over it: Jesse Anderson, Heidi Brandow, Amy Hayes Stellhorn, Matt Lobaugh, Greg Pal, Gadi Shamia, and Kristine Westerlind. And I owe a particular debt to my mother and on-demand editor, Lois Allen. She pretended this was just another high school term paper and reviewed every word and fixed countless errors so others could review the ideas without being distracted. Mom, you continue to make me better.

We were fortunate to land with a highly experienced and collaborative publishing team at Harper Collins. As a first-time author, I kept waiting to get beat up, but instead, we were built up. This was made possible by our insightful editor, Hollis Heimbouch. Hollis, thank you for “getting it” instantly, for guiding us, and for so deeply embracing what it means to be a Multiplier in your own work. And thanks go to Matthew Inman and the team at Harper Collins for your diligent labors on behalf of this book. To Shannon Marven, our agent at Dupree-Miller, thanks for signing up with us, for your tenacity, and for making this all possible (and for making my kids think I’m way cool for having an agent).

There are a few people whose role has been much broader than just this book that I must acknowledge. I have been fortunate to have many great mentors who have let me borrow their minds and see the world through their most brilliant lens. Here are a few who have shaped my
views and who have influenced this book profoundly. Dr. C.K. Prahalad, the great management thinker, who taught me the importance of reaching deep into an organization for intelligence and how to build collective intent. C.K., thank you for encouraging these ideas, for helping us unearth the core assumptions, and for guiding the book in many ways. I have always been proud just to be your student. Dr. J. Bonnor Ritchie, professor and peace broker, who early on shared with me (and each of his students) his insatiable intellectual curiosity and inspired us to truly embrace ambiguity. Ray Lane, the extraordinary business leader, who taught me how to lead, and who was a Multiplier to me and so many others. Kerry Patterson, the writer and great teacher, who raised our sights and encouraged us to write this book not just for corporate managers but for leaders all across the world. Kerry, thank you for coaching and pushing me harder, even when it involved a good beating.

Lastly, this book is a result of two enduring partnerships for which I am both privileged and grateful. Greg McKeown, my research and thought partner, for his fanatical need for clarity and his relentless pursuit of truth in all he does. Thank you for joining me on this journey, for setting the aspiration level high, and for sharing your genius. Anna, thank you for sharing Greg.

My deepest appreciation goes to my husband, Larry, for believing in this project from day one, for guarding my space to work on it like a watch dog, and for making me feel like a genius every day of my life.

To each of the above, thank you for so generously contributing your time and energy in bringing forward these ideas. We hope that we have done justice to what you’ve given us.

About the Authors

LIZ WISEMAN
is the president of The Wiseman Group, a leadership research and development center headquartered in Silicon Valley. She advises senior executives and leads strategy and leadership forums for executive teams worldwide. A former executive at Oracle Corporation, she worked as the vice president of Oracle University and for seventeen years as the global leader for human resource development. She holds a BS in business management and a master’s in organizational behavior, each from Brigham Young University.

GREG McKEOWN
is a partner at The Wiseman Group, where he leads the workshop and assessment practice and teaches around the world. Originally from London, England, Greg holds an MBA from Stanford University.

For more information about The Wiseman Group, visit www.TheWisemanGroup.com.

To book Liz Wiseman or Greg McKeown for a speaking engagement, visit www.harpercollinsspeakers.com.

Take The Multiplier Assessment to discover your Multiplier factor. Go to www.MultipliersBook.com to access the online test.

Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins author.

Advance
Praise
for
Multipliers

“Multipliers
is a great manifesto for today’s leaders. The authors provide a hands-on guide showing leaders how to make their total organization smarter by tapping the brainpower of everyone at all levels. A very timely and insightful book.”

—Noel Tichy, coauthor of
Judgment
with Warren Bennis, and Professor of Management and Organizations at the University of Michigan

“We’ve all known Multipliers—people who bring the best, not the worst, out of everyone around them. They’re a company’s greatest resource. If you want to learn how to become a Multiplier or transform others into genuine Multipliers, read on. If you want to enhance your own career and strengthen your company, read on.”

—Kerry Patterson, bestselling author,
Crucial Conversations

“A fascinating book that shows how mindsets shape the way people lead. This book will forever change the way we think about leadership.”

—Carol Dweck, Lewis and Virginia Eaton Professor of Psychology, Department of Psychology, Stanford University, and author of
Mindset

“Liz Wiseman and Greg McKeown’s insights are helpful, practical, and relevant. Any leader who needs to get more done with the same (or fewer) resources will find this book a gift and a valuable resource.”

—Dave Ulrich, professor, the Ross School of Business, the University of Michigan

“This book will speak to every CEO and CFO. Multipliers get so much from their people that they effectively double their workforce for free.”

—Jeff Henley, chairman of the board, Oracle Corporation

“Multipliers
is a compelling read. A must-have manual for any in a leadership position or aspiring to become a leader. It’s obvious Liz Wiseman and Greg McKeown did their homework, and those of us who read
Multipliers
are all the better for it.”

—Byron Pitts,
60 Minutes

“This engaging and subversive book asks a vital question: “How can we grow and harness human talent to address the great issues of our day?”
Multipliers
makes us rethink many of our old assumptions.”

—Gareth Jones, visiting professor, IE Madrid, and coauthor,
Why Should Anyone Be Led by You?

“This book touches upon such a fundamental truth about leadership—one that has been waiting to be named, explored, and finally addressed. Liz Wiseman and Greg McKeown have created a language that will be with us for a very long time, impacting millions.”

—Verne Harnish, founder, Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO), and CEO, Gazelles

“Multipliers
is brilliant and extraordinarily timely! It belongs on the bookshelf of every leader—and every leadership scholar.”

—Roderick M. Kramer, William R. Kimball Professor of Organizational Behavior, Stanford University School of Business

Credits

Jacket art: Faces © Getty Images; Lightbulb Illustration by Henk Dawson and Amy Hayes Stellhorn

Jacket design by Christine Van Bree

Copyright

MULTIPLIERS
. Copyright © 2010 by Elizabeth Wiseman. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

FIRST EDITION

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Wiseman, Liz.

Multipliers: how the best leaders make everyone smarter / by Liz Wiseman with Greg McKeown.—1st ed.

p. cm.

Summary: “A thought-provoking, accessible, and essential exploration of why some leaders (called ‘Diminishers’) drain capability and intelligence from their teams, while others (called ‘Multipliers’) amplify it to produce better results.”

—Provided by publisher

ISBN 978-0-06-196439-8

1. Leadership. 2. Executive ability. 3. Employee motivation. 4. Excellence. I. McKeown, Greg. II. Title.

HD57.7.W57 2010

658.4'092—dc22

2010002866

EPub Edition © May 2010 ISBN: 978-0-06-199948-2

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