Lessons from LeBron
If you paid attention to the news at all last week, you know that NBA superstar LeBron James left his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers to sign as a free agent with the Miami Heat, and you know that he announced his decision in an hour-long special on ESPN Thursday night. Needless to say, it was not a popular decision in Cleveland, and reaction elsewhere to the style of his announcement was not much better (at least outside Miami).
To some, LeBron James is just a basketball player, but as an aspiring billionaire, he is very much the CEO of his own empire. As such, business and association leaders can learn a few lessons from the whole debacle:
Don't make vendors or job applicants jump through hoops if they're not being seriously considered. After the free-agency period began, LeBron listened to presentations from at least six teams whose representatives flew to Akron, Ohio, to woo him. We'll never know for sure, but his final decision to join buddies Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade in Miami seems like it was the plan all along. As an organization making a decision regarding whom to hire or sign a contract with, keep your group of finalists small. Interviewing people not in contention is a waste of their time and yours, and it may leave them with a bad impression.
Understand that humans react emotionally—even irrationally—before anything else. LeBron delivered the classic "It's just business" line, which is always a mistake. His version was, "I can't get involved in that. You know, one thing that I didn't want to do was make an emotional decision." Problem is, trying to be logical with people in a time of change just doesn't work. Yes, of course business decisions are business decisions, and moving to the Heat was arguably his best option. But "It's just business" will fall on deaf ears 100 percent of the time. Any leader ushering in a major change should plan for winning hearts—or at least minimizing backlash—first and worry about the logistics later. Which leads me to…
Show respect—even praise—for people who will be let down by a business decision. LeBron made little effort to thank Cavaliers fans for seven years of loyalty, and the act of announcing his departure in an hour-long TV circus just made it worse. Contrast this with MLB pitcher Roy Halladay, who bought a full-page ad in the Toronto Sun to thank Blue Jays fans when he was traded to Philadelphia in December. In any major change at an organization—ending a long-running program, laying off employees, etc.—there's no avoiding negative reaction. But acknowledging the past contributions of deeply vested stakeholders softens the pain they feel in some small way. To ignore them is to pour salt in the wound.
Of course, LeBron's not the only one who took the low road. Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert penned an emotional open letter after LeBron's announcement. If you're a Cavs fan, the letter is a catharsis, but if you're a manager or leader, it is a bad example to follow—Steve Tobak at The Corner Office blog explains why. (And if you're a graphic designer with an interest in font choices, the letter was, well, peculiar.)
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Comments
Nice. I haven't been following the LeBron saga very closely, but I wonder if there's a correlary to your first point: People will see through your transparent attempts to generate false competitive interest in what you do. James was pursuing a short-term goal (a big payday from whatever team picked him up), so it made short-term sense to court a lot of teams, which jacks up the bidding. But as a long-term strategy, he lost a lot of goodwill within the NBA, among the media, and with fans, especially in Cleveland---and aside from being a crummy way for a person to behave, he probably wound up cutting himself out of some endorsement deals, which are often based on the likability of an athlete. (Barry Bonds could hit all the homers he wanted, juiced or not, but nobody ever wanted to see his grumpy mug on a Wheaties box, and I say that as a former Giants fan.) To swing this back to associations, there are probably a lot of things you can do on the back of members to make a quick buck, but you'll risk harming your long-term prospects in the process. And if you're making big clanging noises about how amazing and important your services are and how much members love them, you'll usually look like you're trying too hard; just deliver those services, and word will get around.
Posted by: Mark Athitakis | July 13, 2010 12:40 PM
I was literally going to write the same post, but you beat me to it! I really like it.
I also think there is more to be said about the bad actions of the Cavs owner post-"Decision" - particularly that as a leader, talking about how bad or unmotivated an employee was while they were on your team doesn't make you or your organization look very good for the next potential all-star team member you want to come join you. If that potential employee is really great, why would they put him/herself in the position to be badmouthed by a frustrated leader if they ever decide to leave... Just something else to add to your great post.
Posted by: Bruce Hammond | July 14, 2010 9:16 AM
Nicely put - what really bugged me about the whole thing though was the 'cause-washing' angle that (in my opinion) was poorly executed. Boys and Girls Club is a great organization but this act of publicity was reimincient of KFC's 'pink chicken' for Komen. It was a thinly veiled distraction technique from the real intent of the media special and did not come across as being very genuine. I'm sure that LeBron is fully invested in his role in that organization but I thought the check presentation was awkward and staged and LeBron's individual contribution wasn't even made known (as a comparison to that of the corporate sponsor). Just a weird media stunt all the way around.
Posted by: Shirley Robinson | July 14, 2010 10:00 AM
It's tempting but difficult to extrapolate conclusions from LeBron's case to our world, but nice job! I've always been more fascinated by the business and economics of sports than the on-field play itself. These guys are traded on such a regular basis that you'd never get much Cal Ripken-like longevity; owners & GMs don't enable that kind of behavior and nor do the agents/experts athletes rely on, so it's not surprising in that kind of 'trading floor' management culture that LeBron is forgetting little things like fan support or being gracious to Delonte & his other former teammates.
LeBron's medium-sized mistake came from trying to shine a light on the business decision itself. I'd add sports to politics and sausage in the old saying--if you like them, you probably don't wanna know how they're really made.
I almost want to say LeBron is disproving the old adage 'there is no bad publicity' but I bet this will fade: beyond one's personal brand there's the simple matter of doing the job and he's in a field where he'll be judged primarily for that kind of performance. As long as he's a good #2b to Dwyane Wade he'll have at least a positive reception in 29 out of 30 NBA cities.
The rules are always different for the top 5-10 performers than for the other 250ish guys in the NBA--nobody in DC is bemoaning Mike Miller's right to move to Miami for example. In the end we'll overthink it and Cleveland fans will forget to be grateful for 7 years of non-mediocrity, just like LeBron will almost forget he ever played there. Anyone who's ever gone back to their old office after leaving there a year or two ago knows how awkward that can feel. Most trades & free agency signings are clean breaks--he just burned a bridge he wasn't going to use again while he was at it.
Posted by: Kevin Whorton | July 20, 2010 5:59 AM