The 7 Secrets of Responsive Leadership: Drive Change, Manage Transitions, and Help Any Organization Turn Around

Praise for

The 7 Secrets of Responsive Leadership

Jackie Jenkins-Scott is the kind of responsive, compassionate, and people-centered leader that our times demand and our communities deserve. I have had the joy and privilege of learning from her firsthand and I am so grateful that as we navigate turbulent times as a nation, she has put forth in writing her vision, insight, and approach. A must-read for those who want to lead with love and stay rooted in community.

—AYANNA PRESSLEY, congresswoman from

Massachusetts

Jackie Jenkins-Scott provides a road map for effective leadership by laying bare the realities of the challenges, choices, and dilemmas that face leaders today. This is a must-read—a practical and thoughtful tool for anyone who aspires to become a responsive, effective, and successful leader.

—DEBORAH C. JACKSON, president, Cambridge

College

"The 7 Secrets of Responsive Leadership belongs on any leader's bookshelf, particularly one who understands the role of heart over head in motivating an organization. Jackie Jenkins-Scott has produced a highly readable, pragmatic, and emotionally intelligent book on a full range of leadership challenges and behaviors. The 7 Secrets are validated by multiple anecdotes from her own extensive leadership experience and peppered with real-world examples familiar to all of us."

—BINK GARRISON, president of Bink, Inc.

"In The 7 Secrets of Responsive Leadership, Jackie skillfully helps leaders tackle complex leadership challenges with very practical and transparent advice. This is a unique and refreshing read for new and seasoned organizational leaders."

—DR. JOHN H. JACKSON, president and CEO of the

Schott Foundation

"It was an honor to follow in the footsteps of Jackie's leadership at Dimock. The lessons in The 7 Secrets of Responsive Leadership remain a part of Dimock today and deeply resonate with me as they will for so many other leaders to come."

—MYECHIA MINTER-JORDAN, MD, MBA, former

president and CEO, Dimock Center

I've known Jackie for many years and she has always been a force of nature, enacting positive transformation within two of Boston's key health and educational institutions with her powerful brand of leadership. She has translated all of her experiences and knowledge about what it takes to be a truly effective leader into the pages that you hold before you, and I have no doubt that this, too, will be a tremendous success.

—STEVEN W. TOMPKINS, sheriff, Suffolk County,

Massachusetts

This edition first published in 2020 by Career Press, an imprint of

Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC

With offices at:

65 Parker Street, Suite 7

Newburyport, MA 01950

www.careerpress.com

www.redwheelweiser.com

Copyright © 2020 by Jackie Jenkins-Scott

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC. Reviewers may quote brief passages.

ISBN: 978-1-63265-159-4

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available upon request.

Cover design by Ellen Varitimos

Interior by Maureen Forys, Happenstance Type-O-Rama

Typeset in New Baskerville and Trade Gothic

Printed in the United States of America

IBI

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

www.redwheelweiser.com/newsletter

With Love and Gratitude

To my large extended family—past and

present—who provide a foundation of

unconditional love and encouragement

To my amazing sister-friends who lift

and support me through the good times

and the challenging times

To all the emerging responsive leaders

who aim to make the world a more just

and humane place for all

To Amal and Amber, who make me

proud each and every day

And to Jim, who has been by

my side through it all.

Acknowledgments

The process of preparing and writing this book reminded me that we do not lead alone and that I am no exception to this. Countless unnamed people contributed to my journey of learning and growing as a leader. With gratitude and appreciation, I thank them all.

For twenty-one years, I had the great privilege of leading the Dimock Community Health Center (now called The Dimock Center). I will always be grateful to the dedicated and committed members of the board of directors who guided and supported me as a young emerging leader. In particular, I am thankful for the excellent board leaders, Walter Jennings, Joseph Feaster, Wendell Knox, and Clayton Turnbull, who each served as board chair for a time during my tenure as president.

The compassionate and dedicated Dimock staff who provided care to the patients and clients we served were truly an inspiration. In particular, I thank Dr. Herb Dreyer for his commitment to our patients, day and night. He and I were privileged to work alongside amazing caregivers during the early days of the AIDS pandemic. I thank the patients and our caregivers who taught us so much about living and dying with compassion and dignity.

