Bosses' Small Gestures Send Big Signals

Welcome to the executive suite. But beware: Your smallest acts can cause big consequences.

Consider Linda Parker Hudson, promoted last fall to run the U.S. arm of BAE Systems PLC, a global defense giant.

She told her top lieutenants that she expected "rapid responses" to email around the clock. To her surprise, several started sleeping beside their beeping BlackBerry so they could answer her 3 a.m. messages right away.

Ms. Hudson says she repeatedly reassured these colleagues that they could sleep at night and tried to lessen her nocturnal BlackBerry use. But "it was probably a few months before we all got used to each other,'' she concedes.

BAE Systems

Linda Parker Hudson of BAE Systems

Ms. Hudson experienced "executive amplification," a widespread phenomenon that can significantly affect your career. When you land a senior post, staffers constantly will scrutinize -- and possibly misconstrue – your deeds, dress and words.

Yet power makes you "less aware that your behavior matters,'' cautions Adam Galinsky, a professor of organizational behavior at Northwestern University's business school. "That can be a career killer by demoralizing your troops.'' Even lack of eye contact with them as you walk down the hall conveys your disapproval, risking alienation.

Amplification also can work to your advantage because effective, small moves often improve employee motivation. You must recognize that "leadership is a role, and you are always on,'' says Gary Bradt, an executive coach in Summerfield, N.C. "Make sure you send the messages that you want to send.''

Ms. Hudson first saw the downside of the amplifier effect when she became the first female division president for General Dynamics Corp. in 1999. During her first week, she wore a new scarf tied in a fancy bow. The next day, she ran into more than a dozen women there wearing scarves tied the same way.

Being watched so closely frightened Ms. Hudson. "I wasn't accustomed to being the center of attention,'' the 60-year-old executive recalls. "I felt like I was up on a billboard.''

She soon found herself closely scrutinized again. Touring a division factory months later, Ms. Hudson noticed flyers posted everywhere. They displayed her photo and list of leadership expectations from a recent management team speech.

Thanks to the unanticipated flyers, Ms. Hudson says she realized that amplification represents a potentially positive tool. "You can change employee behavior by subtle changes in your behavior,'' she explains.

Anton Rabie, president and co-chief executive of Spin Master Ltd., a toy maker, uses a minor symbolic gesture to amplify his deep commitment to taking risks. He mounts failed Spin Master products and misguided mock-ups on a wall of his Toronto office.

"Each one has a lesson that we should remember,'' observes Mr. Rabie, who launched the manufacturer with two classmates in 1994. Staffers viewing his flop-filled wall know "it's okay to make mistakes,'' he continues. "It's like walking the talk."

You may also reap benefits from executive amplification by seeking frequent feedback – and making needed corrections. Easier said than done, however.

"As you rise in the ranks, people stop telling you what they should tell you,'' notes Richard A. Davis, a partner at RHR International, an executive-coaching firm, and author of the new book. "The Intangibles of Leadership.''

He advocates creating a personal board of directors to help identify your blind spots. "They have to know you and the people around you,'' but work elsewhere than your employer, Dr. Davis recommends.

A performance review known as 360-degree feedback persuaded a newly promoted executive at a multinational apparel concern to alter her misinterpreted appearance, according to Rosemarie Fiorilli, a New York executive coach who advised her this year. The 360-degree process involves anonymous input from peers, subordinates and superiors.

The executive wore designer duds, including luxury-brand jewelry, at a workplace that favors business casual dress, Ms. Fiorilli says.

During 360-degree interviews, co-workers said, "She's trying to be better than us,'' the coach recollects. "She was the only one who didn't know this was bothering people.''

Ms. Fiorilli says she warned the executive that the amplified impact of her luxurious look was hurting her group's cohesiveness. The woman "toned it down immediately,'' the coach adds. "Her boss said other people had noticed and remarked favorably.''

An associate's frank feedback taught Tim Rice a different amplification lesson. While chief operating officer of Moses Cone Health System in Greensboro, N.C., he visited a friend seated in a chair two days after she underwent open-heart surgery at one of its five hospitals.

Mr. Rice teased her nurse for leaving the woman "in this chair all day long'' because the patient looked tired. His joke devastated the nurse, "and she cried afterward,'' the nursing director told Mr. Rice.

He later apologized to the nurse and in front of nearly 150 colleagues, praised the nursing director's candor. Actually, "I was really afraid to come tell you,'' she replied.

Mr. Rice says he concluded that his high-level title intimidated subordinates, and he should avoid sarcasm "because everything we do is amplified.'' He took charge of Moses Cone in 2004. But "I am probably not as open and free and goofy as I have been in the past.''

At the same time, Mr. Rice regularly encourages his team members to suggest ways that he might lead the health-care system better. "I always say, 'Who is going to tell the CEO that his fly is unzipped?'''

Write to Joann S. Lublin at joann.lublin@wsj.com