Point's of view

On Leading the Coalition:

Yes, did a good job in setting this up and leading it forward. He took the media and political pundits by surprise early on and gave himself an advantage by making a virtue of the situation rather than it appearing to be a half-hearted compromise. Survived the unexpected and unfortunate departure from office of David Laws 18 days in. Nick’s profile has been appropriately low key whilst clearly remaining a supportive number 2. No obvious breaking of ranks.

On Having Courage to Make Difficult Decisions:

Cameron has led on cuts at home, and stood up to the Americans abroad. At home, he has set out an aggressive course of action (rightly or wrongly? – only time will tell). Abroad, he has made a good early attempt on ‘de-poodleing’ the relationship with America (eg not acquiescing to congress inferences re BP/Magrahi) – whilst also being realistic and making clear that the UK is the ‘junior partner’. Obama likes him and there is a definite ‘sizzle’ factor in their relationship.

On Early Gaffes:

Diplomatic incidents on historic dates, and remarks re Pakistan as ‘exporter of terror’ led to some hairy moments, media frenzy – and a burning effigy! Fortunately for him the matter was resolved and re-harmonised within his Pakistan peer within days.

Overall Result:

I can’t point to any real results yet – and for that we shall have to postpone judgment until end of his first 12 months. But my overall sense now is that, although no Roosevelt, Cameron has done well in his first 100 days. It’s too early to say whether he will achieve success during his whole term, and what his legacy will be – but a good strong leadership start is what we needed and it is what he delivered. Good luck David!

This week’s emergency budget took few by surprise, but it represents an enormous challenge for the Liberal-Democrats. Selling an austerity budget to core tory supporters was never going to be difficult, but Nick Clegg and Vince Cable are sure to come under pressure from the left wing of their party.

They have entered the 2nd Act, as the initial wave of euphoria wears off. Clegg sent an email to party supporters on the eve of the emergency budget entitled ‘Why We Have to Do This’. It pre-empted criticisms of cuts in public spending, but the very fact it was sent shows that Clegg is conscious of the potential for a rift in the party to occur.

Clegg and Cable know that they have to stay focused on their key priorities of sustaining the recovery and bringing public debt to heel. Yet they must ensure that left-leaning MPs such as Simon Hughes and Norman Baker stay on-board and on-message.

Keeping the party aligned along a shared vision is vital, and will require highly attuned emotional intelligence on the part of the Lib-Dem leadership.

Maintaining party unity is a challenge at the best of times, but in coalition government, an extra layer of difficulty is added. Clegg demonstrated his ability to communicate well with the public at the outset of the election campaign.

The question remains as to how well he can continue to keep a dialogue open with opponents within his own ranks.

Another danger is that he will be distracted from his strategic priorities. In the world of politics, the agenda is often set by external factors: the media, business interests, unions, geo-political events et cetera.

In opposition, how you respond to events can be couched in ideology, as you have no power. When you enter the realm of real decision-making, the stakes are high and it is noticed when you get things wrong.

Clegg should have a plan in place to manage his own performance, setting clear targets and milestones to measure his success. Right now, he should be looking at what he can achieve in his first year in office.

As leader, his actions and achievements will have a multiplier effect through the party. This is potentially positive and negative, and the fate of the LIB-Dems is closely bound with that of Clegg.

Clegg only needs to look to Ireland and the fate of the Progressive Democrats there to understand what can happen to smaller coalition partners if they fail to make an impact in their own right. For now, Clegg has some breathing room…the World Cup is on.

by Niamh O’ Keeffe

Just watched the live Press Conference showcasing the love-in of Britain’s new Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister. Clearly both men are in the throes of early love and promise of a new relationship, but will it last? Or to put it more constructively, what should these guys do to ensure that the first 100 days of coalition sets them up for real success to secure the aspiration of 5 years in government.

A fast start:
Today both men got off to a strong and fast leadership start. They talked about “the national interest” as their shared common goal and the glue which will bind them together as leaders on difficult decisions. By this, they mean that they intend to rise above party politics to always do what is right for the people. This is an inspiring stall to set out, and in the first 100 days we need to see evidence of this in operation. Policies will need to be clear, and not fudged. Pace of decision-making will be important. Decisions will need to be seen as taking twice as fast, and not twice as long.

“One team”:
Reference was made to a commitment to ‘one team’ rather than a coalition of two teams fighting for power. Again, a powerful standard and aspiration to set out. It looks like Cameron and Clegg are absolutely joined together today as ‘one team’ but can this teaming cascade to the cabinet and to the wider groups below or will the far left and far right cause unhelpful dents in the ‘one team’ concept. As leaders in the first 100 days, it will be extremely important that both Cameron and Clegg maintain strong leadership within their own parties on what is and what is not acceptable teaming behaviours. Members of each party will likely break rank now and again, but they will need to be firmly and decisively managed back in line by the leaders if this coalition is to succeed for all concerned.

