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6: Game Changer 3: Lead Strong

Being a leader when everything is running smoothly is fairly straightforward: keep people doing what you're doing, try not to screw up, and encourage your subordinates to do the same. Leading an organization through a time of crisis is much more difficult.

A leader in crisis is expected to take action that has dramatically positive consequences in a short amount of time, and under heavy scrutiny both from within and outside of the organization - and more often than not, you must do so alone. The most vicious battles and brand transformations are won by passionate and strong individual leaders.

What It Takes to Lead a Brand Out of the Fire

The case-studies in this chapter describe a number of brands that fell from grace. The details of the stories are quite different, but for one thing: each brand was rekindled by an effective leader, and sometimes exceptional, leader.

This is not necessarily done by the chief executive or owner of a firm. A product manager, brand manager, or other person is often given the task of dealing with a crisis, or it may even be outsourced to another firm who handles the company's public relations.

(EN: The author seems indifferent to this, but assigning a crisis handler is a significant decision - both in how delegating the task will be perceived and in how effective the person is in effecting the internal change and not just blocking the media.)

The decisions made in time of crisis also have an ongoing impact on the company: if you promise to do something about a problem, you must do it, and keep doing it to avoid having the same problem in future. This may mean starting new programs, revamping operations, and other "big" decisions.

The author lists some of the qualities a person must have to be successful in managing a crisis:

These traits that we recognize in great leaders are often not conventionally thought of as leadership qualities: the notion of the leader on the hill, perfect and impervious, a lone-wolf and a bit of an egotist who inspires awe. To be humble, candid, gracious, etc. all contradict that stereotype.

Moreover, many people in leadership positions have flaws, issues, and oddities among their positive characteristics, some of which are so pronounced and so commonplace among infamous leaders that they are assumed to be part of the role: arrogance, impatience, insecurity, lack of focus, petulance, irascibility, etc.

These traits are often tolerated so long as the leader can achieve success, but they become serious liabilities for a struggling brand, and can even work against a firm as the mob wants to see a tyrant punished and humiliated in defeat. In such instances, the leader must turn himself around before turning the brand around - or the firm must turn him out and replace him with a leader of better character.

Mark Cuban and the Dallas Mavericks: Relentless Competitors

The author tells a story about Mark Cuban, a self-made billionaire who purchased a mediocre basketball team and turned it into a winning franchise, but was prone to throwing tantrums.

Cuban's saving grace is that he has been able to turn his petulant outbursts into publicity stunts. In one example, he declaimed a referee as being incompetent, incapable of running a Dairy Queen. His self-imposed penance for this indiscretion was to show up at a Dairy Queen and work a shift. He also doubles every fine that the NBA levies upon him by donating an equal amount to charity.

(EN: I don't think Cuban has ever been in serious trouble, or done anything really egregious - so it's not so much a case study in salvaging a damaged brand as it is a method for effective damage control for minor incidents.)

Mike Jeffries and Abercrombie & Fitch: Style and Substance

Another extended case study involves Mike Jeffries, who took over the Abercrombie & Fitch brand which was on the brink because it had attempted to cling to "old clothes that no one liked" in an attempt to maintain the status of a premium brand.

Jeffries sought to make the brand young and sexy, and pushed it too far for the liking of many, who declaimed its advertising imagery that was homoerotic and borderline pornographic. Naturally, the public uproar by the old "squares" made the brand appealing to its teen and young adult target market.

(EN: Again, an interesting story of unconventional leadership, but my sense is that this is a firm that has used controversy to generate attention rather than one that has needed to recover.)

(EN: The author presents two more case studies that also profile unconventional leaders, and which also don't have much to do with the topic of this chapter.)

New Tools for Today's Leaders

The author returns to the notion of the digital and social channels, and how they give brands of today a platform to communicate directly with the masses rather than having to count on the media to get the word out. If used well can cautiously, they can do a lot of good for a brand. If used infrequently and recklessly, they can do a lot of harm to it.

In the present day, many brands have an extensive internet presence, and many consultants will try to panic you into paying them to do a lot, all at once, so you can "catch up" to your competition.

However, not all brands need to become heavy users of the social media - and those that would benefit from a greater presence in the digital channels should not do so in a heated rush. Doing so will create problems, and will exacerbate others - especially if you leap to an unfamiliar medium in time of crisis. Instead, build steam slowly and leverage the channel only once you are adept at managing it.

The author provides a number of basics that are likely too basic: securing your own domain name, using search engines to see what others are already saying, pushing out good/accurate information yourself rather than trying to do battle directly with those that provide negative/inaccurate information.