Angela Merkel's Wise Leadership Profile
Angela Merkel - “Always be more than you appear, and never appear to be more than you appear"
An analysis of Angela Merkel from the perspective of Wise Leadership
Angela Merkel stood down after 16 years as Germany’s first female Chancellor in 2021. In those 16 years she saw leaders from other countries come and go while she maintained her position as premier of one of the world's most important economies. How did she do it?
To provide structure to this analysis, I will refer to the seven components of the Ceannas Wheel of Wise Leadership. We define wise leadership as a leader’s capacity to “do the ‘right’ thing, at the ‘right’ time, for the ‘right’ reasons”, where ‘right’ relates to ethical, sustainable and the common good.
The Wheel of Wise Leadership has evolved over 20 years through our work with leaders where it provides a framework with which to understand, explain and make wise decisions.
Ceannas Wheel of Wise Leadership
Self-Aware
Self-awareness is the bedrock of wise leadership. Without an awareness of our own behaviour, biases, personality, traits, preferences, weaknesses, strengths and experiences we are at are at the mercy of these when it comes to making decisions.
The wise leader recognises these potential factors and the limiting aspects of their make-up, where even a reliance on a tried and trusted asset can blind the leader from making a wise decision.
Angela Merkel is a very different kind of world leader in that she isn’t a ‘performer’. As the quotation in the title of this essay indicates, she is not concerned with being the most important person in the room.
She is acutely aware of her background's influence shaping her world view. Growing up in East Germany, under communist control, ruthlessly policed by the Stasi she saw the damage that can be done when a regime imposes its will upon the people.
Her self-awareness has helped her to control her own behaviour to allow her to maximise her influence.
A great example of this was when her mother was interviewed on television about what her daughter was like as a child. Her mother described how the politician she saw was unlike the child she knew. “She was always so full of life. Very extrovert, very open”.
When Merkel was shown the clip, she agreed. “I used to be a very lively person. My studies did formalise my thinking a lot and I’ve also now had the experience that many things can get taken out of context”.
Even at an early stage in her career Merkel recognised that she could modify her behaviour to allow her to better achieve her goals. Some might say that this smacks of being inauthentic but too many leaders are trapped by the narrow boundaries of their personality, preferences, and experience to allow them to make the necessary changes to become even better leaders. Merkel has never suffered from such limitations
Seeing Alternative Perspectives
Her experience of growing up behind the iron curtain shaped her capacity to appreciate others’ points of view and life experiences.
This is most evident in her dealings with the migration crisis, where she was able to adopt the perspective of the refugees rather than a reactionary response.
She describes how much of her thinking is influenced by her scientific training – she holds a PhD in quantum chemistry. It is commonly said that scientists should have a professional distance from what they study. To the extent that they can remove their biases and learn from multiple perspectives, where they can understand the world better. Many of those who have worked with Angela Merkel over the years have commented on her capacity to be ‘’substantive’ rather than ‘superficial’ where she listens to others and uses these different points of view to build a foundation for her eventual decision.
Enabling Others
The table of Merkel’s political capital over the 16 years she was in power indicates that she enjoyed high levels of public trust (average 3.65 out of 5) and perceived effectiveness (3.94). It’s interesting to contrast this with her Communicative Performance (2.76) and Political Vision (2.47).
Merkel doesn’t appear to rely on what might traditionally be called ‘inspirational gifts.’ However, unlike many other politicians Merkel doesn’t need to win every argument. She doesn’t have to have the last word. She doesn't need to be out in front.
Through such behaviour she creates space for others to offer up ideas and alternatives that might have been closed out were she to have adopted a more dogmatic and didactic manner.
She once said that leadership was about “Disappointing your people at a rate they can absorb”. A statement that recognises the reality of politics over the bombast of so many leaders who rely on empty promises.
Making Sense of Complexity
If Merkel were to have a superpower’ it would have to be her ability to make sense out of complexity.
She is seen to be serious, analytical, with an ability to look at a problem and see possibilities rather than obstacles.
The American journalist George Packer described how,
“She quietly assesses different factors, involved in a given situation and then decides which way she wants to go and does it quietly and without fanfare”.
As befits her scientific mind she has a deep curiosity that seeks out facts and data but uses these to inform rather than dictate the decision-making process.
She has been described as a deliberately slow decision maker, where pragmatism, or strategic opportunity is as important as the decision. In fact, they have coined a new word in German, ‘Merkln’ – which is to be indecisive or failing to have an opinion. This could be regarded as a failing but her willingness to wait for the ‘right’ time to act, rather than simply acting, would appear to have been one of the secrets behind her longevity.
Searching for the Common Good
Perhaps this best explains her willingness to delay decisions, i.e. what is going to be in the best interests of the common good?
Yet, when necessary, she can act and act quickly, especially when driven by moral considerations.
This was most evident in her handling of the migration crisis where she was able to see the obligation to others beyond her beloved Germany.
On other occasions her dedication to the common good of Germany has led to criticism, such as her willingness to benefit from cheap Russian oil and gas to the economic benefit of Germany, with downside being a dependence on an unreliable power.
Creating a Sustainable Future
The last example suggests that this might be Merkel’s Achilles heel. Such is her pragmatism and scientific mind that she could be accused of failing to think far enough ahead into the future.
However, against that is the fact that she remained in power for 16 years. Over such a period any decisions that she might have made for purely short-term gain would have shown up over time. This indicates that perhaps she takes more account of the long-term impact of her decisions than might be first apparent.
Perhaps her slow, deliberate, conscious and enabling approach to decision-making is fundamentally about long-term strategic impact? Perhaps we will have to wait another 16 years before we see how the decisions that Merkel made throughout her time as Chancellor impact upon the future of Germany? Time will tell.
Making Courageous and Ethical Decisions
Merkel is driven by a moral force. Although not a risk taker she stands up for what is right. In East Germany she refused to cooperate with the Stasi by telling them “I can’t keep a secret”. In her time, she has successfully dealt with Eurozone crises, abolishing conscription, healthcare reform, Russian cyber-attacks, divisive politics, Donald Trump and the aforesaid migration crisis.
On each occasion she applied her scientific mind, but aligned that with a strong moral obligation and conviction which, when required, empowered her to take courageous action.
Conclusion
In such a short exploratory essay it is impossible to unravel every aspect of Angela Merkel’s leadership. Yet when comparing her against the definition of wise leadership, she seems to satisfy each of the criteria.
She will do the ‘right’ thing in terms of common, good, ethics and sustainability;
She will do it at the ‘right’ time, even if she delays much longer than others;
And she will, in her own mind, always seek to do it for the ‘right’ reasons for those she serves rather than self-interest.
As many commentators have reported, Merkel doesn’t need politics to be happy. It’s not about her, it’s not about being the winner, it’s not about ‘me’. It’s about serving the best interests of her country.
In that regard Angela Merkel lives out the traits of the wise leader more than many other post-war politicians.