What Rules Of Combat Can Teach Us About Great Leadership

Forbes

11 hours ago

Hugh McColl, CEO of Bank of America (Photo by Porter Gifford / Liaison Agency)
Hugh L. McColl, Jr. is 90 years old today. He is the retired chairman and CEO of Bank of America. An ex-marine officer during the late fifties, his business leadership style was swashbuckling, colorful, and highly focused. Wall Street analysts characterized him as a no-holds-barred tactical genius who, as its thirty-nine-year-old president, led the bank with 172 offices and 28,000 employees (called NCNB) to one called Bank of America with over 5,000 offices and almost 200,000 employees when he retired in 2001.
In the late '70s, I had the privilege of being one of his "lieutenants," as he referred to his bank officers. Some said he never really left the Marine Corps since military jargon littered his everyday language. He was rarely wrong; he was never in doubt.
I once viewed Hugh as a brilliant but power-driven autocratic. I now believe he was way ahead of his time in reflecting "rules of combat" in the manner he lead a high growth bank during a dramatically changing financial services arena. Not only was the industry intensely competitive for share of market, banking regulations were being rewritten practically everyday. Six of the rules (authored by Logan Graves) offer special insights for effective leadership relevant for today's competitive world.
Clearing mine field
"Only dead fish swim with the current," goes the adage. While fish and leaders obviously "swim" in all directions, the river's path does not govern their choice. Great leaders keep an up antenna for influences that might entice them to abandon what they know to be right and effective. It is not that they are infatuated with unnecessary toil; instead, they believe that enduring endeavors are best constructed on substance. McColl inspired me by modeling a perpetual single-mindedness on what mattered, not on what was fashionable. He was as dogged as he was driven.
Francis Marion
Great leaders are fans of pragmatics, not parade. Their 'function over form' orientation enables them to race past preoccupations with ceremony to outperform those mired in convention. They focus on innovation, not conformity. Francis "Swamp Fox" Marion was the revolutionary military leader whose combat unit frequently embarrassed the British Redcoats through his guerrilla tactics. The British soldiers fought in red uniforms with orderly precision and methodical execution; Marion fought in camouflage from trees and bushes. Creatively engineered tactics enabled Marion's tiny unit to repeatedly defeat a well-supplied enemy many times their size. Hugh taught me that cunning and ingenuity will always trump canned, "cute," as McColl labeled trivial form, and procedural. "Stop thinking like a banker," he would advise.
Hand grenade
Great leaders are prepared. General George Patton soundly defeated German General Erwin Rommel in the Battle of the Bulge during World War II. When asked about his secret of success, Patton pronounced, "I read his damn book!" Great leaders know their courage is strengthened by preparation. While they abhor "paralysis from analysis," they know their choices are too critical to rely on a "shoot from the hip" approach. While McColl sometimes appeared impetuous, those close to him knew he was rarely unprepared. He often visited my leadership classes and participated as just another student, never as the CEO. He knew leaders are more powerful role models when they learn than when they teach. He never stopped being a student.
Soldier throwing a hand grenade,
Great leaders are not fearless beings who stoically snub their noses at terror. They are real-life human beings who face danger standing on legs of rubber with their stomachs in their throats. But great leaders lean into danger out of a strong sense of duty and responsibility. Leaders act like pros because they feel accountable to those they serve. They embrace challenges as occasions to test their limits and reaffirm their principles. Hugh always enthusiastically pointed to the bright opportunity on the other side of the risk. Ironically, he kept a hand grenade on top of his desk to symbolize both risk and readiness.
Great leaders are intensely competitive—with their own internal standards of excellence. "Beating the competition" is not their driver; rather, it is "delivering the goods" better than their adversary. Leaders view their competitors as a part of the context of the contest, not as its content. While never oblivious to where they are in their relationship with competitors, their energy is fueled by an intent to excel, not by a malevolent motivation to rout. They focus on their vision and goals rather than on their opponent. McColl modeled the pursuit of one's own standards of excellence, not scoreboards crafted by others. "I admit to being an elitist," he often said. "We only want the very best."
Great leaders are willing to buck the tide. Too many leaders today have been instructed to act like a leader, but informed to think like a lawyer. Some have learned to surrender to unrealistic demands when their consciences scream for acting on principle. Such timidity has bred caution when in the presence of controversy. Too many leaders would rather lose sleep than lose face. The combat zone of today's world of enterprise is fundamentally about obvious trust—customers, employees, and community. Hugh had a major influence on the community and industry because he was trusted always to be authentic while remaining true to his principles.
Bank of America is today the 2nd largest bank in the U.S., with almost 3700 branches. The McColl Building at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill houses the Kenan-Flagler School of Business. The McColl School of Business at Queens University in Charlotte is named for him. McColl was inducted into the South Carolina Business Hall of Fame in 1990 and the North Carolina Business Hall of Fame in 2005. A midtown Charlotte park is named in his honor. Happy birthday, Hugh!