Seriously its changing. In the past we used marketing as a form of power to gain customers, but we are increasingly recognising that true power comes in the form of influence and via talking about our morals, ethics and ethos. Sociologist Amitai Etzioni considered the source’s of a leaders power, and I apply this to both people and brand leadership. According to Etzioni there are three significant sources of power:

1. Coercive – the use of force
2. Utilitarian – the use of incentives
3. Normative – the use of values

Looking at this list is almost watching history in motion. I’ve always felt very uncomfortable with peoples motivation being rewarded with an incentive, its far too extrinsic, short term and short lived. And it really stuffs up peoples expectations of you! We are paying the price for this not just economically but culturally too. And, its had equal damage in leadership as well as marketing. We all use discounts and promotions to stimulate growth but underneath it all its all a bit shallow. Not only that but we can see straight through it! Usually there is a catch even if its to someone else further down the supply chain.

Observing how we are shifting in business takes us to ‘normative.’ This is where organisations exercise influence (modern day power) through commitment to a set of values both from an employee and customer perspective. There are different forms of wealth and we now know that people are motivated by a diverse range of factors such as progress, intellect, creativity, participation, engagement and social needs not just financial.

In a knowledge economy where innovation and customer experience are the pre dominant competitive advantages, a combination of utilitarian and normative power are best applied. Not only that, in a highly connected world, where transparency is coming to the forefront and we are building business communities full of people, values are central to how we build relationships with our customers. They are far more interested in those values nowadays than how our product which, truthfully, really isn’t that much different to anyone elses!

Well we are almost through the 2010 ‘Lecture’ series with only one more to go in late November “You can’t hide transparency.” With that in mind and conscious that 2011 is rolling towards us at a frightening pace, we’ve launched the next set of ‘Lectures’ for next year. For further details and to book click on the link below:

http://www.eventbrite.com/event/953543073

We believe we are offering great value at £320 plus vat for six, leading edge, radically thinking events that will really challenge the way you do business and how you work.

A close family member, I recently observed, walks around with their eyes strained on the floor in front of them. They rarely look up, occasionally converse and mainly keep their head down. Its okay we’ve talked about it. Their reasoning (which is fine and practical) is that they don’t want to trip over.

Business is a lot like that. We walk around with our heads down focused on the thing immediately in front of us, scared to trip over or run into something. But observation is important. Seeing what’s around us is critical. Being aware of the differences, what people are doing, how things happen and, dare I say it, tripping over is okay too! Sometimes, bumping into something or someone can have interesting outcomes.

James Thurber (American Writer, 1894-1961) is quoted as saying “Let us not look back in anger or forward in fear, but around in awareness.” Staring out of the side window, looking at the total view and taking in the depth of experience is one of the key, hard skills of any business leader. Connection to people is important but so is connecting and participating in the world around us. Navel gazing as we go about our business leads to stuffy thinking.

Taking the time to notice is, I know, sometimes hard to do. I urge you to get out of the office, factory, classroom today, go for a walk and look up and around. If you trip up at least you know you’re still awake!

A level playing field| People rather than products| Gifts| Air of excitement| Nervous trepidation| Unorthodox thinking| Too much coffee| Not enough change| Screen time| Insomnia stimulating inspiration| Inert organisations| Flair| Straight jacket actions| Google| Creative remixing| Bags of ideas| Little impact| Trouble at the mill| Going slow fast| The miracles of innovation| The stupidity of arrogance| Making noise quietly| Fields of turnips| The lack of grace| Twitter| Inconvenient trouble| Broken promises| Plaster solutions| Launch and learn| Perfection is subjective| Ecosystems| Absurdity of naivety| The shape of business| Exploitation| The futility of resistance| Connection not networking| The significance of difference| Facebook| False profits| Fragile trust| Community not brand| A mass of individuals| So its all about intent| Linkedin| The same thing on repeat| Profit rather than being human| Initiating history| Art| The abundance of the phony| Vulnerability| Foursquare| Deep down feeling it more| Ironic expression of indviduality| Frozen relationships| Nudge advocacy| Non financial influence| The future of conversation|

The groundswell of change is leading to some seismic shifts in the next five particularly for leadership, jobs won’t change much but the emphasis in your company will:

1. There will always be indispensible people required, except you’ll need a lot more in your company tomorrow. These people will be ‘world class,’ passionate, fully engaged, online, followed, creative, leaders, organising discussion groups via Linkedin, people orientated, trusting, respectful and have high expectations.

2. There will always be reliable people unless you motivate them more intrinsically. They get paid to turn up, love silos and blame cultures. Low engagement, low communication, follow the rules, have conservative expectations. Believe in authority, hide creativity, follow but are not followed. They won’t blow your mind but will deliver a great days work to their job description.

3. There will always be low paid people. High turnover, little or low motivation, low in respect. They rock up and then go home with some shuffling in between. Expectations will be low.

You are what you do and what impact you have. In the future our businesses will need to be full of the number ones because its that distinctive element that will make us competitive as our products become increasingly much the same. The future business Seth Godin says “consists of well organised linchpins doing their thing in concert, creating more value than any factory could.”

We need business communities surrounding our business as they will help us deal with the near chaos of rapid change. Having talented people no matter their involvement and role in the community will be important. I’ll talk specifically about this over the weeks to come and the war for talent.

Facilitating this community will take huge heaps of imagination, energy and unlearning. It can’t be controlled just guided. There will be some significant issues to overcome, not least how your business community will behave.

The people in your business community will only do something if they believe it is worth doing, if it intrinsically motivates them. Financial reward is not principally why they will be involved. It will be a desire to connect with likeminded people, learn, participate and be challenged. They really abhor control, power and hierarchy.

Once developed and approaching maturity, groups within your business community may act spontaneously and without your authorisation or the need for you to organise it. Look at www.lego.com new designs, new products and new animations all created initially as ideas without company interference.

Business community participants will need space and places to meet, discover, think and converse. This, of course, does not mean just physically, it may mean you creating a platform online to encourage this. Business communities once confident, will want to do their own thing. That is, they may not come up with what you had in mind and will be very clear when you have done something wrong. This means they will unnerve and miff you occasionally.

This is not about forming a cult. Often people in your community will be opinionated, diverse, outspoken and comfortable expressing themselves. How powerful is that, constant, unadulterated, true feedback, product development, creative thinking and participation.

If you get it right, your business community will know how to play. They know how to push the limits. Led positively, this means lots of ideas that are childlike but not childish. Be prepared for how much this business community will feel part of your brand and how committed and loyal you will feel to it.