On Monday mornings, I roll into the office like I have for most of the past 40 years – I drop my gear in my chair, grab a cup of coffee, and make the rounds. I visit people in their offices, stop and chat with students around the building, and check in on anyone who might be dealing with tough issues. It usually takes less than an hour, and I’m back at my desk to recharge my mug and head out to class.
In the military, we knew it simply as battlefield circulation. In business, it’s often referred to as management by walking around. It’s a tried-and-true leadership practice of spontaneously moving through the workplace that enhances situational awareness, builds relationships, and maintains presence. It’s not particularly complicated and involves little more than listening, observing, and engaging.
The return on the investment of time is not insignificant. As a leader, it helps you to gain firsthand knowledge of ongoing problems, gather information to inform decision making, and connect with the workforce. And the perspective you gain is typically not one that can be achieved from the confines of the headquarters or the C-Suite.
A Steaming Cup of Joe
When it came to battlefield circulation, my tool of choice was a steaming cup of Joe when it came to engaging with people. I used it to break the ice with new arrivals (even when the I was the new arrival), broker back office deals (when more typical methods weren’t working), counsel subordinates (sometimes without them even knowing), and get a feel for workplace morale (whether that workplace was in an office or in the dirt on some faraway Forward Operating Base). Wherever I went, my coffee came with me.
During the March to Baghdad in 2003, my mug of choice was a plastic “to go” cup and a folding Coleman camp chair. As time passed, the tree stumps, field chairs, and bumpers of my early years were replaced by plush Naugahyde couches at a faraway Green Beans, picnic tables behind the headquarters, or even just a windowsill in a burned-out building. The conversations were the same, just separated by a time… sometimes decades.
For many of us, the struggle to find a vehicle for engaging others leaves us stranded at the office door. The steaming cup of Joe possesses an uncanny ability to disarm even the tensest situation. You can feel the calm, smell the aroma, sense the serenity. It produces a moment of Zen unlike any other. Coffee is the great equalizer.
Management by Walking Around (MBWA)
The concept of engaging your team on their turf is not a new one. Military leaders dating into antiquity have practiced battlefield circulation since the dawn of armed conflict. Management by Walking Around, however, is a relatively more recent phenomenon. First coined in their groundbreaking 1982 business leadership book, In Search of Excellence, authors Tom Peters and Robert Waterman reflected on the term, which was already in use at both United Airlines and Hewlett-Packard. At HP – where the term was “management by wandering around” – MBWA was a pillar of their management practices, the “all-important HP Way.”
According to Peters and Waterman, much of the success of these organizations could be attributed to how their leaders engaged with their teams. Managers at all levels spent much of their time in the field rather than confined to their offices. They were more informed about ongoing issues and challenges and able to rectify problems before they escalated out of their control.
The skills that underpin effective MBWA – active listening and empathy foremost among them – cannot be performative, however. Authenticity and genuineness must be projected with sincerity. As a colleague noted to me several years ago, the staff can sniff out someone who fails “the Lumbergh test” in an instant.
Making the Connection
Although Peters and Waterman would later joke that their book landed without much impact, its legacy is undeniable. Today, MBWA is a recognized management practice taught in business schools, executive education, and training seminars. And it all sounds brilliant… until it comes time to execute.
In a 2024 Forbes article, Joseph Brazel describes the central challenge with MBWA: “Management time is a scarce resource with many competing demands.” Meetings fill calendars, email piles up in the inbox, and it’s increasingly difficult to find the time to circulate. But research shows that “the juice is worth the squeeze.” Employee morale is boosted to the point that the effects of MBWA are measurable long after the engagement.
Engaging with your team doesn’t have to be complicated. A simple formula for employee engagement will take you a long way towards the results you want to achieve. And there isn’t a simpler formula than the one advocated by Horton International: the 5Cs of Employee Engagement.
- There is no substitute for genuine empathy for your team. A key element of battlefield circulation is taking the pulse of your workforce – assessing and addressing their physical, emotional, and behavioral needs. Their wellbeing is central to their ability to perform at a high level.
- Creating a sense of connection requires little more than active listening and authenticity. Once established, it is vital to fostering teamwork and collaboration, and a good leader can strengthen that connection through team-building activities and open communication.
- Your legacy as a leader is gauged in the success of those you lead. That means making a deliberate effort to mentor and coach subordinates, helping them craft personal development plans, providing opportunities for training and education, and providing regular feedback that helps them to continuously improve.
- When Peters and Waterman introduced MBWA, they did so in the context of open communication. Its use in both United and HP served as a vehicle for employees to contribute their thoughts and ideas, contributing in ways that formal processes and procedure didn’t always allow. When employees feel their input is valued and respected, their commitment increases exponentially.
- While most organizations have formal recognition programs, MBWA opens a window for leaders to circulate and extend recognition in real time. Something as simple as a challenge coin can have a transformative effect on the workplace culture, but the simple act of just celebrating someone’s accomplishments in their workspace can be just as impactful.
Get out of the office, get out of the command post, get out and find a tree stump. Push away from your email, put down the PowerPoint slides, take a break from your phone. Don’t wait to find the perfect opportunity to engage with your team; grab a cup of coffee and start talking now. Build relationships, build trust, build camaraderie. Build your team.
