the politico: leader & manager
Governor Moreno was handpicked for the part because of his background both in corporate and public management. In the span of his career, he has made the seamless transition between the professional and political worlds - though in his very own words, he admitted that he didn’t earn his proper preparation for a profession in business nor did he imagine being a part of the corporate world.
The talk, as a whole, was focused on the life experiences of the speaker, and for the earlier part, it veered towards his development as a politico, then it related the story of his being elected as a member of the House of Representatives and later as Local Chief Executive at the provincial level. He entertained the group with his comparison of the two political positions with that of owning a car. Being a congressman, he said, is likened to getting a brand new car to drive. Being a governor, on the other hand, he equated with having an old car from the predecessor and the challenge is how to make it run.
But in his message, he highlighted that the one missing link in the country today are good leaders in government and that particularly, people who chose to run for office and become political leaders do not necessarily possess the qualities of leadership.
Giving special mention to the other politicians who honed and trained him, Governor Moreno took the time to narrate his experiences with Senator Nene Pimentel and Cebu Governor Lito Osmeña and how their work together and the examples and advices they had given him proved to be the needed impetus for him to join politics.
Governor Moreno shared that it took time for him to like politics, and it took him two years to get to know the ropes and to learn and imbibe the culture distinct in public office. He said it is a hard and difficult career to choose, but it is fulfilling since one can be able to serve and give opportunities to other people. His only advice is that the young should learn all they can while they are in the corporate environment, and when they are confident enough to say that they have learned and have molded their skills, then they can leave the eight-to-five job and run for public office and serve the new calling as politician.
The Governor, in his own way, provided the audience with his thoughts on the similarities and differences of executives and leaders and of corporate managers and political leaders. True to the various materials we can read on managing and leading, he said that the two functions and skills must complement each other. He observed that there are leaders who are not managers, while there are managers who are not leaders. He added that as a governor, he must be a leader when he is among the constituents, but must be a manager when he is in the capitol and among the employees of the provincial office.
The governor gave a talk close to his heart, as he even intimated about his family life and how it was greatly affected by his choices in his political career. When asked about his rumored future mayoralty plans, he was not coy and stressed to the group that he looks at growth and development as a collective work that requires the cooperation of everyone in the community.
But what is most important, as he brought his talk and question and answer portion to a close, is when he emphasized on the three standards he holds against leaders – commitment to serve, technical competencies, and values to provide guidance in everything that the leader will commit to do.
The session, though taking form in a relaxed tete-a-tete with the governor, all the more emphasized his magnanimity, his willingness to share with the graduate students, and his capacity for servant leadership. When thanked profusely for accepting the invitation without the usual grand standing and bureaucratic processes expected of political offices, he replied that he was humbled by the experience as he too, was learning, in the process.
Skills development always translates to total personality development. It was a message well discussed and illustrated by manager and leader, Governor Oscar Moreno.
