And touching now the point of human skill…
In my career, I would occasionally quote Shakespeare when I thought a line or two from of one of his plays might help inspire my coworkers or drive home an important point. Sometimes, this was met with embarrassed eyerolls, but when it worked, it was extraordinary. Even people who were not disposed toward Shakespeare could be moved by his words. According to Garry Wills, Lincoln did the same thing, often to “unwilling” audiences.
Quoting Shakespeare in the conference room is not as out-of-place as it might seem. The whole thesis of A Memorable Honor is that the long-dead William Shakespeare has living relevance to our mundane 21st Century institutions. My book argues that Shakespeare’s lessons on leadership are timeless. His approach to leadership emphasized the importance of honor, poetry, courage, and the other things that have animated human beings from the beginning. They are the stuff of leadership regardless of whether they appear in Ancient Rome, Elizabethan England, the Civil War Era, or the America of 2026.
This is true even for the issue of competence. Shakespeare was no management consultant, of course, but through his plays he taught important lessons about how leaders can manage their organizations more effectively and efficiently.
Consider this example: About fifty years ago, the U.S. car industry was in crisis. Japanese manufacturing was eating the Americans’ lunch. The key to the success of the Japanese auto industry was its disciplined management system. As I discuss in my book, this system has many variations and is known by many different names, but the basic principles are the same: an effective organization must meet (or exceed) customer expectations, reduce waste, and commit to continuous improvement.
Ironically, this system originated with an American, W. Edwards Deming, who used this system to help the Japanese people rebuild their economy after the devastation of World War II. U.S. manufacturers began to adopt this system too, and it became the global standard for business management. Considering how his system has flowered throughout the world, Deming must be considered one of the heroes of the post-war era.
The leader’s role in this system is critical, and that’s where Shakespeare’s insights come into play:
· Under Deming’s system, leaders must set the strategic goals for their organization. Shakespeare cautioned that leaders who cannot articulate a vision will fail. He lays much of the blame for the War of the Roses at the feet of Henry VI, the weak king at the center of his Henry VI trilogy.
· Leaders must engage with their organizations and understand them intimately. Shakespeare saw that leaders who refuse to dig into their roles are often doomed to failure. Prior to the opening of The Tempest, Prospero (who would later become a powerful wizard) lost his dukedom and was exiled to a deserted island because he neglected his leadership responsibilities.
· Most importantly, leaders must respect and empower their people. Shakespeare would say that the most unexpected characters can accomplish remarkable things. In Much Ado About Nothing, even the bumbling constable Dogberry, almost by accident, prevented a comedy from turning into an Othello-like tragedy.
Competence and effectiveness are table stakes for leaders; leaders cannot succeed without sound management. But even here, in this most technocratic part of a leader’s charge, Shakespeare’s insights shine. I’m not sure MBA students will be reading King Lear and Hamlet next semester, but maybe they should.
You can read more about Shakespeare’s (and Lincoln’s) perspective on competence in my book A Memorable Honor: Shakespeare, Lincoln, and the Art of Leadership, to be published on September 15, 2026.
Until next time.
Frank
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