This article is about #leadership during a crisis. It examines the leadership characteristics of Ulysses S. Grant and applies them to business organizations in the current #Pandemic crisis.

1. NAVIGATING THROUGH THE PERFECT STORM
By
Eric Flamholtz
Professor Emeritus, Anderson School of Management, UCLA
President Management Systems
Abstract
This article is about leadership during a crisis. It examines the leadership characteristics of
Ulysses S. Grant and applies them to business organizations in the current Pandemic crisis.
This was not the article I was going to write this week.
Almost three months ago, I made a decision that my approach to dealing with the Covid-19 Pandemic
was to try and make a contribution by drawing on my research and experience in leadership, coaching,
and organizational development. This contribution was going to take two forms: weekly articles on
Linkedin and writing a book on leadership during crisis. So far, I have done both. The book was
completed two weeks ago, and yesterday I was preparing an article on culture. However, the terrible
news of chaos both in the streets and in government changed my plans. I gave serious thought to not
write anything this week.
Ulysses S. Grant
Then I remembered U.S. Grant: Ulysses S. Grant. A strange name for a stranger individual. Yet Grant was
on many was the apotheosis of a true American, because someone like him could only rise in America.
Like many others, I forgot about Ulysses S. Grant a long time ago. He only recently reappeared in the
three part his historical hybrid “recreation-documentary” that has just been aired on the History
Channel.
Yet Grant was an amazing individual; a man of many profound contradictions. He was a virtual loser
most of his life; but he ultimately became President of the United States. He only reluctantly entered
into West point as a military cadet and was a mediocre student; but was a heroic solder in the Mexican
war. He was an inveterate alcoholic (classic drunk) stationed in Eureka, California, who drank his way out
of the Army; but then was given an opportunity for redemption when the Civil war arose, and reformed
like a Phoenix into the era’s finest General and was a hero of the of the US civil war. I leave the rest for
you to watch in true shock and awe.
What made Grant a True leader?
It was not who he was before he became a leader; it was not his pedigree, his education, or family
history that made him who he was. It is what he became through the process of tortured experience
that makes him significant and a role model for our perilous times.

2. What made Grant a true leader was a complex mixture of qualities and experiences. He had few natural
abilities and was an indifferent directionless student; but his experiences, especially his failures,
molded him in to a focused, determined, persistent, unflappable leader who could clearly determine
the essence of a situation, craft a strategy, and doggedly execute it, adapt to changing information ,
circumstances, and even failure, and ultimately prevail. That, my friends and colleagues, is the
definition of a true successful leader in any situation either business or government.
The Dimensions of Leadership
The key Dimensions of Leadership are found in the above characterizations of Grant: focused,
determined, persistent, who could clearly identify the essence of a situation, craft a strategy, and
doggedly execute it, adapt to changing information, circumstances, and even failure, and ultimately
prevail. Let’s examine each in turn.
Focus: I have been working with leaders for about 45 years as an advisor, consultant and coach.
There are three things that distinguish successful from unsuccessful leaders: focus, focus, and focus.
Successful leaders define objective and marshal all of their resources (including time, energy, people and
money) to achieve it. This done event when the objective is to overcome failure. For example, Frank
Lowy, co-founder of Westfield’s (the shopping mall company) dealt with a strategic failure involving the
ill-advised acquisition of a media company as part of a diversification strategy that threatened to cause
the entire company to go bankrupt by marshaling all of his resources to divest the media business.1
Unsuccessful leaders fall in love with what my colleague and co-author Yvonne Randle calls “The
shiny ball.” The shiny ball. Is her metaphor for whatever attracts the attention of a corporate leader,
who, in reality, is behaving like a fish attacking a gold or silver lure.
Determined and Persistent: For me, the personification of determined and persistent is and
always will be Winston Churchill. Churchill, the Bulldog. Churchill, the indomitable spirit.
The image of Churchill (fat, a bit pompous, and with his ever-present cigar-- looking more like a
restaurateur or chef than a national leader) defines “determined and persistent.”
Clearly Identify “the Essence” of A Situation: The ability to examine a situation and quickly and
clearly determine “the essence” is an essential yet amazing skill. All great “players” have it: Bobby
Fisher in Chess; Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson in Basketball; U.S. Grant in military campaigns.
What these players can do in battle, great organizational leaders can do in crisis.
Examples include Lee Iacocca at Chrysler; Harvey Golub at American Express, and Michael Eisner at
Disney.2
Craft A Strategy During Crisis: The ability to formulate a strategy under stress and time pressure
and is another essential leadership skill in crisis. Some leaders are great planners with sufficient time;
but as General George Patton (leader of the Third Army during World War II and the US general most
1
This case is examined in book just completed by Eric Flamholtz and Yvonne Randle dealing with
leadership in crises to be published next month (June, 2020): Vandeplas Publishing LLC, Lake Mary FL.
and the ISBN: 978-1-60042-513-4.
2
All of these examples are discussed in the book cited above.

