Blue ocean leadership

While I have talked about the Blue Ocean Strategy before (here; Kim & Mauborgne, 2004), the authors have also worked out how we can apply a leadership framework to the strategy (Kim & Mauborgne, 2014). 

They suggest four steps for us moving the leadership thinking to a blue ocean leadership model, as follows:

• See your leadership reality. Resolve “differences of opinion over what leaders are actually doing. Without a common understanding of where leadership stands and is falling short, a forceful case for change cannot be made. Achieving this understanding is the objective of the first step. It takes the form of what we call as-is Leadership Canvases, analytic visuals that show just how managers at each level invest their time and effort, as perceived by the customers of their leadership. […] The aim is to uncover how people experience current leadership” (Kim & Mauborgne, 2014, pp. 63-64).
• Develop alternative Leadership Profiles. Subteams […] go back to their interviewees with two sets of questions. The first set is aimed at pinpointing the extent to which each act and activity on the canvas is either a cold spot (absorbing leaders' time but adding little or no value) or a hot spot (energizing employees and inspiring them to apply their talents, but currently underinvested in by leaders or not addressed at all).” The second set prompts interviewees to think beyond the bounds of the company and focus on effective leadership acts they've observed outside the organization, in particular those that could have a strong impact if adopted by internal leaders at their level” (p. 65).
• Select to-be Leadership Profiles. “After two to three weeks of drawing and redrawing their Leadership Canvases, the sub teams present them at what we call a "leadership fair:' attendees” are everyone. “members of the original senior team behind the effort describing the process and presenting the three as-is canvases. With those three visuals, the team establishes why change is necessary, confirms that comments from interviewees at all levels were taken into account, and sets the context against which the to-be Leadership Profiles can be understood and appreciated” (pp. 66-67).
• Institutionalize new leadership practices. "After the fair is over, the original subteam members communicate the results to the people they interviewed who were not at the fair. Organizations then distribute the agreed-on to be profiles to the leaders at each level. The subteam members hold meetings with leaders to walk them through their canvases, explaining what should be eliminated, reduced, raised, and created" (pp. 68-69).

While blue ocean leadership may initially meet resistance, building good execution into the process counters skepticism. "The four steps are founded on the principles of fair process: engagement, explanation, and expectation clarity. In the leadership development context, the application of fair process achieves buy-in and ownership of the to-be Leadership Profiles and builds trust, preparing the ground for implementation. The principles are applied in a number of ways, with the most important practices being" (p. 70):

• "Respected senior managers spearhead the process"
• "People are engaged in defining what leaders should do"
• "People at all levels have a say in the final decision"
• "It's easy to assess whether expectations are being met (Kim & Mauborgne, 2014, p. 70).

Blue ocean leadership is designed to be used with a blue ocean strategy. 

Sam

References:

Kim, W. C. & Mauborgne, R. (2004). Blue Ocean Strategy. Harvard Business Review, 82(10), 76-84.

Kim, W. C., & Mauborgne, R. (2014). Blue Ocean Leadership. Harvard Business Review, 92(5), 60-68.