Despite my marginally clever play-on-words, this isn’t a post about Pope Francis I. (A man whose qualifications for the job he has just been elected to I am woefully incapable of evaluating.)
What it is a post about is a dangerous phenomenon: one that I have witnessed in nonprofit associations, in city governments, in businesses large & small, in families, in volunteer committees of all shapes and sizes.
It’s a phenomenon that – given its pervasiveness in society – I could surmise might have plagued the Papal Conclave as well.
It’s His Turn
You’ve surely witnessed this plague in action:
• Susan was the Vice Chair of the event last year, so she’ll become the event Chair this year.
• Max has ‘paid his dues’ on the board for 5 years so he should ascend to the Vice Chairmanship.
• Mary has been the Coordinator in that department for 3 years, so now that Bob has been promoted to Director, she should logically take over his position as Manager.
• The current city council members have an off-the-record conversation that “If Gene wants to run for Mayor, we won’t run against him…”
• He’s the first born (son), so he’s going to take over the family business (country).
I suppose it is statistically possible that the ‘next in line’ actually IS (by coincidence rather than design) the best person for the task at hand. But particularly given the pace of change in the world today, my observational experience says it’s more-than-likely not to be the case.
Worse than just not ideal – allowing an “It’s His Turn” philosophy to flourish can truly be a kiss of death for an organization. Even the perception of this ethos at work can signal that the company is not actually responsive to client/constituent needs. That merit and skill are less valued than time served. That we are out of touch with what is actually going on in our community. That we are not transparent about our process.
For the sake of the Catholic Church and the 1 billion + people worldwide that they serve, I hope that the College of Cardinals asked questions like these when considering whom to elect:
What specific skills does the organization need today?
What are the biggest obstacles we face on the path to success?
What kind of personality traits are best suited to address our needs and challenges?
What communities will be emboldened or disenfranchised by the selection?
What changes are coming rapidly that we need to prepare for, who has the vision to see them clearly?
To the public eye, the College of Cardinals had the opportunity to choose anyone (well, any Catholic Male) to lead them. I am hopeful that with days of prayer, reflection, holy wisdom-seeking that they didn’t simply select the person who was the ‘first runner up’ to Benedict during the prior voting. Given the secrecy and lack of transparency surrounding the process, we can’t know. Surely he is being lauded by the media (and Catholic friends of mine who are more equipped to gauge) as the “right man for the job” – with traits that do seem to answer at least some of the questions above.
Decisions in your world may not attract such scrutiny or media attention, but if it feels like “It’s His Turn” for something in your world, ask yourself – ask your team: SHOULD it be?
And if the answer is no, I pray that you have the courage to vote differently. Your business depends on it.
