Writing Boots

On communication, professional and otherwise.

Will Al Qaeda survive without bin Laden?

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On the one hand, there is nothing more essential to a cohesive organizational culture than an iconoclastic leader who embodies the spirit of the place.

On the other hand, Chrysler survived the departure of Lee Iaccoca, Southwest soared after Herb Kelleher took off, and General Electric didn't blow up upon the departure of Neutron Jack Welch.

I wonder what do communicators think: How could an organization as decentralized as Al Qaeda possibly survive without an iconic figure at the top—or at the very least, some serious communicators who can keep Osama bin Laden's legend alive even after the man is dead?

Consider the question with the executive communication pros who hang out at the Vital Speeches blog.

The most important executive utterance of 2009

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(And one communicators ought to have laminated for their wallets, to be whipped out whenever an executive says, "It's all about the shareholders.")

Former G.E. CEO Jack Welch, father of the so-called "shareholder value" movement that said a company's singular strategic focus should be on creating value for investors, recanted last spring.

"On the face of it, shareholder value is the dumbest idea in the world," he told the Financial Times. "Shareholder value is a result, not a strategy … your main constituencies are your employees, your customers and your products."

Why didn't that get more press?!