Fort Worth Star-Telegram - February 12, 2001

Adventures in Business

Knight-Ridder

Cecil Johnson

Wed a captivating adventure story to an innovative how-to book on getting subordinates to give their best as individuals while working as a team, and the result will be an important addition to any leader's library.

Margot Morrell and Stephanie Capparell have produced such a gem in
"Shackleton's Way: Leadership Lessons from the Great Antarctic Explorer"
(Viking, $24.95), their biography of Sir Ernest Shackleton, a celebrated Antarctic explorer who rose from cabin boy to knight.

Many Americans have never heard of Shackleton, who died in 1922 and whose greatest adventure took place in a far-flung, uninhabited part of the world while Europe was caught in the throes of World War I. Shackleton's most celebrated expedition to the Antarctic, on the ship Endurance, began just as the guns of August were barking out the start of the great war.

Shackleton had distinguished himself by his ability to motivate his men to great exertions without oppressing them. He led by example, treated his men fairly and made clear that their safety and well-being were as important as the mission. He even risked his life to rescue some of the men who otherwise would have perished in the Antarctic.

The Endurance became trapped in the ice of the Weddell Sea in the
Antarctic winter of 1914 and ultimately was crushed by the expansions and contractions of the ice, leaving the 27 men stranded on an ice floe 1,200 miles from any human habitation and with no means of communication.

They spent two years in the frozen waste, eating seals and penguins and weathering temperatures as low as 180 below. Their ultimate escape over turbulent, frigid seas and through perilous expanses of drifting ice makes T.E. Lawrence's trek through the Nefud Desert seem like child's play. But all
27 survived, and credit for that goes to Shackleton's leadership.

Morrell and Capparell say he did the following:

- Picked people whose skills, talents and personalities complemented one another and who could be depended upon to be loyal to him and to the mission.

- Democratized all work, making the professionals pull their weight in menial tasks and share the available luxuries.

- Disciplined misconduct fairly and proportionately to the offense.

- Assured that the men had state-of-the-art equipment and supplies and paid special attention to nutrition.

- Provided entertainment and other diversions to keep up morale during trying times.

- Led by example, doing the same work and exposing himself to the same dangers as the other men.

The authors give examples of how business leaders have put Shackleton's leadership principles to good use.

It is easy to envision "Shackleton's Way" being used in a classroom, the instructor presenting the adventure story in segments and having the students reflect upon what Shackleton did that can be applied to today's turbulent, rapidly changing business climate.