38 ◾ Transforming Teams
Her investigation had unexpectedly revealed that the
production team not only respected Kirby, they looked
up to him. They described him as the unofcial leader
with a tremendous amount of informal authority, not-
withstanding his profound introversion. In contrast,
Scott’s authority seemed rooted in his title, his relation-
ship to the board, and a behavioral style that could
only be described as brutish and bullying.
Eliza had made up her mind as to what changes
needed to be made. Now she had to convince the board.
When Eliza presented her decision to the board,
they were shocked.
One board member bolted up in his seat. He had
close ties to Scott. “So, instead of ring Kirby, you want
to re the person who has served as head of manu-
facturing since this company was founded and elevate
someone who is afraid of his own shadow?”
“Yes,” said Eliza. “That about sums it up. But I would
like to make one clarication to what you just said.
Kirby is not afraid of his own shadow. What he has
endured here at this company indicates to me that he is
not afraid of anything. And I think we should consider
ourselves fortunate that he has not walked out the door
and taken his enormous talents and insights with him.
We’d be lost, I am certain of that.
“And let me be clear. I make this recommendation
not to rectify the treatment that Kirby has endured, but
because he’s the best person for the job. He knows
production inside and out, and his commitment to
quality is second to none.
Quiet Kirby ◾ 39
“In addition, he has signicant informal authority and
respect already. When production questions or issues
arise, it is to Kirby that supervisors and technicians go,
and not to Scott. I recognize that he’s quiet and unassum-
ing, but he has demonstrated a determination to defend
the quality of our product despite the consequences there
might be for him personally, which I have found to be sig-
nicant. So, yes, given all of that, I am recommending that
we re Scott and replace him with Kirby,” she concluded.
Eliza elded many questions and concerns raised by
the board of directors. They also informed her that they
were going to hold her personally accountable if the
decision turned out to be a bad one.
“I understand, and I fully accept the consequences
of what I am recommending because I am condent
that those consequences will be favorable for our com-
pany,” Eliza said.
The board voted unanimously to re Scott and pro-
mote Kirby to the position of VP of manufacturing.
* * *
Eliza rst met with Kirby to let him know of her
decision. He was, to say the least, stunned.
“So, what does this mean?” he asked.
“Well, it means I’d like you to lead our production
process as the new VP of manufacturing. It means a
raise. It means you’ll have an ofce with a door and
some privacy. It means you will be in charge of the
entire production process. And it means you will be in
charge of the entire production team.”
40 ◾ Transforming Teams
“I’m ne with all of it except the last part . . . manag-
ing people. Other than in the service, where people
had to follow my orders or face court-martial, I’ve
never been much of an inspirational leader. I don’t
know if you have noticed, but I’m not exactly what you
would call a ‘people person,’” he said.
Eliza laughed. “Alas, you’re not perfect. Alas, nei-
ther am I. But I’ve given this a considerable amount of
thought, and I know your team will embrace you. Sure,
you’ll hit roadblocks and speed bumps along the way,
but you’ll be ne. And I’m here to support you when
you need it. I’ve already started work on building a
development plan to help you succeed.”
Kirby was clearly pleased with Eliza’s vote of con-
dence and accepted the promotion with quiet gratitude.
“But one thing,” he said as he was leaving her ofce.
“I think I’d like to turn Scott’s ofce into a conference
room. I know I’m not a very social person, and I think
if I’m behind an ofce wall, people will be even more
reluctant to invade my space. I think I need to stay on
the oor so that I can keep the ow of communication
open and I can keep my eyes on everything and my
ear to the ground. Is that okay?”
“Yes, Kirby, that’s okay. And congratulations,” Eliza
said, smiling as she offered her hand.
Eliza’s next move was to let Scott go. When she told
him of her recommendation and of the board’s deci-
sion, he ew into a rage. He screamed at her, threat-
ened her, and told her he was going to have her job.
This was something she presumed he had wanted all
along—her job.
Quiet Kirby ◾ 41
“Scott, this is the decision of the board. If you would
like to take it up with the board chairman, I encourage
you to call him right now.”
“Goddamned right I will!” yelled Scott as he stormed
out of the door.
About 20 minutes later, she received a call from the
chairman letting her know that he was certain that they
had made the right decision in ring Scott. While Eliza
at this point wouldn’t have described herself as “happy”
per se, like Kirby, she was satised—and that was
enough. She had passed her rst major hurdle.
That was almost four years ago. Now, with this
Cynsis issue, she was confronted with her second major
challenge—getting her team to work together.
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