Unless you’re an avid follower of European Union politics, you’ve probably never heard of Bernd Posselt. The German politician served as a Member of the European Parliament between 1994 and 2014, representing the Christian Social Union party in Bavaria. Why am I mentioning an obscure German MEP, you are probably thinking?
Well, apart from his fetching bierkeller moustache and physique, there is something else quite remarkable about Bernd. In the 2014 European elections, he failed to get re-elected. The voters spoke, but Bernd refused to listen. Much to the amusement of the rest of Strasbourg, he simply decided to ignore the election results.
He used the rule that allowed ex-MEPs access to the European Union’s legislative building and strolled in as if nothing had happened. He continued to do so, participating in parliamentary debates and holding weekly round tables with citizens back in Bavaria to discuss their concerns, paying privately for nearly all his expenses.
This brings us to the UK general election. While the results were not a surprise, given that a Conservative wipeout had been predicted in the polls, they illustrated what happens when you don’t listen to people, or when you listen but choose to ignore them, as the Conservative Party did. They lost the support and goodwill of the electorate.
Meanwhile, another important vote took earlier this week when workers at Amazon’s Coventry warehouse voted in a trade union recognition ballot that could allow UK employees of the online retailer to bargain collectively for rights and pay for the first time. At the time of writing, the results have just been announced – and the GMB were just 28 votes short of victory. It has said its legal challenge will continue.
So, what can workplaces learn from these events?
It’s clear that the leaders both in the Conservative Party and in Amazon haven’t been tuned in to their people. This has been either because of complacency or wilful ignorance. As a result, people have asserted their rights, fought for change, and delivered a bloody nose in whatever way they can. The lesson is that no matter how big you think you are, you are never bigger than your people.
What is not in doubt is the fact that Bernd, for whatever reason, chose not to listen to the people he was ultimately accountable to. And in politics, as in leadership, if you don’t listen to your people, you eventually pay a price.
Sir Keir Starmer should not be complacent either, because while the superficial headline was the Labour landslide victory, there was a clear message to the PM from the electorate. According to the stats, huge swathes of the nation have turned off politics altogether. Only around 60 percent of those eligible to vote did so, the lowest turnout in over 20 years.
Labour’s victory came from the smallest vote share for decades, at just 33.7 percent. A sizeable minority no longer feel anyone speaks for them or listens to them. Labour’s magnanimous victory is anything but.
The pact between the people and the government is what pollster James Kanagasooriam described as a “sandcastle majority.” Camilla Long summed up this mood of political fatigue in The Sunday Times, pointing out that the Lib Dems seemed to grasp the tone of the people the best:
“Everything’s sh!t, no one’s getting what they want, nothing is representing anyone, so let’s just pretend it’s a trip to Legoland. Sir Ed Davey opted out, just as we did. His reward? Seventy-two seats for waving his arse – it’s incredible.”
Understand some of the leadership fundamentals
Early indications are that the new PM may understand some of these leadership fundamentals that eluded the old guard during the last few years of Conservative rule. So far, he has been honest about the scale of the problem the government faces and realistic about what can be done.
He hasn’t overpromised. He’s been pragmatic and logical, rather than hyperbolic and fanciful. He hasn’t taken people for fools. He’s not full of charisma, he doesn’t spout sound bites and dog-whistles. We’ve had all that, and it appears we don’t want that anymore.
Meanwhile, at Amazon, the ballot was accompanied by demonstrations across the UK and a rally outside Amazon’s London HQ. More than 3,000 workers at the West Midlands hub were eligible to vote after a long-running battle over workers’ rights between trade unions and the US company.
Workers were granted the right to hold the legally binding ballot by the independent Central Arbitration Committee after a campaign by the GMB union, which is running the ballot. Amazon had rejected a request for voluntary recognition. In short, the company hadn’t listened or made their workers feel valued and now, with continued challenge from the GMB, faces the prospect of having practices enforced on it.
The foundation of any relationship between people and leaders
I could spout all the usual leadership rhetoric and language that’s rolled out: authenticity matters! (it does), leaders should follow through on actions (they should), role model the right behaviours (very important) but there’s also a more fundamental lesson to learn.
People want to feel cared for, they want to feel and be shown they are listened to, and they want to have a sense of belonging. They want to feel invested in and represented. This should be the foundation of any relationship between people and leaders. If it isn’t, you end up like Bernd, out in the cold, unable to fathom your own demise.
Let that be a lesson. Over the years, I’ve worked with many, and it’s a rare few who really do believe and show that leadership is a serving position.
As Keir added in his first speech,
“We will carry the responsibility of your trust, as we rebuild our country. My government will serve you. Politics can be a force for good - we will show that. And that is how we will govern.”
Let’s hope he does and let’s just remember: You are never bigger than your people.
If you want to build your leadership skills, why not get in touch and see how we can help? Just email doug@laugh>ology.co.uk and he’ll be able to talk through your options.
Laughology’s CEO, Stephanie Davies, is one of the UK’s leading voices in happiness and engagement in organisations. She has an unsurpassed reputation for designing and delivering interventions for top-performing teams across a range of sectors and has developed Laughology into the nation’s most talked-about training and development provider. She also has the smallest little fingers of any human being ever and can often be seen walking a cat on a lead in the Surrey village where she lives.