Pleasing Your People While Following Your Path

Charting a course creates a unique demand on leaders. The leader's direction must guide followers forward through uncertainty. However, followers must commit to the leader's direction to make it meaningful. Leaders face a paradox. They need to shape the future through their action and also mirror what followers will accept.

Master leaders push people to the next level while they simultaneously calibrate their direction in line with the speed at which people can move. Skillful leaders remain in the driver's seat steering people with a sure and steady hand, and they respond to and reflect the many elements followers experience as they consider getting on board and moving along the road.

Consider the words uttered by Andrea Jung, who became Avon Products' CEO in November 1999. Speaking to 13,000 Avon representatives, Jung declared, "Avon is first and foremost about you. I stand here before you and promise that will never change." Yet Jung has cast a leader course to challenge the traditional direct sales, door-to-door model that has been the company standard since 1886. Jung has little choice but to shape a new course.

Direct selling accounted for only 6.8 percent of the $27 billion cosmetic and toiletry market in 1999, which was down from 8 percent in 1995. Avon's sales growth slowed to a minuscule 1.5 percent in 1999. Despite the overall strong economy, Avon has struggled. In response, Jung wants to put Avon into retail arenas. In a clear move to shape the future and mirror the sales force's (i.e., the followers') needs, Avon will sell from mall kiosks that are franchisee to the "Avon calling" representative.

Jung has also charted a "shape and mirror" course for using the Web. A Web-based sales site supports existing Avon representatives and the Avon catalog. Anyone from the backbone sales force can become an "E=Representative" who sells online and earns commissions for orders shipped direct or for orders they deliver. The Web makes it easier and quicker for reps to make money. Jung shapes the future course while mirroring the needs of her sales reps.

Failure to either effectively shape or mirror chases followers away. Chart your course to represent a meaningful balance between what the future could bring and what the followers' interests are. Test your choices. Float a trial balloon with select individuals and groups whose general support you already have. Get their feedback on how well the course of action mirrors what they would follow. Consider their input and if necessary modify the path a few steps further in one direction or by pulling it back some.