Are you a Nug?
"A nation is as great, and only as great, as her rank and file." Woodrow Wilson
Nug /nəg/ - a person existing largely behind the scenes possessing zero authority who completes minuscule tasks - tasks a leader wishes not to be bothered with. This is Rob Campbell's definition. I'm at risk of being derogatory here, which is not my nature but stay with me. The term nug was introduced to me in the Army during my time as a staff officer in a large organization. Nugs were those people grinding it out, building slide decks, answering phones, or chasing down information. It was a humorous term we gave ourselves as staff officers because we felt like second class citizens, batched into this overlooked and unappreciated sub-population. We operated under the spirit of, "Go do that, come back when complete. Ok, now do this."
My wife ran into a nug this week while trying to arrange for a medical appointment. You know the story and, I'm sure, have been subject to the dysfunction. The person on the other end of the phone was a bit callous - robotic like in their responses to her concerns. Several times this person placed my wife on hold to seek their "supervisor's" approval. "You were speaking with a nug," I exclaimed sharing my Rob Campbell definition. We had a laugh as it brought me back to my busy Army days. But it's not funny.
Do we want nugs in our organizations? I think not. Yes, we must have people who can do work we do not wish to or do not have time to do. These people; these invaluable people allow us to lead properly, focusing on the big picture, influencing people, teams, and stakeholders. Should they have zero authority? Again, I think not. Was it really beyond the ability of the person my wife encountered to make changes in the schedule and other decisions under the auspices of a leader's guidance and intent?
In my post-military encore life, I miss my staff. It was a joy to have such a large group of people to do yeoman's work behind some important initiatives while I was a commander. They were not nugs to me. I loved them and cherished them and admired their intelligence, commitment, and partnership. And they had authority, under my commander's intent to make decisions and operate. I established left and right limits for them but I always gave them my full attention and strived to empower them.
Are you a nug? Do you lead nugs? Do your people feel like chicken nuggets on an assembly line? I hope not.
Make it Personal!
Rob
Rob Campbell