The SuperFollower (---I)

How would a manager function if he were deficient in the areas of (P)roducing, (A)dministrating, and (E)ntrepreneuring and were only capable of (I)ntegrating?

What is he most concerned about? He’s interested in who. He doesn’t care what we agree about, nor how we agree about it, nor why we agree. The important thing is: “Do we agree?” I call him the SuperFollower.

What are the characteristics that typify a SuperFollower? He’s not a leader. He’s the one who asks, “Where would you like to go? Let me lead you there.”

An (---I) accommodates endlessly. He wants everything to run smoothly. He tries to find out what plan will be acceptable to the largest number of powerful people. In other words, he does not really lead – he follows. That’s why I call him a SuperFollower.

The SuperFollower is like a fish monitoring the undercurrent, always seeking the right tide to join. He’s a politician, always listening to what is going on, trying to sense the undercurrent.

What is the difference between a politician and a statesman? The statesman worries about the next generation, while the politician worries about the next election. The SuperFollower is not concerned about the future as much as he worries about present support for his political standing. “Do we agree?” is his motto. He might be running a very happy disaster. He negotiates an appearance of agreement rather than resolving the deep-seated issues that cause conflict.

The SuperFollower welcomes any training – if it improves his ability to understand human nature or contributes to the appearance of unity. He rejects any solution that creates heat, even if it’s necessary for the company’s success.

If the SuperFollower has free time, he spends it socializing, listening to complaints or agreements and then amplifying and accentuating them with his support.

It’s difficult to get a SuperFollower to commit to a point of view. In Mexico, they call this type of manager “the soapy fish,” because you just can’t catch him. He always has some way to slip away; he always wiggles out of your hands. His typical complaint is: “You really didn’t understand what I really wanted to say …” “What I really meant to say is …” You can’t corner him. That’s how he remains in power for a long time: He figures out which side is winning and adapts himself to that side.

The SuperFollower doesn’t tell you what he thinks; he asks you what you think. He’s noncommittal. He might say something like, “I have an idea, but I’m not so sure I agree with it,” or “I suggest we declare dividends, but I don’t feel too strongly about it.” He is launching trial balloons to see where everyone else stands before he makes any commitment; he wants to see which way the wind is blowing. This makes him a perfect weathervane: If you want to know which changes will most likely be accepted and which will not, watch him. The SuperFollower tends to avoid making decisions as long as he can. He has no ideas of his own that he would like to implement – no (E); no tangible results that he wants to achieve – no (P). Unlike an (A), he is indifferent to any particular system, as long as agreement is achieved or is seen to be achieved.

Because he lacks strong convictions, his mind can be changed quickly and easily. He sways along with popular opinion.

At meetings, the SuperFollower is the one who is listening very attentively. Who is saying what? What does the speaker really mean? What is not being said? Where does the power lie? Which way is the decision likely to go?

The SuperFollower does not grasp that it is better to have a mediocre decision implemented than an outstanding decision never implemented. If the SuperFollower is chairing a meeting and a consensus cannot be achieved, he will probably postpone the decision by establishing a subcommittee to study the problem further. In reality, he is waiting for a political consensus to emerge. But his procrastination can have a high price. While he waits, opportunities disappear. Sometimes the consensus he’s waiting for will not surface until the situation has become a crisis and the organization’s survival is at risk.

An (---I) also has trouble comprehending that once people agree, that does not necessarily mean they are actually going to implement a decision. They may appear to be agreeing in order to show political loyalty, but if, in reality, they feel their concerns and interests have not been fully addressed, they may actually try to undermine the plan.

The SuperFollower hires people like himself, who are politically intuitive; they have a good nose for how the political power base is moving. They are the first to identify it and to jump on the bandwagon. What do they spend their time on? “What’s going on?” “Who said what?” “What does it mean?” “Where is the power base?” I call them informers, or oilers.

Their main job is to keep the boss up-to-date and make sure everybody is happy. It is their duty to feed the boss the latest office “news”; no gossip is too insignificant to relate.

The SuperFollower’s subordinates know that loyalty to him is paramount if they want to be promoted. In his presence, the (---I)’s subordinates appear peaceful and accepting, remembering that their boss prefers people whom other people like. This often requires them to keep their true feelings hidden from him, which can easily lead to their feeling manipulated and emotionally exploited.

The SuperFollower has no particular goal; or rather, the goal is whatever is most desired at a particular time by a consensus of his coworkers. This is, of course, a very limited attitude toward corporate goals, and as a result, short-range interest groups and cliques flourish under the SuperFollower.

When a SuperFollower leaves an organization, the superficial (I)ntegration he established will rapidly deteriorate. At that point, an (A)dministrator is often called in to resolve the problem. This solution can be traumatic, as it replaces the (I)ntegration of people, the development of appropriate compromises, with a rigid set of regulations to force order.

Or sometimes a (P)roducer is called in to inject some energy and clarity, and to clean up the confusion that the SuperFollower’s political maneuvering has created over the years. But any change of styles is stressful, because people must change their behavior and learn to follow different organizational cues to be successful.