Co-Leaders: The Power of Great Partnerships

Although the authors refer to almost every professional marriage you can think of--from Abbott and Costello to the short-lived duo of Ovitz and Eisner--the heart of the book focuses on 11 genuine successes in the annals of number-twodom.

The chapter on Al Gore contains an interesting dissection of the role of the VP in American politics. A chapter called "Cyberstars" talks about how Intel's Craig Barrett and Microsoft's Steve Ballmer have contributed to the spectacular success of those companies. (Interesting tidbit: Ballmer once beat Bill Gates in a math competition when both were undergraduates at Harvard.) Bill Guthridge, an assistant basketball coach at the University of North Carolina who served under Dean Smith for 30 years before succeeding him, gets his due in a chapter that ably explains what an assistant coach actually does: it's a tough gig.

The point of the book is that all these fascinating lieutenants represent an argument for a newish type of power-sharing management. It's a strong argument, but it seems dependent on brilliant adjutants, and one senses there may not really be enough of those to go around. --Lou Schuler

Product Description
"Co-leadership . . . is a tough-minded strategy that will unleash the hidden talent in any enterprise. Above all, co-leadership is inclusive, not exclusive. It celebrates those who do the real work, not just a few charismatic, often isolated leaders who are regally compensated for articulating the organization's vision.?David A. Heenan and Warren Bennis.

Today's heads of big companies are as recognizable to us as the most popular entertainers or sports stars, but the heart and soul of every organization are those leaders below the CEO. Today's celebrity CEO has become either a figurehead or an egomaniac, and often too public a personality to get the real work done. That work is done instead by teams of leaders?exceptional deputies who forge great partnerships to maximize both organizational and personal success.

Heenan and Bennis believe we must look beyond the Bill Gateses of the world to understand what makes an organization excel. Written for CEOs, managers, and anyone else interested in modern organizations, this is the first comprehensive study of co-leaders and their often quiet power. Exhaustively researched and illustrated with memorable anecdotes and lively stories, Co-Leaders examines a dozen great partners such as Steve Ballmer of Microsoft, Bob Lutz of Chrysler, Bill Guthridge, coach of the University of North Carolina basketball team, and Anne Sullivan Macy, Helen Keller's teacher.

The changing nature of corporate leadership has seen the emergence of a new Silicon Valley model of success, where boss and subordinate seem more like peers, with the spotlight on great partnerships. Talent, not title, is the source of power at a growing number of hot high-tech companies. In these collegial, nonhierarchical organizations, today's deputy can become tomorrow's CEO simply by taking his or her breakthrough idea and walking out the door. Good ideas belong, initially at least, to the people who have them, not to the company and not to the boss, which is why this new egalitarianism isn't just a matter of style?it's a question of survival. Co-leaders understand both the executive and subordinate experience, making them better adapted to the needs of the new millennium, where men and women who can command and follow will prove to be the greatest assets of any organization.

Co-Leaders is intended for everyone who aspires to make his or her organization great. By showing the enterprise through the eyes of inspired deputies, this book reveals how both organizations and individuals can benefit from a more inclusive, less celebrity-oriented definition of leadership. This groundbreaking book argues for a new paradigm: gifted leaders and their talented co-leaders working together to make their organizations stronger, more nimble, more equitable . . . and ultimately more successful.

"At a time when CEOs and celebrities are synonymous, Co-Leaders offers riveting stories about the quiet powers behind the glaring spotlight of success. David Heenan and Warren Bennis, co-leaders themselves, give us an advanced look into the new management style for the Next Millennium.?Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson, co-authors, The One Minute Manager.

"Building an enduringly great organization requires more than just a visionary CEO. An outstanding co-leader is necessary also. Heenan and Bennis's persuasive argument for the importance of the second-in-command and their in-depth descriptions of successful 'back-up' leaders make Co-Leaders a superlative read."?Jerry Porras, Lane Professor of Organizational Behavior and Change, Stanford University, and co-author, Built to Last.

"Co-Leaders is a compelling primer on establishing a co-leadership culture and managing in the New Millennium."?Steve Case, co-founder, Chairman and CEO, America Online, Inc.

"Through their fascinating stories of great co-leaders, Dave Heenan and Warren Bennis remind us that you don't have to be captain of the team to find success. Important reading for aspiring leaders."?Brent Scowcroft, former National Security Advisor to President Bush and co-author, A Nation Transformed.

"DAVE HEENAN and WARREN BENNIS have done a masterful job of capturing just how important collaboration and teamwork are. . . . Must reading for every executive.?Ed Villani, President and CEOScudder Kemper Investments, Inc.

The book correctly points out that many leaders don't want (or cannot tolerate) having a powerful second-in-command. A COO is often a position created by the board to assist in a transition to picking a new CEO. If the old CEO can sabotage the COO, the old CEO may get to keep the job longer than planned. So what could be co-leadership often doesn't get off the ground. In fact, the COO job is often a dead-end for the inhabitant.

The advantage of the teams, when they work, is that much more can be accomplished by dividing tasks and by challenging each other's thinking so that better ideas are created and more mistakes avoided. The authors feel that every organization should have co-leaders. Frankly, that's unlikely to happen.

The book nicely summarizes 10 lessons for how co-leaders should operate and another 10 lessons for creating a co-leader environment. Most of these will seem like common sense to you, but they are worth considering.

My own research on CEOs shows that the number of roles they are expected to excel in continues to grow. On the other hand, those who are most successful year in and year out as CEOs usually have no co-leaders. They tend to operate with a top management team that more broadly shares the responsibilities and challenges. It would be interesting to put some quantitative measures on the co-leader concept to see how it performs compared to the alternatives.

The main benefit I got from the book was learning more about people who have toiled out of the limelight before becoming CEOs (and who made important contributions as COOs) like Craig Barrett at Intel and Steve Ballmer at Microsoft.

If you are thinking about having a COO or taking a COO job, this book is a must read!