More on the topic of chairs

Not long after I had written two posts: the one about t superbosses and the one about wishing to sit in the manager's chair I came with the idea to combine the two posts. Because it struck me: if you went to a job interview with one of Sydney Finkelstein's excellent managers with the point of view that in five years you would like to sit where the manager now sits; the hiring would most likely take it as given - why should she be interested in candidates who aren't ambitious? So I'm convinced that the superboss will take her candidate as far as possible and get as much as possible from the person in the process. The question mentions five years as a measure of "a long time", and much may have happened that could be of great value to the company before "long time" has passed.
Yes, it is more likely that the excellent leader calls on her employees to wish for the boss's chair, rather than to refrain from thinking so.
(Translated from Mere om siddepladser, originally published May 15th, 2016)

In the right room

One of the points that Sydney Finkelstein carries in "Superbosses" is not really news - I have not been able to find out where it originally came from, but this does do not necessarily make the point uninteresting:

If you are the smartest person in the room, you are in the wrong room.

Of course, there are exceptions - school teachers are obvious examples - but otherwise it makes good sense: if you aren't in the company of people you can learn from, then you have not chosen the right companions.

But you can argue that then there will of course at any time in any group of people be a person who should not be there? Fortunately, I do not think it's that bad. For it may well be that when it comes to some fields, a person is the smartest in the room - while being a novice in other fields and thereby easily able to learn a great deal from some of the others.

The point can therefore equally correctly be interpreted in the way that at any time, one should surround oneself with a wide range of different people with different skills and areas of interest - so that at any time, there are fields in which one can learn from the people one is surrounded with, and thus, one will always be in the right room.

(Translated from I det rigtige rum)

On the topic of superbosses

From time to time, I am fortunate enough to get hold of a book, which pages almost turn by themselves because the author handles an interesting topic and is able to illuminate in an appealing and relevant way.
Recently, I experienced it when I stumbled upon Sydney Finkelstein's book "Superbosses". Based on numerous examples of superbosses in a variety of fields - ranging from music, american football and the restaurant business to marketing and other professions where business leadership is a more conventional topic - Finkelstein details what makes these leaders so excellent, causing the success of their own business, and members of their staff to later successfully spread like wildfire as leaders in the same industry.
Finkelstein does it so enthusiastically that it can make anyone want to, if not develop superboss personality traits, then certainly work for a superboss - or wish that one's boss developed that kind of personality.
I at least could easily find someone for whom to place this book under their Christmas tree.
(Translated from Noget om fremragende ledere)