The Dimock story is a story of vision, leadership, and legacy. I am grateful for the many supporters—philanthropic and community—who believe in this institution. I especially acknowledge the late William O. Taylor, publisher of the Boston Globe, who was one of our very early supporters and the first to make a $500,000 investment in Dimock. With gratitude, I thank the many donors who followed his lead in ensuring that this great community resource continues to serve those in need.

Today, Dimock is thriving and provides services to thousands of people. With great appreciation, I thank all who have continued Dimock's mission and legacy with professionalism and dedication as a true testament to the power of resilience.

I acknowledge with gratitude Robert Lincoln, who, as chair of the board of Wheelock College, took a risk in hiring a nontraditional president and who supported me for the twelve years I served in that role. I thank the remarkable Wheelock alumni who welcomed me with open arms and supported our many efforts to continue Wheelock's important mission.

During my presidency, I learned so much from Wheelock students who, with their optimism, curiosity, and desire to make the world better, always provided the boost I needed to keep going. I thank my colleague and friend Marta Rosa, who assisted in recalling the Mattahunt story, for her support during very challenging times. I want to especially acknowledge Sister Janet Eisner, president of Emmanuel College, who supported and encouraged me as a new college president and who continues to serve as a role model for what it means to successfully lead in an ever-changing higher education environment.

I have been most fortunate to work with many truly gifted servant leaders during my career. I am grateful for each of them who trusted me and who I trusted to lead with integrity, passion, and a dedication to excellence. I will be forever grateful for all that we were able to accomplish together.

For over twenty years, Valerie Thornhill Hudson worked by my side supporting me and the institutions I led. Thank you Val, for keeping me on track and helping me shine in so many, many ways!

A special thank you to all those who encouraged me to write this book and helped bring it to fruition. Maryann Karinch, for your encouragement, terrific advice, thorough research, and excellent ideas. Thanks also to my supportive team at Red Wheel/Weiser, especially my editor Michael Pye, marketing champion Laurie Kelly-Pye, and the production team, especially Jane Hagaman, Maureen Forys, and Rebecca Rider.

To all the special women in my life—thank you! You have lifted me and supported me in so many ways. I have relied on your wise counsel, love, and support through thick and thin.

Finally, I offer my love and appreciation to my family. Those who paved the way for me to become the woman I am—my grandparents, parents, and many aunts, uncles, cousins, and other relatives. My children, Amal and Amber, give me the gift of unconditional love, and I continue to learn from them each day. And Jim, my life partner, love, and friend, you have walked this path with me, and I couldn't ask for a more loving and committed partner. Thank you!

Contents

Introduction The Nature of Responsive Leadership

Chapter 1 Secret 1— Take Advantage of Opportunity

Chapter 2 Secret 2— Compete Well by Leading with Heart

Chapter 3 Secret 3— Keep Your Bags Packed

Chapter 4 Secret 4— Stay on Point in the Midst of Risk

Chapter 5 Secret 5— Move Your Opposition

Chapter 6 Secret 6— Value the Interconnectedness of People

Chapter 7 Secret 7— Recover Quickly

Chapter 8 Making Transitions

Conclusion The I in Leadership

A Exercises in Seeking Opportunities

B Communication Tools and Techniques

C Organizing Information

Notes

Index

About the Author

Introduction:

The Nature of Responsive Leadership

Leaders who pride themselves on being turnaround experts put the goal of radical change upfront and seek opportunities to fulfill that goal. Similarly, leaders with a burning desire to make the world a better place put that mission upfront and look for venues in which to fulfill it.

Some of these leaders are highly accomplished and valuable, but they rely on what I call systematic leadership. They carry a set of methods and laws—principles governing actions—with them everywhere they go. Generally, they are hired because they are competent in applying those methods and laws in different places. They have the ability, intention, and focus to get organizations to respond to them and to their style of leading. In the extreme, these systematic leaders are the type President Dwight D. Eisenhower criticized when he said, You do not lead by hitting people over the head—that's assault, not leadership.

