The Antarctic explorers of the early 1900s didn’t have a conventional workplace. The potential for death lurked round every corner. Food was scarce, and having to eat dog livers threatened the adventurers with vitamin A poisoning. You could lose your bare hand to frostbite in just a few minutes in the -49C temperatures. But perhaps the biggest challenge was maintaining an efficient team through all this.
It’s the psychological aspect of these trips that most intrigues Brad Borkan, strategic partner marketing at SAP and co-author of the book When Your Life Depends on It, which recounts the epic tales of explorers such as Scott, Shackleton, Mawson and Amundsen. “One of the most remarkable things about these six expeditions that are covered in the book is there’s no history of fist fights, murder, mayhem or sabotage,” says Brad.
Brad discovered the perils of the Antarctic expeditions as a young boy, and it has spurred his other passion for analysis of decision-making in his adult life. He believes the explorers provide a modern day audience with lessons in how to make decisions – whether they be wrong or right.
“They didn’t always make the right decision,” Brad admits. “But in modern life we can’t always make the right decision and we procrastinate. Sometimes you’re better off making the decision and saying you have enough skill to figure out what you’ll do if it’s a bad one.”
This is the scenario that all the explorers of the South Pole were faced with. Sometimes this resulted in death, sometimes in glory. But throughout, they maintained strengths and virtues that can inspire your own leadership – no matter what industry you work in.
Robert Falcon Scott: The scientific leader
Scott had purpose. He realised the value of science, and findings from his expedition are still being used to this day. It was his aspiration to be the first to the South Pole, but he let Norwegian Roald Amundsen take that title so that he had more time to study his environment. There’s soemthign to be said for Scott’s determination to follow through with his science-focused strategy, rather than bow to the pressure of a race with Amundsen. “Scott did very detailed studies of things such as ice and climate. That’s much more valuable than who got to the South Pole first,” explains Brad.
Lesson learned: Seek long-term value. Don’t give in to the pressure of achieving quick wins. If something will result in more value in the long-term, dedicate more time to it. Like Scott, you could ensure you include a (data) scientist in your team, to ensure you get the most out of your findings.
Ernest Shackleton: The empathetic leader
Shackleton experienced a wave of bad luck while in the Antarctic but recognised how to keep a tight-knit team, and identify when members needed support. “He knew you didn’t single out a weak person and offer them a cup of tea because they’re failing,” says Brad. “He told everyone to stop and make tea because he didn’t want to create scapegoats.”
Shackleton also believed diversity was the key to a strong team. The leader regularly mixed up the groups ascribed to each tent to avoid cliques. An incident which resulted in the lower-class men receiving fur sleeping bags, while the officers slept in cotton bags, sums up Shackleton’s emphasis on camaraderie best.
Lesson learned: Actively encourage everyone in your team to integrate with each other. Avoiding a ‘them and us’ scenario or showcasing someone’s inadequacies is less likely to lead to blame among the group. Perhaps adopt reverse mentoring, where younger staff are paired to mentor older executives in your team to make everyone feel valuable.
Roald Amundsen: The meticulous planner
Amundsen did extensive research prior to his Antarctic expedition. This due diliengence not only allowed him to better understand his enviornoment, making him more adaptable on the ground – but it allowed his to plan against risk ahead of time. Amundsen learned how to live like those native to areas similar to both the Arctic and Antarctica and had an ability to adapt to his environment. For example, he also reinvented items that didn’t suit his requirements such as sun goggles, which protected his eyes from both sun and snow. “In that regard he was very good,” says Brad. “He had a single-minded purpose… and he focused all his efforts on doing that.”
Lesson learned: Don’t underestimate the power of planning. Anticipate what you’ll need both now and in the future. Spend time researching to ensure your journey is smooth for all members of your team. At times, be willing to take big calculated risks to achieve your goals. Mapping your campaign journey and noting what you will need at each point will help with this.
Douglas Mawson: The small winner
Unlike his fellow explorers Mawson never went for the biggest wins. But his discoveries were nevertheless useful. “Not everyone needs to go for the glory prizes,” explains Brad. “You need to go for the things that give one the satisfaction of success, and for Mawson, that was mapping 2000 miles of Antarctic coastline.”
Lesson learned: Don’t forget the smaller wins. These can still be really valuable, and achieving them will help keep your team motivated. By celebrating small wins in your marketing activities your team will feel motivated to do more.
The second-in-command
During the particularly icy months and years in Antarctica, all these leaders had strong second-in-commands behind them. They acted as the bridge between the leader and the team – being able to see both perspectives. They were able to speak truth to power without hurting the relationship. And most of all, they were reliable.
Brad believes that all teams, no matter their size should always have a second-in-command, and it’s second-in-commands, like Frank Wild, that have inspired this way of thinking. Having worked his way up from a regular team member, Wild showed quick-initiative when faced with perilous scenarios – such as when the entire team found themselves on the edge of a cliff face.
His actions as a second-in-command encapsulate the perfect balance between supporting orders and taking responsibility. When Shackleton left with some of the men to get help after their ship, the Endurance, was crushed in the ice, Wild managed the team under Shackleton’s instructions for nearly five months, keeping everyone alive and healthy without knowing if help would ever return.
Brad says the most important aspect of a second-in-command is personality. It’s about having the ability to connect with the team while supporting the leader – and this is what Wild and other Antarctic second-in-commands demonstrate. This is something that is still as relevant in businesses today. “It’s not about who has the perfect CV,” explains Brad. “These are people who have a genuine passion and interest for higher purpose.”
Adopt an Antarctic strategy
By now you may be thinking two things. Firstly, why on earth did these men put themselves so close to death in terrible conditions? Secondly, where did they find the motivation?
Brad says the explorers’ ambitions to stay alive were driven by more than just survival instincts. “It was about surviving because you need to tell your tale and make people aware of what you’ve achieved,” he says.
This higher purpose, as Brad calls it, is what spurred all the explorers to keep on going, even when they knew they weren’t going to make it. Mawson only managed to haul himself up from a crevasse after his two teammates had died because he wanted to get as far to the coastline as possible so people could discover his findings. Scott did the same thing.
It was this purpose that also helped the explorers deal with failure – a sore topic for most businesses. They accepted challenges and hardships because they knew their work would be invaluable in the long-term.
Admirably, they were able to reassess their goals, something that Brad feels is lacking in B2B. “We’re so trained to pursue goals, that we’re not trained to say is this the right goal? I think that’s a key thing for B2B marketers,” he says.
As a B2B marketer himself, he says this higher purpose approach has become more evident at SAP. “If you’re focusing on a higher purpose, you’re not so affected by day-to-day challenges. Purpose is the driving force that helped people survive,” he explains.
It’s remarkable how relevant the Antarctic explorer’s leadership skills still are for businesses today. But if you only take one thing away from their stories, let it be motivation. Because if they can lead and manage a team through some of the most horrendous conditions known to man, sometimes for years on end – you most certainly can lead a team through any campaign, no matter how challenging it may seem.
