Recently, Kevin Wheeler had a very interesting and timely post about a possible return to a generalist model in The Cry for the Jack-of-All Trades. This one got me thinking a bit. As one who spent a little time as a generalist I began to ponder if returning to a generalist model would make sense given the trying economic conditions and so many companies finding themselves having to do more with less.
I decided to reach out to a few trusted clients to inquire on their view of returning to a generalist mode and what I learned was quite interesting. Now, before I share a little about what I learned and my comments please understand this was not a scientific study by any means. I merely chatted with a few talent acquisition and HR leaders in 7 different companies ranging from small to quite large. I was just curious to know what they thought and a few interesting ideas emerged.
Now that title ought to get some attention. It's certainly not what you might think on the surface. Though some employees in companies all over this country might have personal experience that causes them to view their leader and company leadership as executioners of the sort that pull the switch, give the command to fire or push the button for the lethal injection to begin that is not what we are talking about today.
Jim Stroup, author of Managing Leadership, had a great post recently called The Executioner. I am not going to insult your intelligence by citing it back to you verbatim here. You can read and digest it for yourself by clicking on the link. Just a few quick thoughts on Jim's post before you head over there to read it.
First, he clearly states at the front end of the piece one of the most glaring issues with leadership and executive leadership today - accountability.
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