Angela Bailey is the Chief Operating Officer (COO) for the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM). She provides overall organization management to improve agency performance and achieve OPM's mission and goals through strategic and performance planning, measurement, analysis, and regular progress assessment. In this month's SheSuite profile, she discusses resiliency and the art of building a plane while it's flying.
What, in your opinion, is the biggest challenge faced by business leaders today?
I don't think we really face any bigger or lesser challenges than business leaders have faced in the past or will actually face tomorrow. The world has always been a bit chaotic, with financial markets ebbing and flowing, wars coming and going, moral and ethical dilemmas, information overload, generational and demographic differences, and skills gaps. I think that leading through these challenges is not a new phenomenon--it doesn't take different or new skills--history is really replete with great examples of leaders who stepped up to the challenges of their day and I think we can learn much from the past as we lean into tomorrow.
How have you seen the strategies of leaders change during the course of your career?
Over my career I have really witnessed all types of leadership strategies and there are those who are quite authoritarian and there are those who practice servant leadership, and then of course there are those who are very results-oriented and data-driven while others want to measure for the sake of measurement. The most effective leaders I've seen over the years understand the situation at hand and they adjust their strategies and leadership styles to address a particular audience or issue.
What is the one characteristic that you believe every leader must possess?
Resiliency. You're going to get knocked down, and how you get back up tells those around you a lot about you.
What is the one behavior you've consistently seen derail the careers of leaders?
The absolute number one is lack of self-awareness and/or political savvy. I've kind of wrapped those two together. Having no idea how people perceive you or you're just plowing ahead regardless of how the wind is blowing has derailed many careers of leaders and non-leaders.
Would you liken that to lack of emotional intelligence?
No, I would call it lack of political savvy. When I think of emotional intelligence, I often think of that in terms of how people treat other people. What I have seen derail people is not so much how they treat others, but this inability to be self-aware--they have no idea how they're being perceived by others, and they just plow ahead without any awareness--not recognizing the world around them. I have seen that derail many a career.
We've all certainly seen those leaders who seem incapable of reading a room--they come out of a disastrous meeting, for example, truly believing it was a fantastic success.
Yes, and maybe I'm sensitive to this because I'm in Washington, D.C., and it is very much a fishbowl.
Some studies assert that women leaders are more persuasive, assertive, and willing to take risks than male leaders. Do you agree?
I have not found those characteristics to be gender-specific. I've met many women and men who embody all three. I think what's more fascinating to me is how these characteristics are perceived when you describe different genders. For example, when a woman is assertive, she sometimes is described as "bossy," or quite frankly, the other "b-word." When a man is assertive, he is "confident" and "sure of himself." But I have noticed over the years that there are fewer negative connotations associated with women who have these characteristics and I really suspect it's because there are more women in leadership positions who are persuasive, assertive, and willing to take risks.
And I've noticed another shift: when men have crossed the line from being too assertive or persuasive, the "b-word" is being applied to them--but it's the word "bully."
Do you believe that female leaders bring unique perspective and insight in terms of how to move the business forward and if so, in what ways?
I am not convinced that just because I am female I bring a unique perspective or insight into moving the business forward. I do find that different people bring different perspectives and insight and that's why, to me, diversity is a beautiful thing. It's not just the traditional way of thinking of diversity, but diversity of thought as well.
People, whether they are male or female, bring with them their conscious and unconscious biases--giving them unique perspectives and insights. For example, I spent the first half of my career basically in the field at the operations level and that gives me a perspective that is different from someone who spent their entire career in Washington, D.C. at the national headquarters level. But it also causes me to constantly question whether or not we're doing policies for the sake of policies or if they actually have a real and meaningful impact on those who are trying to get the job done at the local level. On the other hand, now that I've spent close to fifteen year in Washington, D.C., I have very good insight into what it actually takes to get a policy implemented in a meaningful way while balancing everyone's interests.
In Lean In, Sheryl Sandberg asserts that women are stagnating at a certain level in many corporations in part because, in her words, "we don't talk about gender in the workplace." Do you agree that internal barriers are keeping more women from leadership roles and entrée to the C-suite?
