by Howard Gardner
In one of my books, published in 2004, I singled out for praise John Browne and BP for its initiative in going ‘beyond petroleum’ and having a flat, transparent organization. And so I fully deserved it when my irreverent son said to me “So, Dad, what about your heroes now?”
In retrospect, I realized that while I had spoken to some BP executives, and read some of their materials, I had relied way too much on the conventional wisdom, and had not at all used any investigative journalist techniques to probe behind the story that BP wanted to tell.
We live in a time of publicity, public relations spin, and it is extremely difficult to find out which of the leaders in any sector who are singled out for praise (or for castigation) really merit these characterizations.
I don’t think we lack any CEO heroes. But I suspect that the true heroes are largely unsung, and prefer to remain that way. They prefer to give credit to others, to remain behind the scenes, to avoid grandiose statements and predictions and promises, and to perform better than anyone expected them. And the ultimate test of these individuals may be the extent to which they plan for an orderly succession, to individuals who share the desire to remain out of the limelight, rather than to attempt to dominate it, and quietly but responsibly, to do good work.
This blog originally appeared in the Washington Post column on leadership.