3. respected and feared by the German General Staff) said: “A good plan today is better than a perfect plan
next week.”
Dogged Execution: This is a pattern of behavior that is an outgrowth of the traits of “determined
and persistent” discussed above. An example of this is the notion from Poker of “going ’all-in.’” The
phrase “going all-in” implies total commitment. Literally, it means putting all of your “chips” or money at
risk on a single bet.
In poker, “Dogged Execution” woduld be continuing to bluff on all “streets” even though the
bets are being called. It will either work or not.
An example in business would be what Howard Schultz did at Starbucks to demonstrate “proof
of concept.” Schultz told his investors “to stay the course--it will work.”3
And it ultimately did.
Adapt to Changing Information, Circumstances, and Even Failure. As seen in the documentary
on Grant, his troops were losing the battle of Shiloh, a crucial strategic point for control of territory that
was critical to mobility for either army.
The first day was total disaster for both sides. It six estimated that 25,000 people were killed
during the first day of battle.
Grant’s troops had been surprised by the attack of the Confederate army. They were “out
manned,” and Grant was on the defensive. His strategy that first day was to give ground slowly and wait
for expected reinforcements. The first day ended in demoralizing failure for the Union Army.
However, Grant observed that a captured confederate soldier had “provisions” (food) for about
three days of fighting in his knapsack. This implied that the confederates were prepared to withdraw
after three days of fighting. Grant knew that it was not only his troops that were battered; the
confederate army was badly damaged as well.
He believed that whoever seized the initiative woduld win the battle. Audaciously, he shifted his
strategy, seized the initiative and went on the attack at the start of the second day. The surprised
confederate troops retreated, and this turned the tide of battle. Grant’s army won the battle of Shiloh,
and with it the opportunity to control a key strategy point to enable the Union Army to penetrate the
south via rail and water.
The same phenomenon of adapting to changing information, circumstances, and even failure is
vital in business as well as warfare. As cite above, this is well illustrated by Frank Lowy’s ability and
wiliness to change his diversification strategy and divest the media company acquired even at a
considerable loss in order to protect the core of his business. In addition, Lowey learned from this
failure and it helped him evolve a tactic of “extreme due diligence” to be used in future acquisitions.4
3
Personal communication between Howard Schultz and Eric Flamholtz, when the latter was consulting for
Starbucks to help it establish its organizational capabilities (1994-98).
4
This discussed in detail in Flamholtz and Randle’s book dealing with leadership in crises to be published
June, 2020 by Vandeplas Publishing LLC, Lake Mary FL. and the ISBN: 978-1-60042-513-4.

4. The Bottom Line: “THE RIGHT STUFF5
”
The “Bottom Line” of leadership as in any human endeavor is either success or failure. The key
“Dimensions of Leadership” that are found in the above characterizations of Grant: focus,
determination and persistence, the ability to clearly identify the essence of a situation, craft a
strategy, and doggedly execute it, adapt to changing information, circumstances, and even failure are
the ingredients of organizational success.
This constitutes “THE RIGHT STUFF” of leaders who are faced with the challenges of navigating the
global pandemic that has enveloped and threatened us all.
Eric Flamholtz is Professor Emeritus Recalled, Anderson School of Management, UCLA and
President of Management Systems. Management Systems is an organizational development
research and consulting application firm headquartered in Los Angeles, California, with global
affiliates who are licensed, trained and certified to utilize the firm’s proprietary methods and
tools. Flamholtz has chosen to try and make a positive difference during the pandemic by
writing and sharing his perspective and experience. He and co-author Yvonne Randle have
authored a new book dealing with leadership during crisis, which will be published in June by
Vandeplas Publishing LLC. Contact: EF@Mgtsystems.com.
5
With a nod to Tom Wolfe.