Doers And Ringmasters

The doers see it as their mission to get a laundry list of sustainability initiatives done. Typically, they’re the ones to define that laundry list and often see themselves as the chief doer.

Ringmasters, on the other hand, start with the mission. By seeking input from others, they articulate a mission that their organization believes in. That mission is usually quite durable, serving as an effective measuring rod for many years. Ringmasters believe their role is to inspire other people, both inside and outside their organization, to fulfill the mission.

Both approaches can work. But here’s what I’ve noticed. Doers tend to be careful about crossing departmental lines. They operate within existing silos. Usually, this limits their effectiveness, especially over time. Ringmasters are the opposite. They are inherently boundary spanners and recognize the necessity of getting people out of their silos to make a larger contribution.

While there are no longitudinal studies that I know of that measure the impact of both leadership styles, here is what I’ve seen: Doers who don’t span boundaries unintentionally suffocate sustainability. Here’s a common scenario. A leader gets selected for a sustainability role. Press releases go out. Congratulations ensue. And then…energy slowly dissipates. Employees who were once excited about what sustainability could do for their enterprise seem to lose interest.

This is why I’ve come to believe that highly effective sustainability leaders focus on the mission, span boundaries and inspire others to be doers. This is harder to achieve than it sounds because most organizations are built around departments, which operate as de facto silos. Much of my work as a coach to sustainability leaders focuses on helping doers become effective ringmasters. I’ve learned many lessons, and I’d like to share a few of them here.

Why Sustainability Leaders Shouldn’t Be Doers

Sustainability, at the end of the day, is about transforming the way organizations operate. It’s about reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other negative impacts on water, soil and biodiversity. To achieve this, behavior within the organization will need to change. A doer typically cannot make other people change. People must want to change, and usually, this requires them to be inspired by a grand vision, something that will outlive them.

When doers try to be the chief changer, their outcomes are largely relegated to very small groups. Most sustainability leaders operate with tiny dedicated teams, sometimes just themselves. The math does not work in their favor. If hundreds or thousands of staff need to change, but a leader only inspires a handful of people to change, very little change will happen. Without a grand vision, sustainability efforts often become drab compliance-oriented requirements.

Guiding Principles For Becoming A Highly Effective Sustainability Ringmaster

1. Get clarity on the mission.

This is where it all starts. A mission should be grand in scope and durable, usually outliving the people who are trying to achieve it. Way more than a mission statement, a real mission animates and inspires people to take action. It makes people want to get involved. An organization’s sustainability mission enhances its social license to operate, creating a deep sense of pride for employees and other stakeholders.

2. Assess who’s on your team.

This usually requires a significant shift in mindset for the sustainability leader. Doers often assume their team is made up of themselves, a few people in the sustainability department (if one exists) and a handful of internal people who are passionate about the environment.

Ringmasters, on the other hand, believe their team is made up of everyone inside their organization and potentially even external parties. The teams they seek to lead are often fluid and comprise people who make contributions in their spare time.

3. Tap the team’s energy source.

Doers often practice a command-and-control leadership style. They’re frequently reticent to commit to initiatives where they’re not convinced they can control the outcomes. They’re sometimes perceived by others as risk averse.

Ringmasters, by comparison, know that they’re really not in control. They discover what team members are passionate about and seek to tap into that. They try to create a bridge between evidence-based scientific initiatives that they know will produce meaningful outcomes and the current mindset of staff throughout the organization. Ringmasters are educators, constantly promoting the virtues of scientific approaches while never making people feel dumb who know less than them.

4. Set specific milestones.

Effective ringmasters are specific in the targets they set. While the mission is grand and unachievable in their lifetime, the milestones they inspire others to work toward are usually marked by two key indicators: time and numbers. Here’s an example: “By Q4 of 2027, we will have reduced our carbon output by 27% compared to where we are today.” That milestone is both time-bound and numerically specific.

5. Give others credit.

This is the most prominent dividing line between doers and ringmasters. Doers expect to be acknowledged. Ringmasters expect to acknowledge others. Ringmasters know that substantive organizational change is not something they can achieve on their own. So they lead by influence and social ties rather than authority.

When their organization achieves an important milestone, they’re the first to congratulate others. They also point out the contributions of key staff who were instrumental along the way to the milestone. When a congratulatory meeting takes place to celebrate the achievement of a milestone, they’re the ones handing out awards, not the ones being handed an award.

How does your leadership style compare? Do you see yourself as more of a doer or a ringmaster? In my experience, doers can become very effective ringmasters simply by changing a few components of their leadership style. The five principles I’ve outlined above are a good start toward this kind of transition.