The leadership question

Last week's column on where the next generation of telecom industry leadership will come from generated a lot of intriguing responses--many from industry veterans who have worked through much transformation and turmoil in their decades of telecom employment. Here are excerpts from some of the most compelling responses:

"I have been in the industry since 1959 and have seen some great guys come and go. However, most were there when there was a great deal of stability in the telecom world. Risk-taking was not in their vocabulary, and most could not manage an industry in a temporary decline. The main reason that new leaders have not stepped forward is the uncertainty that exists in this market. If the situation stabilizes and new investment comes, new leaders will emerge and take the industry to a new level."

"The industry monoliths don't want progressive upstarts who will drive the company forward. These companies have selection systems rooted in political cronyism, the outgrowth of which is tied to the regulated past. So we have large companies that have been bred for mediocrity. Most of the true leaders have been sidelined by the job cuts so that the muckety-mucks can take care of themselves without would-be challengers to the throne."

"The next generation will be just that: the NEXT generation. Let's not forget who got us where we are, but let's look to the businesses and start-ups out there now. They are the ones who will give us new insight and bleeding-edge products."

"Cost controls are the major order of the day. It should therefore come as no surprise that the leaders are increasingly accountants and lawyers rather than marketers and technologists. Vision is not needed today--cost reductions are. This is not to say that innovation and start-ups are dead--just asleep for a while."

"The one thing that has not taken place in the telecom industry is the natural rise to leadership of the many who have years of experience within the industry. There are a plethora of capable and experienced telecom mid-level managers that have not been given the opportunity to use their significant talents because of what has become incumbent stagnation. The next generation is available and capable, but unseen and stagnant underneath the radar screen within the industry."

"Will the large company board of directors seek out talent with start-up sector experience to lead the charge to recovery? Not likely. They will choose to look for has-beens that 'have been there before.' Well, this industry has never been where it is currently going."

"We are losing great leaders in the industry that will result in a large void of top level talent that can only be partially filled. I will fall short of saying 'good riddance' as I welcome the new, less-trained but more willing to challenge the 'because we've always done it that way' culture. I for one look forward to taking greater risks, and will relish the lessons."

"The problem with the leadership is that they are no longer groomed from within. Telecom after divestiture began to look outside for leadership in pursuit of better bottom lines. The higher levels of management that were being groomed have retired by now, or, if they still work within telecom, are no longer looked to for direction."

"The old Bell System probably provided more formal training, as well as occupational experience diversity, than most telephone industry companies can afford to provide today. These 'leaders' understood operations, engineering, marketing (well, at least some did) and finance as they rose through the ranks. In today's downsized environment, the resources to establish this trained cadre are difficult to muster, and even harder to justify."

E-mail me at jmeyers@primediabusiness.com