Control
I saw a want-ad for a creative director the other day.
This company wants a new CD who is able to engage with “all aspects of our energetically creative marketing department.” They are looking for someone who has experience in design, copywriting, photography and video, and content management. “Experience in Web Development is a plus,” apparently.
A creative director is a leadership position, not a creative position. These are fundamentally two different things. Of course, having some experience in some aspect of the field might be helpful. But it absolutely might not be helpful. In fact, even if this company finds a super-hero who is able to do all of these things — this is not the skill set needed to lead a group of creatives.
This position needs someone who understands how to build a team.
The successful candidate should be a learner and a strategizer.
She should have the practiced abilities of outsight and insight.
This person should be cognizant of their own leadership style and understand the strengths of others.
They should have lived and worked long enough to have established rhythms of time and energy management, personal growth, and long-term goal setting.
This team leader should be secure enough to relinquish control and let others thrive.
This company is requiring all the wrong qualifications and not being specific on the right ones. (There’s a vague mention of “leadership qualities” later in the ad. What do they define as leadership qualities? We don’t know.)
When looking for a leadership position in your organization, don’t look for someone who can do the job. Doing often leads to control. And control is not leadership. It’s dysfunction.
