Page 143 - HBR's 10 Must Reads 20180 - The Definitive Management Ideas of the Year from Harvard Business Review

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someone. They must consult colleagues who would be affected
(other people who would use the equipment, say), but they don’t
need approval from above. Because there are no job titles at Morning
Star, how employees influence others—and thus get work done—is
determined mainly by how their colleagues perceive the quality of
their decisions.

Step 5: Foster Broader Perspectives
We often focus so narrowly on our own point of view that we have
trouble understanding others’ experiences and perspectives. And
as we assume high-level positions, research shows, our egocentric
focus becomes stronger. Here are some ways to combat it:

Create opportunities for employees to view problems from mul-
tiple angles. We all tend to be self-serving in terms of how we pro-
cess information and generate (or fail to generate) alternatives to the
status quo. Leaders can help employees overcome this tendency by
encouraging them to view problems from different perspectives. At
the electronics manufacturer Sharp, an oft-repeated maxim is “Be
dragonflies, not flatfish.” Dragonflies have compound eyes that can
take in multiple perspectives at once; flatfish have both eyes on the
same side of the head and can see in only one direction at a time.
Jon Olinto and Anthony Ackil, the founders of the fast-casual res-
taurant chain b.good, require all employees (including managers)
and franchisees to be trained in every job—from prep to grill to reg-
ister. (Unlike Pal’s, however, b.good does not rotate people through
jobs each day.) Being exposed to different perspectives increases en-
gagement and innovative behaviors, research has found.

Use language that reduces self-serving bias. To prevent their trad-
ers from letting success go to their heads when the market is boom-
ing, some Wall Street firms regularly remind them, “Don’t confuse
brains with a bull market.” At GE, terms such as “planting seeds” (to
describe making investments that will produce fruitful results even
after the managers behind them have moved on to other jobs) have

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