This has not been my experience in my career. Now, admittedly, I have not worked in the corporate world, and as a result I have no basis to agree or disagree with Ms. Sandberg. But my experience has been that over time, especially in the last fifteen years, more women are in the C-suite in a variety of federal jobs.
Here's the Office of Personal Management: our Director; Chief of Staff; Chief Information Officer; Chief Acquisition Officer; along with me--Chief Operations Officer--are all women.
Is that by design? Is this something that you aspired to, or did this happen organically?
It is interesting that it happened that way here because it's a mix of political [appointments] and career. The bottom line is that we choose the best people for the job. I believe that this is where the federal government is a leader. So often we are told that we should look to the private sector because of their leading practices, but I think that this is where the federal government actually leads--in having women in powerful positions, both political appointees and career executives.
Sandberg says that another factor that holds women back is that, relative to men, women aren't comfortable with power. Thoughts?
I am very comfortable with power. And the women I know in D.C. are very comfortable with power, or quite frankly they wouldn't be in their jobs. But going back to what I've said throughout this interview, I do not believe this is a gender issue. Some people, men or women, are comfortable with power and some aren't and I think you can easily identify who those are.
What do you consider to be your greatest strength as a leader?
I would say it's my ability to cut through a tremendous amount of chaos and clutter to see the future while persuading others to follow me into the unknown.
Who has had a tremendous impact on you as a leader?
It's hard for me to pinpoint one person. It's really a conglomeration of a lot of people, both family and friends, who believed in me, pushed me hard, laughed with me--and at me--and sometimes "knocked the devil off my shoulder," and just all-around cared.
Whom do you most admire and why?
I most admire those who get back up every time they get knocked down and always try to be of good cheer. And I believe you can find great success in surrounding yourself with good people who are just trying to do the right thing for the right reason.
What experience contributed significantly to the development of your business acumen?
I actually think, believe it or not, that it's my current position. I'm learning, growing, and developing my business acumen every day. We manage global programs daily with limited resources and competing interests, and there's really nothing like building a plane while it's flying. And of course my other positions gave me a great foundation because despite what is often thought about the federal government, it is nonetheless a business.
What accomplishment are you most proud of?
For me, it is raising our two children--Sierra (27) and Danny (23). I am incredibly proud of them and would like to believe that somehow, someway, my husband and I got it right.
What can organizations do to ensure the professional growth and development of women leaders?
Set the bar high. We need to let them stumble, push and stretch them, and tell them the truth about their performance and behavior. To me, the highest form of discrimination is to believe people can't handle the truth. And I think we tend to do that to women and minorities because somehow we have this belief that "you can't handle the truth, so I won't tell you the truth." Again, to me that is the highest form of discrimination.
What advice would you give to a woman going into a leadership position for the first time?
Be confident even when you aren't. Micro-learn. Not micro-manage, but micro-learn. You can't change what you don't know or understand. You have to cultivate allies. Understand and know your enemy. When I say "enemy," that can be anything--it could be limited resources--so I don't equate that to people necessarily, but you have to understand and know it. Engage a diverse group of people--their thoughts and ideas. Take care of yourself and family. And above all else, just be yourself.
If you could recommend just one book to other women, what would it be?
Sun Tzu's The Art of War. It was written over 2,000 years ago, but the principles are timeless and translate from battles to boardroom.
About Angela Bailey
Angela Bailey has dedicated more than 33 years to public service, with more than 27 of those years in human resources. She has served as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) for the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) since November 2013. In this role, she provides overall organization management to improve agency performance and achieve OPM's mission and goals through strategic and performance planning, measurement, analysis, and regular progress assessment. She is responsible for managing OPM's human, financial, IT, contract, facility and security resources to achieve intended program results.
Bailey began her career with the Social Security Administration. She later worked for the Department of Defense in several different components and Defense agencies. She has served in many roles, including Budget Analyst, Labor Relations Officer, Director of Human Resources, Deputy Associate Director for Recruitment and Hiring and Associate Director for Employees Services. She has a master's degree in leadership from Bellevue University and participated in Harvard University's Kennedy School National Preparedness Leadership Initiative for Executives in 2012.