The younger leads the older
Introduction
This is the second installment in my conversation with G.J. Hart, CEO of Texas Roadhouse.
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The fire
The combination of good fortune and hard work landed G.J. Hart as a plant manager responsible for 500 employees at the tender age of twenty. He described it as a great opportunity and a trial by fire. He went on to explain that nearly everyone in the plant was older, more experienced, and more knowledgeable of the industry.
The first question
While listening to G.J. talk, two questions bubbled up in my mind. I think I interrupted him when I asked, “What did your mentor see
in you that motivated him to put you in charge of 500 experienced employees?”
G.J. wasn’t troubled by my interruption. He casually responded, “Probably the things you would expect.” There was a pause. I waited.
G.J. began explaining qualities he learned from his parents, qualities imprinted in his DNA; the will to persevere and the will to succeed. Dual qualities he connected to the toughness his Mom demonstrated by surviving six years in Japanese concentration camps and the stubbornness of his Dutch Dad.
The second question
The second question was less personal and more technical. I asked, “How does a young leader earn the respect of older more experienced workers?” Without hesitation G.J. listed two qualities in succession.
- You respect them.
- You are there to serve them.
You have to respect a young man with that kind of wisdom.
I asked the Facebook fans for their thoughts on younger leading the older.
- Jean Radeztsky, … “Know that you were selected for this role because of your leadership skills.”
- Kerry Bural, “The “spirit” in which one leads is critical to the outcome.”
- Eric Jacques, … “Asking for their feedback and giving them plenty of time to accept me in my role.”
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Pt. 1 “A Dealer in Hope”
Pt. 3 “A Different Kind of Courage”
What are your suggestions for those charged with leading/managing older more experienced employees?
This post is very helpful to me. I have several people on my staff who are older and much more experienced than I am. The idea of respecting and serving them is outstanding! It seems to be the primary way to establish the relationship needed to effectively lead.
It’s always great to hear how readers can take ideas and put them into practice. I wish you success.
Dan, Great question………………………During my time at IBM I adopted several of them as mentors and at different times contact them for advise and counsel. Keep up the great work. Howie
Howie,
Nice! Bring the older in rather than excluding them. I also see that you did not give the older unlimited input. You directed it. Useful suggestions.
Best,
Dan
Demonstrate to them that you are there to work with them. People trust and follow you because of the vision you lay out in front of them and allowing them to use the tools at hand to get there (in a cohesive fashion). The age thing soon becomes a non event once there is buy in for the purpose of why everyone is here and who is responsible for what. Roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty though, don’t say all the nice/ right things from a distance in your comfy office.
Thabo,
Thank you for joining the conversation and adding value. Love your idea about “getting your hands dirty.” I can see where people get put off by a “better than thou” kind of attitude.
I think getting your hands dirty actually comes before laying out a vision. With out the connection, you lay out all the vision you want but few will follow it unless they feel everyone is in it together.
Best,
Dan
100% agree Dan.
Dan…
I love how GJ points out that you are there to serve them. First, you must believe you are there to serve them. Then you must spend the time to communicate and show by example as it will take time for them to believe.
I believe that all leaders are servants of the people no matter what your age. It is our job to define a vision and a strategy and communicate to the people. We must build a culture of trust so that our vision and decisions to make our vision come true is accepted by the people.
Dan,
What a great way to see “the circle of leadership” in motion! At almost 41, I’m not too young anymore and I’m not too old…yet, but isn’t it interesting that at no matter what age a leader is, they’re still a leader? If you have the qualities, or that DNA that G.J. mentioned then people of any age will follow you. The title alone is worthless, it’s what you exemplify that stands out, not matter what your age.
Thanks for the great perspective!
Van
Dear Dan,
I think, those charged with leading/managing older more experienced employees get better opportunity in terms of ideas, learning and direction. Youngers charged with leading is surrounded by many ideas, especially ideas that do not work. Leader can analyse and scan behind the ideas that worked, are working and will work. The other fact is that when younger leads the team of experienced people, it becomes easier for him to take decisions. Younger leader can also find out what is missing in the team and why older people are not leading.This will make him to find out missing metrics and he can take measure to motivate or charge them. People have ideas but they need leader to execute that. So, idea is not enough to have, we need execution be be successful.
