Unshakable conviction that ecosystems create new customer value.

“One, all had an unshakable conviction that there was an opportunity to create new customer value by creating an ecosystem. […]

Ever-growing conviction that no company acting alone can unlock the opportunity.

The second belief the ecosystem builders share is an ever-growing conviction that no company acting alone can unlock the opportunity. All the CEOs we studied were certain that the challenges they faced could only be met by identifying, attracting, and harnessing the knowledge, capabilities, and innovation potential of partners. They also felt that the solution couldn’t be found by slotting potential allies into well-defined roles in conventional supply chains. […]

Unrelenting focus on attracting, engaging, and motivating people who aren’t their employees.

The third dimension of the mind-set of successful ecosystem builders is an unrelenting focus on attracting, engaging, and motivating people who aren’t their employees. Every seasoned leader knows how to communicate a vision and a mission that their employees will buy into and motivate them to achieve it. However, the difference when leading an ecosystem is that most of the people you have to motivate and inspire don’t work for you! Those who aspire to lead an ecosystem must always keep in mind that their role involves leading and motivating people across the network—not just the employees of their company. […]

Undiluted focus on growing the size of the pie

The fourth, and final, belief of those successfully leading an ecosystem is their undiluted focus on growing the size of the pie. […] Maximizing the value that an ecosystem creates for all its participants needs to be the priority all the time. Leadership styles that work when leading a company or a traditional supply chain, may prove to be unproductive, at best, or disastrous, at worst, when applied to an ecosystem comprising a complex network of different kinds of partners. This is because leadership is usually associated with power over people, as opposed to power with people. In traditional hierarchies, that’s achieved by formal command-and-control structures backed by a charismatic leadership style, where the leader may attract followers to execute orders as per his or her wishes. Charisma may continue to play a role, but command-and-control isn’t consistent with the fact that ecosystem builders have to rely on large numbers of people whom they don’t employ.”

Want to know more about what leadership style you need to develop? We invite you to read ninth chapter of Ecosystem Edge?