The Power of Complementation

Over the last few months I have had the opportunity to reconnect with some of my colleagues from the present and the past. During these interactions, I noticed an attribute of my colleagues from which I have significantly benefited. This month's article is a personal reflection on the power of complementation, surrounding yourself with people that complement you.

Complement (as opposed to compliment), derived from the word complete, connotes both concepts of "fitting together" as well as "filling out the other half."

People complement you if the two of you have enough in common to connect and enough differences to make the whole more than the sum of the parts. I have been fortunate to have had a number of colleagues that have complemented me. To illustrate as examples, I will recant some famous partnerships and some of my working relationships with some of my colleagues. I will then offer suggestions on how you could be intentional in using the power of complementation.

Glenn Mangurian, a renowned speaker and thinker on leadership and management, and I are very much alike. Yet, we could not be further apart.

We both have a passion for leadership, a belief in the power of intentionality and authenticity, and a desire to create leaders within organizations. But we go about it in two very different ways. I prefer to be non-prescriptive and provocative; he prefers to understand, agree and extend. I prefer to poke holes in others' ideas with an intent to create something better; he prefers to compliment and complement with an intent to create something better. We are both equally passionate, but in our own ways: he is as calm and encouraging as I am energetic and excited. Both of us have enough in common to connect and yet enough differences to make a larger whole. And, we have had great fun working together.

Then, there was the trifecta at Planar, where I was the CEO for many years.

The Balaji - Steve (Buhaly) - Carolyn (McKnight) trifecta. Each pair of us had something in common and complemented the third. Steve and I were rational logical thinkers; Carolyn and I dreamed and embraced unusual ideas; Carolyn and Steve were attuned to the emotions of people and organizations. Together, we made a great team. Complementation is not just about filling in the other half but also about connecting with the first half to make a seamless fit.

And, there are the famous examples:

Steve Jobs and Tim Cook at Apple - Jobs the dreamer and Cook the guy who executed it. Marie and Pierre Curie - Marie understanding the potential value of their technical work and Pierre understanding how the university and the technical systems of France worked to get things done.

Are you enjoying the power of complementation?

Are you surrounding yourself with the right people? Take a look at yourself and your executive staff. Understand what is common between the two and what is complementary. Become intentional about using the complementation you have and pro-actively seek out others that fill out missing pieces of your organizational puzzle.

Acknowledging that this month's article is not as provocative as our usual articles, let me close with a related provocative thought. In our Seven Secrets for Successful Leadership workshop, one of the secrets we talk about is "Embrace Controversy; Beware of Consensus." In explaining this concept, we proclaim that half your staff should disagree with you in most major decisions. That is the power of complementation.

Food for Thought is our way of sharing interesting concepts on corporate leadership and management with others who might find it useful. The thoughts offered are intended to be controversial and thought provoking. They are intended to help our readers intentionally realize their potential, what we call Potentionality.