I believe Mr. G.J. Hart had execution skill. He also had decision making skill. And all these things, he acquired through his experience. So, when leader has decision making capability, idea execution skill, organisation get direction. And this is the reason, why he was charged with leading team of experienced and knowledgeable people.
Hi Dan,
Since so many baby boomers are still working, there’s a greater likelihood that the numbers of people managing older people will continue to grow. Your post and the thoughtful comments of your readers offer great advice. With the right attitude, the right leadership behaviors will naturally emerge.
Dan,
I really enjoyed both of these posts.
However, to be honest, although the posts and his “American dream” type of mentality left me feeling like I could really move up in the world, the truth is that if you are currently out of a job it is difficult to quantify the types of qualities that marks one as an outstanding leader. On the one hand, the man that hired him was probably very atypical and took the “leap of faith” hiring G.J. The manager just knew that he would be great. He had that feeling. But in no way did G.J. possess “credentials.” He couldn’t have at 20. (Obviously, I don’t care about traditional credentials in the usual way)
Now I recognize that this is a different topic although together. However, with recent Gallup unemployment numbers at 9.8% and underemployment numbers at another 10%, we have to recognize that there are great leaders out “there” with the fire, humility and leadership capabilities just like G.J.
When I read these stories I am motivated, yes. Nevertheless, on the other hand, I look at my life and I say, “What can I do to live the American dream like this guy did?” Then I ask, “Has the world changed so much that we will never again see people take these chances on the young?”
As an individual that is working on his Ed.D in leadership, is 29, is in between jobs, etc., it is scary right now. The market is scary. Everything needs to be quantifiable in resumes and cover letters unless you know someone that can press you through to the next level. More than anything, I wish we have more leaders like the mentor of G.J.: that could look into your eyes and after hearing your story know that you were a legit commodity, a legit, humble, leader that could grow the company and develop quality leaders all along the way.
Andrew,
Thank you for a powerful, passionate comment. Clearly there is some serendipity in life. I noticed that both G.J. and Jay Elliot had good fortune to go along with their hard work.
My hope in sharing these stories is to share the wisdom of others and encourage everyone to keep pursuing their dream.
Best to you,
Dan
Dan,
I agree fully: serendipity does indeed play a role in life. I have ran into my fair share. It’s what the parent’s taught me: life isn’t fair. 🙂
Thank you for the reminder.
I appreciate your blog very much.
Hope & Peace,
Andrew S. Dungan
Well I can’t write this in poet form but hey have you ever tried to fool your parents pretending to clean your room but didn’t. Well there is no fooling the older gen and so for this reason, it is tough to turn to an owner and tell them they are wasting money on present child like management who aren’t doing what they are suppose to be doing. There is no =dignity- for an elder to do all the work knowing the young ones are simple minded tokens on holidays.
Great analogy with cleaning your room as a kid.
The question as posed implies that there is some inherent difficulty for young leaders in gaining the respect of older reports. But G.J.’s answers are not really age specific are they? You gain respect by being respectful without regard to age, and you serve.
I constantly hear that that age is an issue and I suppose in terms of a young leader relating to an older worker, or vice-versa, there is at least some potential for trouble, but I really think that truly listening and honestly attempting to understand is the essence of respect. I need not (and probably cannot) walk a mile in your shoes, I just need to listen, understand and care about YOUR making that walk. And doing so is not a question of age (or even years of experience as G.J.’s own career path makes clear).
Know that you don’t have the answers, and that in all probability you aren’t any more willing, just less battle scarred.
I remember getting my first platooon as a young lieutenant – 30+ soldiers and only a handful were younger than me. My platoon sergeant was more than twice my age. You quickly learn the value of listening and observing before you speak. Fortunately my platoon sergeant, next under me, was a patient teacher as well as a cooperative subordinate.
Respect older generations values, work ethic, loyalty. These drive them
Being an athletic director in my 20’s, thinking about taking the job, how can i gain the respect of a 50 year old coach who says iv won many games in 20 years why do i need to change “x”?
Maybe the older person that’s being led by the younger feels that the young is receiving special treatment that they don’t deserve. Alleviate that awkward tension by humbly serving the older for the greater good.