Several decades ago, an unusually skilled team leader at a pharmaceutical company left to join a competitor. What happened next turned the company and employment law on its head forever. Scores of colleagues followed the leader to the new enterprise, draining the previous employer of critical talent and crushing their results for years to come. Such is the influence of leaders who create extraordinary followership.
A couple of comments: I don't think 'blind allegiance' to a leader is healthy or good. I also wonder how much about it is the leader's behavior (it is some but I don't think all) that get people to follow them or the fact that they think they'll have an 'in' at the new company. Lastly, this happens a lot in my industry. Leaders leave, people follow to work for that leader. A lot of them come back or ask to come stating that the culture at the other place was not a fit. The grass is always greener on the other side of the hill.
This is why our curiosity is always focused on the behavior instead of the individual.
When you see this cohort of people emerge with this extraordinary ability, we can't help but ask ourselves what they might be doing to arrive at these results. Even if a majority of these people might have a charisma about them that leads them to building a cult of personality around themselves - just because the cohort has a strong association for using their powers for selfish reasons, we can't help but be curious about what behaviors create this kind of followership.
In your industry, when leaders with high followership leave and then return... do they routinely bring people back with them?
A couple of comments: I don't think 'blind allegiance' to a leader is healthy or good. I also wonder how much about it is the leader's behavior (it is some but I don't think all) that get people to follow them or the fact that they think they'll have an 'in' at the new company. Lastly, this happens a lot in my industry. Leaders leave, people follow to work for that leader. A lot of them come back or ask to come stating that the culture at the other place was not a fit. The grass is always greener on the other side of the hill.
Agreed, David, blind allegiance is not healthy.
This is why our curiosity is always focused on the behavior instead of the individual.
When you see this cohort of people emerge with this extraordinary ability, we can't help but ask ourselves what they might be doing to arrive at these results. Even if a majority of these people might have a charisma about them that leads them to building a cult of personality around themselves - just because the cohort has a strong association for using their powers for selfish reasons, we can't help but be curious about what behaviors create this kind of followership.
In your industry, when leaders with high followership leave and then return... do they routinely bring people back with them?
The leaders don't usually come back, it is their people. Happens most in sales and operations. Not a huge number.