The politics of business

There's a business lesson in politics.

You can find it in the Iowa and New Hampshire US election primaries.

It's about making people buy into change. There is a mood for change in the US.

And change doesn't mean a different political party or different ideologies. We're talking about a change in leadership style. We're talking about setting new goals for a country. Perhaps even about finding a new purpose for the US.

The leaders who are getting ahead understand that it's about the way they communicate their personality and not the sum of their credentials, experience or ideologies.

It's the same leadership qualities needed for a corporate turnaround or to manage during a period of transition.

From FastCompany's Expert Blog:

This type of oratorical skill is routinely dismissed by officeholder wannabes and their campaigns as not meriting much attention. (It's also dismissed in the business world.) The only thing that should count, they think, is intellectual skill, political achievements and, perhaps, experience.

There are a number of strong communicators on both sides of the political spectrum to use as examples.

Obama...

Obama, for his part, is untested and has served in the Senate for only a couple of years. His oratory is light on detail and issues, preferring to rely mostly on broad, inspirational and aspirational topics such as hope and change.

And Huckabee...

Huckabee has a vastly different style, but is equally effective. An affable and quick-witted communicator, Huckabee's brilliance is in his ability to persuade voters that he's one of them, a regular guy, sensitive to the average American's needs and plight.

The mood for change is easier to detect in politics though.

Generally speaking, unless you're terribly dissatisfied, it's a bit more complicated to leave your country than to leave your company. So people tend to organize, protest and vote as a reflection of unhappiness.

It plays right into the hands of politicians.

Stagnant business leaders deal with high turnover instead and it's difficult to inspire people rushing through a revolving door. But the point still stands.