CEO ASAP: Radical Candour — Your Secret Weapon for Climbing the Corporate Ladder
Trust is a foundational element that drives organizations and their people, connecting them in an invisible chain. Earning trust takes time, and experts suggest that being consistently honest and transparent is one of the ways to cultivate trust in a work environment. Ray Dalio, renowned investor and founder of Bridgewater Associates, emphasizes the importance of radical truthfulness and transparency in building trust. By being radically truthful and transparent with colleagues and expecting the same in return, important issues become apparent, accelerating learning and fostering trust.
However, being brutally honest in the workplace can be challenging and non-empathetic. Many professionals recognize the need for honesty but struggle with balancing it with empathy. There are valid reasons not to be completely honest, such as avoiding hurting or embarrassing others or jeopardizing relationships. Workplace relationships between management and employees are crucial in building trust and maintaining productivity. Breaking those relationships through brutally honest feedback can be counterproductive.
Blackstone CEO, Steve Schwarzman, emphasizes the significance of caring for people and maintaining relationships in the workplace. Accomplishing objectives while treating people with dignity requires careful strategizing. It may take time to address problems without threatening the institution or core team members. Balancing honesty and relationship dynamics becomes a real dilemma.
One reason people often react negatively to honest opinions is rooted in our evolutionary instincts as social beings. Our subconscious brain perceives criticism as a threat to our group membership and activates fear instincts, making us react unexpectedly. This instinctive reaction can deepen over time, making it difficult to repair the damage done.
So, how can organizations create a culture of honesty without hurting individuals? Ed Catmull, CEO of Pixar, suggests using the term “candour” instead of “honesty.” Candour implies forthrightness or frankness without the same moral connotations and obligations. Creating a culture of candour places a lighter pressure on individuals, allowing them to share genuine information without fear of punishment.
Radical Candour
Radical Candor is a leadership approach that emphasizes the combination of direct, candid feedback with genuine care for the well-being and growth of individuals. It involves striking a balance between being challenging and caring in communication, enabling leaders to build strong relationships with their team members while driving personal and professional development.
Key Principles of Radical Candor:
- Care Personally: Radical Candor starts with genuinely caring about the people you work with. It involves developing a deep understanding of their strengths, weaknesses, and aspirations. By demonstrating empathy and compassion, leaders can establish trust and create a supportive environment.
- Challenge Directly: Radical Candor requires providing clear, specific feedback and challenging individuals to grow and improve. It involves having open and honest conversations about areas where improvement is needed, addressing mistakes, and holding individuals accountable for their performance.
Benefits of Radical Candor:
- Effective Communication: Radical Candor fosters open and transparent communication within teams. Providing clear feedback and encouraging team members to express their thoughts and ideas creates an environment where everyone feels valued and heard. This open communication leads to improved collaboration, innovation, and problem-solving.
- Growth and Development: Radical Candor fuels personal and professional growth. When leaders care personally and challenge directly, team members receive the guidance and support needed to enhance their skills and overcome their weaknesses. It encourages continuous learning and fosters a culture of development and improvement.
- Building Trust and Relationships: Radical Candor builds trust between leaders and team members. When individuals feel that their leaders genuinely care about their well-being and success, they are more likely to trust their feedback and guidance. This trust forms the foundation for strong relationships, collaboration, and loyalty within the team.
- Accountability and Performance: Radical Candor promotes accountability. By setting clear expectations and providing direct feedback, leaders can hold team members accountable for their performance. This helps drive high standards, productivity, and a focus on results.
By embodying the principles of Radical Candor, leaders foster effective communication, personal and professional growth, trust, accountability, and innovation within their teams. This approach not only drives individual development but also contributes to the overall success and well-being of the organization.
Radical Candour in Career Growth
Radical candour serves as a potent catalyst for the rapid growth and development of young professionals and emerging leaders, offering a framework for authentic communication, constructive feedback, and continuous learning. Here’s how radical candour can accelerate one’s career trajectory:
- Accelerated Learning: Radical candour promotes a culture of open dialogue and feedback, providing young professionals with valuable insights into their strengths, areas for improvement, and blind spots. By soliciting candid feedback from peers, mentors, and supervisors, individuals gain clarity on their performance and opportunities to enhance their skills and competencies.
- Heightened Self-Awareness: Through honest and direct communication, radical candour fosters self-awareness and introspection, enabling young professionals to identify their strengths, weaknesses, and growth areas. By embracing feedback with humility and openness, individuals gain a deeper understanding of their values, motivations, and professional aspirations, empowering them to make informed decisions and chart a deliberate path toward their career goals.
- Enhanced Relationship Building: Radical candour cultivates authentic connections and trust within professional relationships, fostering a sense of psychological safety and mutual respect. By expressing genuine care for their colleagues’ well-being and development while providing candid yet compassionate feedback, young professionals can strengthen interpersonal bonds, cultivate meaningful partnerships, and collaborate more effectively toward shared objectives.
- Adaptive Problem-Solving: In an ever-evolving business landscape, radical candour equips young professionals with the resilience and agility to navigate uncertainty and complexity. By fostering a culture of curiosity and experimentation, individuals feel empowered to voice their perspectives, challenge conventional wisdom, and explore innovative solutions to emerging challenges. This adaptive mindset enables young leaders to anticipate change, embrace ambiguity, and seize opportunities for growth and innovation.
