Participation Doesn't Mean Democracy

I called a meeting of our publishing staff to involve my associates in an important decision. It related to the long-term positioning of our publication. 

The Tri-State Neighbor was almost six years old. Since day one, we referred to it as a regional newspaper. More and more, however, our national advertisers, and even our readers, were using magazine when talking about us. That was understandable. We had many of the graphic and distribution qualities of a magazine, and most of our peers across the country called themselves magazines. Although internally we used the newspaper reference, the increasing usage of magazine from the outside was causing a gradual but growing internal uncertainty about our identity and position in the marketplace. 

During the meeting I shared my concern that we were becoming increasingly confused about our identity. A lengthy discussion followed, with excellent give and take. The meeting ended with a majority view that we should remain a newspaper. And that's what we did. 

Three months later, I called another meeting on the repositioning topic. The magazine references were continuing to grow. I felt something had to be done before we became even more uncertain about our identity. At that meeting I shared my growing concerns, indicating that something should be done to put us on a more defined road to our future. I asked my associates, with a sense of urgency, to join me in moving our stated market position from newspaper to magazine. There was general understand- ing, although not total agreement, with my conclusions. We repositioned as a magazine. 

There are times when leaders must lead. This was such a time. I felt strongly that our identity needed redefinition. I sensed it was important we set out together on a more assured and visible course. I concluded that the dominant risk was doing nothing. Participative management is good, but thoughtful leadership is no less important in the participative environment.