Early results:
At the end of 100 days, the media and the public will inevitably use this as a milestone to reflect on the success or otherwise of the coalition. So by the end of the first 100 days, Cam-Clegg will need to have delivered real results on the economy and economic policy. Of course the first 100 days on health, on education etc are important too, but these guys need to put the economy first and get some early wins under their joint belt in their first 100 days.

Beyond the first 100 days:
Commentators are giving the coalition 6 months, a year, 2 years but to make it to 5 years, these guys cannot underestimate the importance of the first 100 days for setting up success in the first 12 months and beyond. And so, we wait and see whether at the end of 100 days, will these guys still be in love, or will the honeymoon be over?

By Niamh O’Keeffe

Lights, camera, action…

Adam Crozier, former joint Chief Executive of Saatchi & Saatchi, former Chief Executive of the Football Association and current Royal Mail CEO, is leaving his position to take up an even more high-profile role at troubled media giant ITV. As some media commentators have described it, “it looks like a case of out of the frying pan and into the fire”.

The job certainly seems to be another tough brief for Mr. Crozier, a man who certainly doesn’t shy away from organisations with institutionalised challenges. ITV, like the Royal Mail, has a dense heritage of process and behavior not easily transformed and is an institution in deep trouble with an urgent need to modernize if it wants to remain a major sector player. 

Let’s face it, the city is watching, the media is ready to pounce; the staff are anxious… it’s a massive job. And so, as founder and MD of First100, the question posed itself to me “how should Adam Crozier tackle his First 100 days?”

First, lets put in context why the First 100 days is an important stage in the role appointment lifecycle. Pace or ‘performance acceleration’ as I call it, is the number one critical business issue for Chief Executives and political leaders in todays economy. Faced with global uncertainty on whether we are in a V or W shaped recession, speed is the new black. A decade ago, a new leader would have arrived with a ten year business plan and allowed it to unfold, without much scrutiny from challengers. Nowadays, a two year plan is considered long term, and Crozier will appreciate the crucial importance of his first 100 days within that shrinking time context.

Okay, so pace is important. But this is hardly a breakthrough insight and Crozier is no stranger to the CEO role, so what possible advice could I give him? I don’t need to tell Crozier to act with pace, identify the right priorities, get the right team in place and stay focused on what’s important. This is grist to the mill for an experienced Chief Executive like him.

So I spent some time reading the articles, the recent press coverage and I thought about what is the insight I could bring him. He is a dynamic guy, has the intellect, the ability to get things done but – and this is my insight – I wonder if he pays enough attention to his legacy right from the beginning?

His career history makes interesting reading, and I wonder whether now is the time for Adam to reach his prime as a Chief Executive. He has had an accelerated career to the Chief Executive position, and perhaps he was promoted ‘too’ fast – so much so, that his ‘growing up’ was done in the role rather then in advance of the role. With this in mind, I would urge Adam Crozier to invest a lot more time upfront thinking about his leadership legacy this time round. And fortunately, he has the time before he takes up the ITV role.

So, here are my top three tips for Adam:

1. Invest more time upfront thinking about your legacy.

Take stock of your career, and start with the end in mind this time. What do you want to have achieved at ITV by the end of your tenure? Do you have any regrets from previous Chief Executive posts, what are the lessons learned, and how can you approach this role armed with the wisdom and experience of previous leadership roles. Are you still open to change, to challenge?

2. Envisage a 2 year role horizon:

When you have decided on your legacy as CEO of ITV, then envisage a 2 year role horizon, to inject a sense of pace and urgency into your thought processes and plans. Imagine that you only have two years to make a difference. Within that timeframe, what would you like to have achieved on Vision & Strategy, People & Teams, Results & Deliverables? It doesn’t matter if you plan to stay longer, you can always refresh your plans at the end of 2 years.

3. Don’t write your First 100 Days plan yet.

Repeat steps 1 and 2, until you are very sure of the leadership legacy you wish to leave behind, and until you are very sure of your two year plan as the first step to achieving that legacy. And so, although I am the founder and MD of First100 – a consultancy that specialises in ‘first 100 days’ advice for senior executives and CEOs, my urgent advice to Adam Crozier is don’t write you First 100 Days plan yet!

I wish you well. You have courage to take on this role, and we need our business leaders to show courage in these difficult times.

Niamh O’Keeffe, Founder and Managing Director of First100.