Conversation with Philips Global CEO John Wan: The Balance of Leadership

Philips Global CEO John Wan, who took office in 2011, was appraised by the outside world as an "iron fist" and an "actionist" for reform. With the drastic "slimming", Philips focuses on the three major business areas of "health care, lighting, and quality life". As a CEO cultivated within Philips, Wan Hao Dun acts quickly and decisively, and has become a leading and iconic leader in seeking rapid development for "10 years" after Philips' transformation.

Recently, on the occasion of Marriott's visit to Beijing, this magazine had a dialogue with him on the topic of leadership.

Interactive topic: Do leaders want to be in the hall and in the kitchen?

CEConlines: There are two attitudes in the management research community, one believes that leadership is innate, and the other believes that leadership can be nurtured? Which view do you prefer?

Marriott: I think leadership can be cultivated through acquisition, such as management skills, how to organize meetings, how to run a company and other skills can be acquired through acquired training.

But what must be behind leadership is ambition, which is more innate. A person's courage, decisiveness and ambition cannot be cultivated. A leader's ambition is deeply rooted in his genes, and if there is a lack in this area, no amount of acquired training will make a good leader. Therefore, I think that to be a good leader, there are both innate factors and acquired conditions.

CEConline: You once said a sentence - "Reform requires strong leadership, and the role of leadership is to lead and motivate the team". In this sentence, what are your ways of getting along with the top management team? How do you motivate them to work hard?

Marriott: To get your team to work hard, first you have to get them to buy into your strategy and plan. Just telling others how to do it won't get the best results.

What you need to do is to have in-depth communication and discussion with your team, including what to do? Why do this? In this way, the team you manage can fully understand and agree with your plan, turn your plan into their own, and drive the implementation of the strategic plan through their own motivation. Words alone do not drive the team to execute your strategy and plan, only through your own spirit and action, in short, only by winning hearts and minds can ensure the perfect implementation of the plan.

CEConline: What do you think is the difference between an executive and a leader? If a good executor grows into a leader, what competencies need to be improved?

Marriott: A good executive can find the right way to complete the strategic task without compromise, while the leader plays the role of planner and changer, guiding and leading the team, Realize vision and goals.

This requires leaders to have enough foresight and mind, not only to have a foresighted insight into the future trends of society, but also to have a clear understanding of their own status quo, and have the courage and determination to change. Therefore, how far an enterprise can go depends on the height of the top leader of the enterprise. Leaders must provide a correct direction for the development of the enterprise, set clear and appropriate goals, and establish new concepts, new systems, and new visions.

At the same time, I think a good leader should be able to put forward the strategic direction in a high-profile manner, and also be able to have an in-depth understanding of the implementation level. Because, in the long run, if a leader is always at the top and does not know much about the specific business and execution details, the strategy he or she has formulated may be as unstable as a castle in the air.

Finally, in the process of achieving goals, leaders should always stand at the forefront of the team, lead by example, not only with words, but also with actions to play an exemplary role, and always motivate the team to identify and achieve.

fight for the vision.

CEConlines: Many leaders want to have more power and tend to be centralized, and you are good at delegating power and motivating employees. How do you understand the promotion of "leadership" from "decentralization"? What do you think should be the primary focus of leadership management? Which decisions can be "delegated"?

Wanhao Town: Regarding "centralization" and "decentralization", my personal understanding is that whether "centralization" or "decentralization" is about a balance, the key is to see whether this approach is conducive to Improve the operational efficiency of your organization.

To achieve this balance, Philips has created a unified operating model, the "Philips Operating System". It provides a "plug & play" operating system through process standardization, which can be replicated by various businesses and various markets, whether it is an existing business, a new business or an acquired business, it can rely on this A standardized operation system developed rapidly and achieved success. In this way, we can ensure that various markets and businesses follow unified principles and methods in the general direction, and share the advantageous resources of the global platform, but also have autonomy and decision-making power according to their actual conditions, thereby improving the operational efficiency of the entire system . Therefore, I believe that whether it is "centralization" or "decentralization", leadership is mainly reflected in driving the company to seize the opportunity through effective strategies and methods, and through active selection and execution, to achieve the company's longevity.