- Leadership Development: Radical candour nurtures the essential qualities of effective leadership, including empathy, integrity, and accountability. By modelling transparent communication, active listening, and constructive feedback, young professionals can inspire trust, foster collaboration, and cultivate a culture of excellence within their teams and organizations. As they embrace opportunities to mentor and develop others, they hone their coaching and leadership skills, positioning themselves for increased responsibility and leadership roles.
In summary, radical candour empowers young professionals and emerging leaders to cultivate authentic connections, foster growth-oriented relationships, and drive meaningful impact in their careers and organizations.
Kim Scott and Sheryl Sandberg
At Google, shortly after joining, Kim Scott gave a presentation to the CEO and founders on the performance of Adsense, with Sheryl Sandberg, his immediate boss, beside him. The presentation went well, impressing the CEO and founders. Afterward, Sheryl asked Kim to walk back to her office with her.
“You are going to have an amazing career here at Google,” Sheryl began. “Your ability to be intellectually honest about both sides of the arguments, not just your own, bought you a lot of credibility in there.” She went on to specify several positive aspects of the presentation. But Kim felt a looming sense of worry.
“Something didn’t go well, right?” Kim finally mustered the courage to ask.
Sheryl laughed, acknowledging Kim’s tendency to focus on improvement. “We learn more from failure than success. But the meeting was a success.”
After a brief pause, she mentioned, “You said ‘um’ a lot. Were you aware of it?”
Kim admitted, “Yeah, I know I say that too much.”
Sheryl offered, “Were you feeling nervous? Would you like me to recommend a speech coach for you? Google will pay for it.”
Kim felt surprised by the offer. “I didn’t feel nervous,” he said, brushing off the suggestion.
Sheryl replied gently, “There’s no reason to let a small thing like a verbal tic trip you up.”
Kim made another dismissive gesture with his hand.
Sheryl chuckled, “When you do that thing with your hand, I feel like you’re ignoring what I’m telling you. I can see I’m going to have to be really, really direct to get through to you. You are one of the smartest people I know, but saying ‘um’ so much makes you sound less confident.”
Kim was taken aback. Sheryl repeated her offer of help from a speaking coach, demonstrating her commitment to his growth. Her approach was gentle yet direct. Even when she became more assertive, she avoided making it personal. She focused on the behaviour, not the individual, and provided tangible support for improvement.
In this example from Kim Scott’s book Radical Candour, Sheryl openly addresses Kim’s verbal tic issue, demonstrating a commitment to candid and direct communication, a key aspect of radical candor. She also shows genuine care for Kim’s development by offering constructive feedback and tangible support in the form of a speech coach recommendation. She challenges Kim directly to address the issue while maintaining empathy and respect for his feelings.
Ray Dalio, CEO, Bridgewater Associates
Once at Bridgewater Associates, the management committee initiated an exploration of focusing solely on core competencies and potentially spinning off activities that fell outside of those core capabilities. Among the areas under consideration was Bridgewater’s back-office operations. This particular team had been built from the ground up, comprising hard-working individuals who had formed strong relationships with their colleagues at Bridgewater Associates. They were like an extended family within the company.
During the exploration phase, one option the committee investigated was incorporating the back-office team into the Bank of New York. However, it was important to note that this was merely an exploratory study, and the management was unsure whether they would ultimately pursue the idea.
The critical question arose: When should the team be informed about the possibility of a spin-off? Should they wait until everything was in place?
In many organizations, such information would be kept under wraps until the deal was confirmed, fearing that uncertainty could affect employee morale and productivity. However, at Bridgewater, the leader-in-charge approached the situation with radical candour. She openly and transparently announced the idea to the back-office team, acknowledging that there were still many unknowns and unanswered questions. This candid discussion demonstrated the leader’s commitment to open communication and set the tone for a culture of radical candour.
In building a culture of radical candour, personal care for people is crucial. The leader’s initial announcement during the exploration stage showed genuine care for the employees. This includes being empathetic, spending time with them, and actively listening. By prioritizing the well-being of the team, leaders can find a way to share challenging news while preserving trust and relationships.
Explaining the reasons behind decisions and actions is another vital aspect of radical candour. The Bridgewater leader took the time to clearly communicate the reasons behind the spin-off idea, providing context about the changing business environment. By sharing information and explaining the rationale behind decisions, leaders foster understanding and trust within the team.
Moreover, being candid about one’s vulnerabilities is essential. The Bridgewater leader openly admitted her lack of knowledge and experience in certain areas, demonstrating humility and transparency. Leaders who acknowledge their mistakes and limitations create an environment where others feel comfortable doing the same, fostering a culture of continuous learning and growth.
In the case of the back-office group at Bridgewater, while the team eventually separated, the relationships with the company remained enjoyable. The team fully cooperated during the transition and even assisted in finding a hosting company. This example showcases how transparency and radical candour can strengthen relationships and preserve a sense of belonging within an organization.
People are indeed the most valuable asset, and building and maintaining relationships take time. By embracing radical candour, leaders can cultivate a culture that values open communication, empathy, transparency, and mutual respect. This culture empowers individuals to share their thoughts, express their concerns, and make informed decisions, ultimately fostering trust, collaboration, and long-term organizational success.
In conclusion, embracing radical candor can accelerate the growth of young professionals in their careers and propel them towards top leadership positions. By fostering open communication, providing constructive feedback, and prioritizing personal development, radical candour creates a culture of trust, accountability, and continuous improvement. This environment enables young professionals to learn quickly, adapt to challenges, and seize opportunities for advancement, ultimately positioning them for success in leadership roles.