The Power of Choice. Michael C. Hyter

love you all.

Foreword

      I FIRST ENCOUNTERED the principles that are the core of this book as a student at Harvard University, and they immediately resonated with me. My parents had always encouraged me to believe in myself and to have the confidence to shape my own path, despite the obstacles presented by the segregated society into which I was born. I was determined to succeed, and to do it in a way that was true to myself. That mindset has had a powerful impact on my career path, my approach to leadership, and the success I've achieved along the way.

      A pivotal example came in my senior year of college. As my peers busily applied for jobs, I was unsure what direction to take. My undergraduate major—and passion—was economics, but I was also drawn to the law. My gut was telling me to follow a path that combined the two. However, I didn't know anyone who had done that, so it seemed like a “crazy idea” to my 21‐year‐old brain (an assessment readily shared by the friends who thought I would be a “natural” lawyer).

It took a great deal of self‐confidence, and the encouragement of one of my favorite professors, to follow the path that felt right to me—but that's what I did, earning both a JD and a PhD in economics. I consider it one of the best decisions I've ever made, because it laid the foundation for what has been a wholly fulfilling and meaningful career grounded in my deepest passions and interests.

      In charting my career path after graduation, I didn't have the benefit of Mike Hyter's The Power of Choice. But so much of the advice he delivers in this engaging and insightful book rings true to the experiences I've had. For example, Mike explains that although technical proficiency is foundational to career success, it's not enough. When I entered the workforce, I had solid credentials and competence in two fields, thanks to the educational path I chose. But I quickly recognized that to have the kind of impact I wanted to have, I'd need to deliberately hone the skills that Mike identifies as equally essential to technical proficiency: building relationships and influencing others.

      The value of relational proficiency was never more apparent to me than in my days at the U.S. Federal Reserve. When President Clinton appointed me to the Fed's Board of Governors, I was not well known by many in the Fed system, having spent more than a decade in the consulting world. While I never doubted that I had the capabilities and the skills to succeed, I also knew that if I wanted to make a truly meaningful contribution, I would need to develop strong relationships at all levels of the organization. I was proactive in investing the time to get to know my colleagues, and in the process, I gained a much broader and deeper understanding of the Fed—its operations, history, and culture. This in turn enabled me to be more effective in my own role and to add value to the work of my colleagues, and I believe it's an important reason I had the honor of being appointed vice chairman in 1999.

      My strong network of Fed relationships was also invaluable in helping me navigate what would be one of the greatest leadership challenges I have ever faced. When terrorists struck the U.S. on 9/11, I was the only Fed governor in Washington, D.C., so it became my responsibility to lead the Fed's initial response to the attacks. Our job was to safeguard the stability of the U.S. financial system, a task that required herculean efforts by the Fed team. I believe my colleagues were comfortable having me lead them in this vital effort because of the relationships we had established long before that day.

It's in my current role as CEO of TIAA that I've most strongly relied on the influential proficiency that I've worked to build throughout my career. A key part of my role is setting the strategic direction for our 101‐year‐old company, to ensure our continued success in helping our clients achieve lifelong financial well‐being. But CEOs don't have the luxury of devising and announcing a new plan and having everyone automatically jump on board. Getting buy‐in is a process that begins with listening to others, to gather their ideas and input. Then, once a strategic direction is set, it requires relentless communication across the organization, delivered in a way that both informs and inspires. As I have come to learn over the course of my career, leadership is very much about followership. To put it another way, you can't be out in front of the parade unless there are people willing to line up and march behind you. Successful CEOs—like professionals at all levels who want to shape their organizations—must be able to influence others, shaping opinions and inspiring action that advances the organization's objectives.

      With The Power of Choice, Mike has done a fantastic job in offering a plethora of career‐building strategies, grounded in the principles of Efficacy, that are highly relevant and extremely valuable for today's workers. It's especially meaningful that the book addresses the often unspoken obstacles that individuals from traditionally underrepresented groups face in their career journeys. As an African American whose career has spanned the private and public sectors, I am well aware that those obstacles are real. However, they should never be the final word on success. In my own life, I've endeavored to keep my focus where I believe it is most effective: on what I can control as an individual, on the mindset I bring to challenges, and on continually learning and growing. If that approach resonates with you, then you'll deeply value the advice and perspective that Mike offers in this excellent book.

      Roger W. Ferguson, Jr.

      President and CEO, TIAA

Acknowledgments

      WHO COULD HAVE known that an idea for improving academic achievement and a commitment to making a difference would turn into a practice that has positively impacted thousands of professionals and students for more than a generation? In the early 1970s, Dr. Jeff Howard had the insight and courage to create a development experience for Black students at Harvard University to address the educational disparities between Black students and white students. Dr. Howard called his approach “Efficacy.” Dr. Howard's success at Harvard ultimately led to the founding of J. Howard and Associates, which enabled professionals in hundreds of companies to experience those same ideas and approaches that had significantly improved the performance of students at Harvard. I have Dr. Howard to thank for birthing the movement, laying the foundation, and bringing together talented professionals to make this powerful approach to driving development a reality. If it weren't for his leadership, many of the key ideas in this book would not exist.

I also want to express my appreciation to Marc Wallace, Audra Bohannon, and Verna Ford for making these important principles come to life for so many companies and individuals. Marc, Audra, and Verna were among the first thought‐leaders at J. Howard and Associates, and we still hear from past participants about how significant and beneficial the experience was for their careers. Over the years, Marc, Audra, and Verna, along with all our facilitators, have continued to expand the ideas of Efficacy and their application. For instance, Verna added the concept of the three types of confidence—technical, influential, and relational—that has profoundly shaped how we talk about the skills that are important to navigating a career. Audra has helped evolve our understanding of the power of making conscious choices.

      Writing a book that captures the strategies and impact of this powerful approach to development isn't an easy task. I could not have done this alone. Many of my colleagues—Kameelah Benjamin‐Fuller, Jan Clarkson, Jorge Farias, Diane Johnson, Luisa Kurtz, Kristine Perez‐Foley, and Barbara Smith—gave their support by reading the first version of this manuscript and providing feedback along the way. Kameelah also conducted some of the interviews, and Jan did an outstanding job of pulling that information into the real‐world examples in the final section of the book. Barbara helped me craft the guidelines for putting Efficacy principles into action that appear at the end of each chapter. When it was time to update the book, JT Saunders and Anna Isabelle Vivas navigated us through the twists and turns of making revisions—no easy task in the midst of our busy and rewarding client service activities.

      I also had the support of many folks outside Korn Ferry. They contributed by recounting their stories—both their successes and tough lessons. They reviewed manuscript drafts and helped me bring the Power of Choice alive. To protect their confidentiality, I'm not going to list their names here, but I hope you know who you are and what a difference