I'm more of a surprise me! kind of person. I invite the universe to pique my curiosity, show me new ways to learn, and invite me into new leadership challenges by helping me recognize opportunities. For these reasons, I describe what I offer you as responsive leadership.

In moving through life, I look for opportunities. Goals, missions, and strategies come out of seizing these. For example, I saw the opportunity to lead a struggling college; then the requirements of leadership took shape: the goal of turning it around, the mission of giving students unprecedented chances for growth, and the strategies to support the goal and mission.

Responsive leaders are very focused on the people—the humanity—within the opportunity. For example, I joined the Wheelock College community because I believed it had the potential to improve the lives of children and families. I came to Wheelock because I believe deeply in higher education and its power to lift people out of poverty to places where they can change communities and society as a whole for the better. Yes, in a strictly business sense, the opportunity was to effect a turnaround. However, it would have meant very little to me to succeed if I didn't see what that meant in terms of people's lives. I need to be in a position from which I can make systemic change, where I can work on challenges that are transformational.

When people interview someone for the senior executive position at an organization, they always ask, What's your vision for the job? A systematic leader can pull that answer out of his pocket; he comes in with a clear idea of what he can do and what he wants to do. If you're a responsive leader, however, you think, How the hell am I supposed to know that? I'm interviewing for the job and won't know until I'm on the job.

A characteristic of a responsive leader is her desire for a shared vision. It's not about imposing what one person thinks should happen on others, it's about responding to the genuine needs of the organization and building a vision shared by the people who aim to meet those needs. You are never just responding, however. Every step of the way, you are leading by example so that people respond to you in a way that shapes the culture of your organization. If you want people to work hard, you must work hard. If you want people to be transparent, then you have to be transparent. If you want honesty to be a pervasive trait of your organization, then you must be honest. If you want people to treat each other with fairness, then you must be fair.

Okay, now let's introduce the formula for responsive leadership. When you blend flour, baking powder, salt, and a little milk, you get batter. As any cook knows, you can do a million things with that batter.

This is a metaphor for responsive leadership. A little of this and a little of that, or lots of this and less of that, depending on the circumstances. Then you blend and you put your metaphorical batter to work in myriad environments. This style of leadership proves versatile and transferrable. And like the recipe for a basic batter, it's relatively easy to teach.

Implementing responsive leadership begins with how you treat yourself and interact with the people closest to you.

I am a very driven person when it comes to work ethics and established objectives. Generally, I wake up with a clear idea of what I need to do. At that moment, my mission is to focus, organize, motivate, and energize myself. In other words, I begin every day by trying to lead myself. I am responsive to myself.

This may help explain why I stay in jobs and relationships so long. Every day is going somewhere—I'm going somewhere—and that is an exciting prospect. It's one that sustains my enthusiasm for my work, family, friends, and volunteer activities.

Now, let's look at this situation from a different perspective. Perhaps it's because I have long-term relationships at the core of my life that I have the ability to serve as a leader in different environments and industries. And then building on that experience, I am in a position to go to the next level—to teach others how to cultivate leadership. In my heart, I think that's what I was born to do.

That is the impetus behind this book.

Psychologist Abraham Maslow introduced his theory on the hierarchy of needs in a 1943 paper called A Theory of Human Motivation. He postulated that, unless the lower human needs related to survival and security are met, a person lacks the psychological juice to pursue growth needs. The floor of the pyramid of needs is made up of biological imperatives such as food, sleep, and air. Just above that are requirements for safety and security. Above that, interactions between people enter into the hierarchy. Therefore, the third floor up is about needing to belong and to love and be loved. It covers the human need for affection, relationships, camaraderie.

What's after that? The growth needs—the tier of esteem needs such as a sense of achievement and reputation. And then, at the top, is self-actualization, which is what any leader hopes to achieve. At that peak part of the pyramid, the focus is on the need to solve problems and live a life infused with morality and creativity. Celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio, an environmental activist, and Oprah Winfrey, arguably one of the most potent forces for positive action today, live in the realm of self-actualization. Corporate leaders like Richard Branson seem to live in this realm as well. I've also known teachers,