How old power businesses can embrace New Power

Lessons from Jeremy Heimans, co-author of New Power

I am fortunate that as part of my role as CHRO of Unilever I have the opportunity to meet with some of our generations brightest and boldest thinkers. One of those people is Jeremy Heimans, CEO of Purpose and the co-author (with Henry Timms) of New Power, a fascinating book about the changes in the balance of power in society and how that is transforming our world.

Many of you know that I have officially made this my #LearnWithLeena #YearofLearning, which means I’m going to spend the year learning as much as possible — and sharing what I learn with you. (And, of course, crowdsourcing and sharing your lessons is a very New Power approach, so this seems like a very apt place to begin!)

1. It’s time to let go of outmoded power structures

Jeremy believes there is a problem at the heart of many of our institutions and governments. That is, that they were built on “old power” values created centuries ago which no longer match up with 21st century power structures. For him, organisations cannot survive without letting go of their “old power” values. Values such as confidentiality, managerialism and old-school structures of formal governance. Instead they need to embrace “new power values”, which includes things like crowd-sourcing, extreme transparency, leaderless structures and a more childlike, less “expert” enthusiasm.

It’s worth watching Jeremy’s TED Talk (or buying the book!) for more on this.

But what does all this mean for a business like Unilever? Jeremy had some wisdom to share there too.

2. If we want to drive change, we need to help people reframe their identity

If you are asking your people to make changes or to sign up to something different, you need to help them reframe their professional identity. They need to see how their role contributes to what you want to achieve. For example, at Unilever, we are absolutely focused on the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan (USLP). But if you really want to your people to make that connection between what they do and what your business achieves, you must close the “say-do” gap. It’s not enough to say you want change, it’s important to help them to actually do it.

This means addressing the barriers to change that businesses often experience at the mid- and upper- management levels: the quiet disillusionment. People need to understand how your company’s wider vision is compatible with the other things they’re being asked to do. They need to feel that your company’s wider purpose (in our case, our USLP) is at the centre of everything they do and every decision they make.

3. Embrace shapeshifters and bridges

Jeremy talked about “shapeshifters” — that is, people with institutional power who have the vision and skills to do radical new things — and “bridges” — people who know Old Power but who can bridge the gap to New Power. These are the people who must be highly empowered to make the changes to take a business from old to new power. You cannot change an organisation’s power structure over night or through sheer will. You must equip people to deliver these changes. And those people with the right leadership skills to effect the changes are not necessarily the managers.

Transforming an organisation’s power structure does not happen spontaneously. In order to create an environment that allows for increased participation, leaders with the right background and standing are needed to champion the cause.

4. Take a New Power approach to learning

It was heartening to hear that we already take a New Power approach to learning at Unilever. What does that mean? It means bitesize learning, a little-but-often and a tailored approach. Embedding a culture of learning is something I’m passionate about (hence my decision to make this my #YearOfLearning) and I believe it’s a vital ingredient in building a resilient business — and a resilient workforce too!

So those are just some of the highlights from my time with Jeremy Heimans. It was a true privilege to meet with ­– and learn from — him. Thank you Jeremy!

If you’d like to hear more about my learning adventures, remember to follow #LearnwithLeena or #YearofLearning for all my videos, articles and photos!) And for notes on things I have personally learned over the years, you can follow #LeenaLifeLessons.