Nelsonian Leadership

 

Yesterday , 21st October, saw the first Poppyfish Tweetfest. A tweetfest, we have decided, is a themed day of twitter and social media activities from Poppyfish, a time when we take a break out to celebrate specific days that may have a relevant link to people and organisational development. On this occasion we tweeted around 50 statements and quotes highlighting the leadership qualities of Horatio Nelson. You can follow this on twitter via our @Poppyfish_PD account.

Our launch day couldn’t have been better chosen. 21st October this year marked the 207th anniversary of the tumultuous battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Trafalgar was a battle in which the organisational and leadership weaknesses of the navies of France and Spain were exposed decisively, cruelly and with awe inspiring capability by Britain’s Royal Navy led by it’s most inspirational and charismatic leader, Horatio Nelson.

And so it was that we choise to focus this inaugural tweetfest on Nelson and leadership

Background

The Battle of Trafalgar marked the high water mark of Britain’s naval ascendency during the Napoleonic Wars. It also saw the death of Nelson, an iconic figure of his age, who was shot by a French sharpshooter at the height of the battle and who died deep below decks on his flagship, HMS Victory.

My cultural background draws me towards the Nelson story.  Tales of his daring-do exploits, his wounds, his masterminding of a crushing defeat over the nations adversaries and falling in his moment of maximum glory, all combine to give him an allure that a young British boy with a head full of war stories found impossible to resist. As I have grown older I have studied the man and his battles from differing and maturing perspectives, seeking a mixture of deeper self understanding and fundamental inspiration along the way. He is a hero of mine, one of those inspirational figures that looms large for me in the mists of leadership.

 

Nelson as a Leader

As a leader Nelson exhibited a range of skills that, in modern times, might come under the headline of ‘emotional intelligence’. He was energised by his cause and used his emotional intelligence to kindle the same flame in others.

Nelson had vision. From an early age he spoke of the ‘orb of patriotism’ that had been kindled within him. His drive was towards annihilation of the enemy, and all his tactical planning and thought in the years ahead would be directed to this end. He gained inner strength from his religious beliefs, which helped him to face his fears and he believed in the moral sanctity of his actions. To repeat the words of a US tweet yesterday “He was one focused dude”

Nelson had excellent grounding in the practical aspects of his profession. The sea, and particularly the Royal Navy, was his life. His existence and experiences as a young midshipman nurtured his natural independence & energy. His ingenuity excelled. His most significant victories were built on innovative practices to which his enemy had no response. He united prompt decision with the speedy execution of plans.

For Nelson, leading from the front was instinctive. He saw the crucial nature of making decisions from the right perspective and always ensured he was in the thick of the action.  He was a ‘performance leader’ who led by personal example and who appreciated the value of distinctive appearance and behaviour. He understood the impact his charisma and actions had on the men under this command. He knew he was the figurehead and he acted in a way that he saw was fully in keeping with that role. This also played up to the vain and exhibitionist side to his nature and was an area in which he excelled. He was good, and he knew it. And he wanted others to know it.

Nelson's frustrations at organisation politics were a constant theme, but his unrivalled success made him an irresistible force. At the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801 Nelson famously held his telescope to his blind eye and announced that he “could see no signal” from his boss who wanted to change tactic at a key time. Nelson knew the importance of visible leadership and his, coupled with his wekness weakness for vanity, made it compulsory for him to wear his full decorations on the quaterdeck despite knowledge they would make him an obvious target. This was to ultimately cost him his life.

Human qualities

But despite excellence as a sailor, tactician & administrator, it was his human qualities that made him so successful as a leader. Nelson lived by his values and embodied leadership in such a way that people were compelled to follow him. Somatic leadership was his way.

He took officers into confidence & promoted talent: "I had the happiness to command a Band of Brothers. Each knew his duty”, he said. He showed intuitive situational leadership, consulting with his subordinates when needed, leading from the front when going got tough. As such a leader he knew when to act with humility and understood the place of humour in building camaraderie and purpose – something which drew his middle managers to him even more. He was a naturally affectionate man with a pronounced gift for making and nurturing friends. He steadfastly empowered his most able subordinates, building a loyalty that ensured the best outcome. As the late Dr Colin White put it: "the sense of comradeship that Nelson inspired & encouraged was vital ingredient in his particular leadership style" (in Nelson the Admiral, Colin White 2005)

Horatio Nelson was battered, unremarkable and vain, yet he used human affection and sensitivity to draw others to his cause with great impact and effect. In short, he created alignment. To be in Nelson’s fleet was to have no doubt over your vision, no doubt over your goals, and no doubt in the key role that each man jack within the organisation contributed towards achieving success. His human side drew people closer to him. This side to his character is often revealed, and no more so in his dying moments, when he reverts to them once more "Kiss me, Hardy", he said to his friend Captain Hardy, an act which, although later and wrongly argued away by stiff upper lip Victorians, was a characteristic of the man. It was, in truth, “a last act of comradely tenderness in the life of a man who led by tenderness and affection” (White 2005)

Nelson was also a great self publicist who used his despatches to ensure his exploits were known. He knew how to work the 'social media' of his day, writing long, passionate and detailed accounts of events that he knew would thrill and excite the populaton back in England. By so doing he built a fan base that drove him on even more: “I had their huzzas before, I have their hearts now”, he commented to a friend before screaming crowds at Portsmouth earlier in 1805. His fan base gave him great power in his own organisation and in wider society.

But his first hand accounts of “pell mell” sea battles also enabled him to shine a spotlight on talented members of his management team. he made great steps towards building a meritocracy in an organisation at risk of being choked by nepotism.  Subordinates who had performed well were praised and he never overlooked the men of the lower decks, whose fortitude, character and hard life he understood only too well. He took time to talk to his most lowly sailors. He gave them just enough and championed their needs when they needed it most.

 

England Expects

The ‘England Expects’, signal, so famously flown at Trafalgar, shows that Nelson understood the importance of key inter-organisational communications. In truth, the message had two sides. He frustrated his middle managers (the Captains of the 27 British ships), one of whom stated ‘why doesn’t Nelson stop signalling, we now only too well what we are about”, but on the crews massed on the cramped gun decks of his warships, where the decks were liberally sprinkled with sand to soak up the blood and where the message was truly directed, the message had the desired effect.

But despite his public image as an all conquering hero Nelson was periodically haunted by private reflections of self doubt. At times in his career this was almost crippling. He was a reflective leader, able to learn from his negative experiences. When self doubt struck he looked within himself to his religious beliefs. He trusted his intuition and controlled his fears, drawing on his ‘orb of patriotism’ and strong vision to see him through times of adversity.

You can use no end of adjectives to describe Nelson’s leadership style, and most of them appear at some stage in the preceding paragraphs. His humanity and his inspirational vision are the powerful characteristics unbounded by the era in which he lived. Perhaps above all else, though, it is his courage & selfless ambition for which he will be remembered, and these are qualities that mark Nelson out as beacon of leadership to which we all might aspire.

A fine start to our tweetfests. The next tweetfest will be on November 5^th when we’ll be using the anniversary of the Gunpowder Plot and the arrest of Guy Fawkes to tweet on organisational politics, power and plotting. And we might throw in the odd bonfire tip.

You can follow us on Twitter @Poppyfish_PD