Bossing It: Fine Tuning Your Leadership Style with Bob Sprague
As founder and CEO of Yes& Bob Sprague brings nearly 40 years of experience in marketing and communications, offering boardroom-level strategy combined with versatile writing and creative skills. His expertise spans branding, market research, internal communications, crisis communications, copywriting, speechwriting, and video production and his industry knowledge is deep in healthcare, financial services, homeland security, and association leadership.
He is a results-oriented facilitator of strategy and planning sessions, insightful interviewer, and speaker on communication and stakeholder engagement topics. During his career Bob has served Fortune 500 corporations, leading associations, and multiple federal government agencies while leading the growth of an agency recognised by the Inc. 5000 for five consecutive years and currently ranked as #1 visual art and design firm and #2 advertising agency based in the greater Washington, DC area.
LBB> What was your first experience of leadership?
Bob> In my early teens I got into music. I was less interested in performing than in creating — composing, arranging, directing, producing — and that meant being able to get lots of other musicians to work with me to realise what I was hearing in my head. When music became my original career I was generally in the role of music director, conductor, or producer.
LBB> How did you figure out what kind of leader you wanted to be – or what kind of leader you didn’t want to be?
Bob> The orchestra conductor, famously, makes no sound. Instead, the conductor has to draw the best results out of a group of musicians through passion and communication. Some conductors are facilitators, and some are tyrants — I observed both in action, and saw that while the tyrants sometimes got amazing results, they did so only by stifling the individuality and joy of the musicians they conducted. I wanted people to follow me because it made them able to accomplish greater things, not because I forced them to do so.
LBB> What experience or moment gave you your biggest lesson in leadership?
Bob> My junior high school band director was an amazing musician, but a tyrannical teacher. He gave me a true understanding of what professionalism was all about — but imposed a high price in stress and fear that I didn’t think was helpful.
LBB> Did you know you always wanted to take on a leadership role? If so how did you work towards it and if not, when did you start realising that you had it in you?
Bob> To paraphrase, “some are born leaders, and some have leadership thrust upon them.” I was left in charge when a business partner passed, and I had to step up.
LBB> When it comes to 'leadership' as a skill, how much do you think is a natural part of personality, how much can be taught and learned?
Bob> I think leadership can be taught and learned. I think charisma cannot be taught or learned. We tend to conflate the two, because those revered as 'great leaders' are often those who are born with a natural charisma and ability to persuade and inspire. I believe, on the other hand, that almost anyone can learn and practice effective leadership.
LBB> What are the aspects of leadership that you find most personally challenging? And how do you work through them?
Bob> It’s hard to be a leader and also be liked. Leadership involves making and sticking to decisions that are not going to please everyone. I try to remember that people don’t need to like their leaders; they need clarity, vision, consistency, support, and other things, but they don’t need likability.
LBB> Have you ever felt like you've failed whilst in charge? How did you address the issue and what did you learn from it?
Bob> Everyday. But failure is underrated, because it is the greatest learning tool that exists. If we want to progress we have to push in new directions and some of them aren’t going to work. We learn from the failure, refine our approach, and improve.
LBB> In terms of leadership and openness, what’s your approach there? Do you think it’s important to be transparent as possible in the service of being authentic? Or is there a value in being careful and considered?
Bob> Being careful and considered is not the opposite of open and transparent. I think for a long time before I speak, but I think that helps me communicate what I’m really thinking.
LBB> As you developed your leadership skills did you have a mentor, if so who were/are they and what have you learned? And on the flip side, do you mentor any aspiring leaders and how do you approach that relationship?
Bob> I learn something from everybody, and I’m fortunate to have a team of good leaders at Yes&. So while I’ve never had or been a formal mentor, I’m constantly incorporating new ideas and learnings in what I do. Hopefully others get the same benefit from me.
LBB> In continually changing market circumstances, how do you cope with the responsibility of leading a team through difficult waters?
Bob> There’s the old Chinese curse, “May you live in interesting times”. To me the constant change is what makes life and business interesting, if sometimes difficult, and I try to help my team see that. I think I’m pretty good at not panicking, and focusing in on what we really need to do. In my book, leadership is something you do for other people, not to them, so I spend a lot of time listening to where people are and trying to figure out how I can help them cope with change.
LBB> As a leader, what are some of the ways in which you’ve prioritised diversity and inclusion within your workforce?
Bob> To anticipate the next question, we’ve made it clear that diversity and inclusion are fundamentally a part of our Yes& culture — the “&” means including all backgrounds and points of-view, not just the ones with which you are most familiar and comfortable. But we’ve also been very intentional in our recruiting, to ensure we’re not looking in only the same places we’ve always looked, and done our best to make sure we are diverse not only in entry level but also in all levels of the company.
LBB> How important is your company culture to the success of your business? And how have you managed to keep it alive with increases in remote and hybrid working patterns?
Bob> Culture is the most important factor in the success of the business by far, as it is in any service/people business. One of the few silver linings of the global pandemic was
the realisation that we could not only maintain but improve our culture with employees scattered in what is now more than 25 different states. Suddenly we could hire the best people and the best cultural fits with almost no concern about where they were geographically.
Certainly there are times we wish we could be together more often, but most of the time that is not as important than having the right people in the right positions.
LBB> What are the most useful resources you’ve found to help you along your leadership journey?
Bob> I’m a fan of behavioural science, such as the work of Daniel Kahneman. A little bit of understanding of how people work goes a long way towards appreciating the way people react in different circumstances, and that can be very useful in deciding how a leader can best help.
