One invaluable leadership lesson from the inventors of the internet
Hello and welcome to Modern CEO! I’m Stephanie Mehta, CEO and chief content officer of Mansueto Ventures. Each week this newsletter explores inclusive approaches to leadership drawn from conversations with executives and entrepreneurs, and from the pages of Inc. and Fast Company. Sign up to get it yourself every Monday morning.
Ten months ago, Christine Haughney Dare-Bryan, an Inc. editor-at-large, set out to tell the story of the founding of the internet. Her forthcoming podcast, Computer Freaks, highlights the role of the technologists and military officers who helped launch ARPANET, the Defense Department-backed precursor to the internet. Among those featured: Vinton Cerf, now chief internet evangelist for Google; 3Com co-founder Bob Metcalfe; and Dare-Bryan’s father, Joseph Haughney, an Air Force major who served as ARPANET network manager.
I asked Dare-Bryan to share what she learned about leadership from speaking to dozens of computer science titans, and her answer surprised me: “People won’t forget if you don’t give them credit and treat them kindly,” she says.
Credit where credit is due
Dare-Bryan interviewed 50 subjects for her project, some of whom feel they or their peers weren’t sufficiently acknowledged for their contributions to the internet. Though they’re all in their 70s, 80s, and even 90s now—and they’ve accomplished much in the intervening years—the lack of proper recognition gnaws at them more than 40 or 50 years on. “It was fascinating to me how much people talked about how credit had been taken from them or about a leader who did not give them full credit,” Dare-Bryan says. “They never forget.”
Leaders who take all the credit for a successful project are likely insecure or complacent; by contrast, highly ambitious CEOs take blame when things go awry and share the glory when things go well. Assigning credit is a way to retain talent, motivate teams, and even improve the bottom line. A study by Gallup and Workhuman found that when large businesses doubled the number of employees praised, they saw a 9% boost in productivity.
The power of a shout-out
Apple CEO Tim Cook has publicly acknowledged employee contributions to products and the company during speeches and in company memos. Indra Nooyi, the former CEO of PepsiCo, took accreditation one step further: She wrote letters to the parents of her senior leaders, noting that they are responsible for their adult children’s successes. “Our executives get very emotional about it,” she says. “The executive says, ‘this is the best thing that’s ever happened to my parents and the best thing that’s happened to me.’ The executive feels proud.”
How do you share credit, especially with those who work directly with you? Do you have any tools or techniques you’ve developed that make colleagues feel especially valued? Send your ideas to stephaniemehta@mansueto.com. I’d welcome a chance to share your insights with our readers.
And in the spirit of giving credit, this newsletter would not be possible without editor Gwen Moran; copy editor Kelly Ferguson; photo editor Maja Saphir; Sarah Lynch, who produces these pieces for our websites; and Sabine Cherenfant, audience development manager.
Read, listen, watch: giving credit where credit is due
How to give proper credit to your employees. Read more
This is why you need a “chief encourager” stat. Read more
Musician and actor Janelle Monáe on how her team makes her better. Read more
Trailer: The untold history of how the internet almost didn’t happen. Listen here
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