A few weeks back I went along to the third Robert Walters NZ Leadership Awards in Auckland. This was my third time, and I plan to go next year as well. Why?

Because it’s a great way to stay in touch with what is going on in the space of leadership and spotting any trends emerging. I like the diversity of the different categories, and whilst it’s a black tie event it’s not stuffy.

A trend I have seen in the last three years is the rise of Pacifica and Māori leadership being represented in many of the categories. The huge support these nominees receive is next level; the response to their nominations and success is boisterous and it is clear there is a real pride in their people getting nod, irrespective of the outcome. I think, and I hope, this trend will continue well into the future.

Awards like these and business awards do not always have the rigour and integrity that they need or deserve. Awards represent a snapshot in time and the judges are responding to information provided. It’s not perfect but it’s still a celebration of people and organisations striving for higher standards.

At last year's event there was a former politician at the event who was, at that time, working for Robert Walters. A suave character, he cut a fine figure in his black tie. The next morning, he was interviewed on Sean Plunket's The Platform, and when asked what his definition of a woman was; his response? “Someone with a p….y and t..s”

I wondered how his bosses would respond to this.

Within the week he was no longer at Robert Walters. Gone burger. Well done Robert Walters for demonstrating integrity and accountability.

The privilege and sometimes curse of my role is that I know many of the people and or organisations involved in these types of awards, either directly or indirectly. As a result I am often flabbergasted about who makes it as finalists.

What I have come to understand is that some people nominate themselves, while others are very good at pretending to be good at their roles. Both of these types can cause much harm in an organisation.

Over the decades I have had the chance to patch into many leadership teams and boards in a wide range of organisations facilitating some tricky conversations. These are teams where the stakes are higher and both require a greater set of interpersonal skills, which often have not been developed sufficiently, irrespective of how much personal or professional experience the individuals may have.

I believe the route you take to get into these positions is a big determinant as to your effectiveness in these executive teams.

Some get here because they are white men and share a commonality - notably they are not necessarily there because of their skills or suitability, but the fact they look the same as those appointing the next intake of team members. These highly revered and paid individuals are often not very effective in their roles, but are there because they are protected by the hierarchy who chose them in the first place.

Others achieve these milestones of hierarchy because they have the technical skills. They may have been a great technician in their roles and got shit done, and they look to be the ideal person you'd want on the SLT.

Or you could be a super hard working colleague, often working overtime and weekends, diligently compromising your work/life balance and someone looks down from on high and says "let's promote you, you might be a great CEO one day".

There’s also the noisy ones, the ones that get attention when in a crowd; those who demand centre stage and take every opportunity to remind those lesser mortals around them of how great they are and how their achievements, which are only ever accomplished by them and them alone, can also, often, make it through to the big leagues.

And finally the schmoozer’s. These are the politically savvy, who know how to play the game at work, and very good at getting in front of the right people at the right time, very good at planting the seeds to ingratiate themselves with those who will carry through them through to greatness. This group can, and often does, go far.

I’m going to lump them all up in a bundle and call them "The Imposters".

They often have something in common: they don’t play well with others - unless you are their immediate boss. This is because they have not developed, amongst other things, the intricate interpersonal skills needed to be a great team member.

The problems start showing up once the Imposters get into the SLT or, God forbid, on the Board. Not immediately, but little by little they will show their colours, especially under stress. This can be in the form of undermining others, bullying, taking credit for stuff they haven't done, or being overly verbose, often talking people into submission and filibustering to confuse and misdirect.

Who suffers? The most valuable team members' suffer. The quiet, conscientious, diligents, who come to work to do just that - work.

These Imposters can often be found working in great organisations that do great work. Some of the most destructive people I have encountered have worked in charities with wonderful missions, yet left behind a trail of chaos, misrepresentation, fractured relationships and lasting damage.

The issue is that once the Imposters are in place, whilst they are quickly identified, they can be very hard to manage and deal with. This is because their unique level of incompetence and/or f**kery is something they have been crafting for a very long time, whether they're consciously aware of their behaviour or not.

Amazingly they can be some of the highest paid people in the organisation, and they have the ability to cause immense harm. The number of times I have talked with team members about their Imposters, and I have emphasised with management and boards, that if they have identified an Imposter, it is highly likely that they will only be seeing the tip of the iceberg. The harm will be wider and deeper than they can possibly see or imagine.

So ….. What to do?

I love working with these situations. They are as messy as hell, and very gratifying once you can get to the nub of the issue. We have dealt with this often at Collective Intelligence in one form or another. Sometimes the Imposter can be managed and developed, but often not. But before anything can be done, they, firstly, need to be identified.

Helping SLTs and Boards get sorted is something I’m really keen to do more of, and currently working on some offerings to do just that. Drawing on 45 years of experience in commerce, and enjoying the complexity of drawing out the dis-alignment and poor behaviour to bring clarity and harmony to life is something I find energising.

So watch this space as our team works to formulate some ways we can help your SLT!

But in the meantime, I'm keen to hear people's views on this topic; so drop me a line harv@collectiveintelligence.co.nz

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