Three Cheers for Steenland!

It's a rare moment when a corporate CEO shows public conviction of his or her beliefs. So we're delighted to recognize Northwest CEO Doug Steenland and his testimony on oil prices held this week on Capitol Hill. To quote directly from today's Wall Street Journal, A-4 for you old school print readers:

...Steenland endorsed banning pension funds and other institutional investors from future exchanges, and he urged lawmakers to close loopholes that allow traders to dodge regulation by trading on foreign exchanges or over the counter.

"Addressing excessive speculation is the most immediate remedy Congress could deliver," Mr. Steenland said.

Amen, brother. That move and a little more spine directed at our OPEC friends would go a long way in helping Joe and Shirley Six-Pack. Too bad it takes the courage of a business leader to bring this issue to light among our so called elected representatives. We won't even go there on the two remaining candidates for president.

In fairness, however, Steenland is somewhat of a lame duck having sold the Northwest farm to Delta. He and the airline business also are being hit particularly hard on this issue, while other commodity producers such Monsanto reap profits from higher grain prices.

But it's still significant to note these rare public leadership moments from CEOs. Particularly on an issue as complex as energy.

Thank you, Mr. Steenland, for going where no one else seemed able to go.

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The Big Brown Rule

According to an anonymous source, Wachovia Corp. will select privately held search firm Spencer Stuart to lead an external CEO search. The bank cited the firm's strong credentials in banking and current track record helping other stalwarts such as Delta and Yahoo.*

"The Garlington Report" also has learned that this move will not only produce a slate of eminently qualified candidates, but it will also do absolutely nothing to improve the bank's lack of leadership and broken culture. Not to mention complete inability to transfer new or even old ideas into new practices.

Here's why:

• Insular board won't address what needs to be addressed. Instead they will try to anoint a Messiah that doesn't exist, thanks to a willing Search firm eager to collect a fee.
• Down market environments that haven't bottomed yet aren't the time to make change. Particularly ones where bad acquisitions have impaired ability to see straight, much less drive.
• No one is going to spin-off AG Edwards and let them operate independently like they should have been all along. As to all that sub-prime junk, well, live and learn.
• Nothing ever changes inside banks where change is a foreign concept. Always has been, always will be.

Whether Wachovia selects a search firm or which firm it is has nothing to do with the core issue. Same old shoes lining up in the same old closets. Just move the chairs around, guys. Save yourselves some time.

Look at this way: If you don't have effective leadership heading into a fire, chances are you're going to burn for a long time -- or at least until the flames get doused. Even after the fire burns out it generally takes a long time to see anything new.

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*Note: The lead graph can neither be confirmed nor denied. Simply blogging conjecture. Its content doesn't matter anyway so consider it a play on the horse race that so many others seem consumed by.

We're tagging it "The Big Brown rule" for lack of a better connection. This refers to the Triple Crown contender who didn't want to run last Saturday in the Belmont Stakes after winning the Preakness and Kentucky Derby. Wachovia wishes they were that lucky.

HD: Where's the real fix?

'Dark night of change.' 'End is near when memories outlive dreams.' 'Best of times, worst of times.'

Shall we continue or has the cliche meter clicked loudly enough already? For more passive business news readers, all of the previous phrases have now been offered by Home Depot's executive brass so far this summer.

Sorry, but cute little quotables have a way of obfuscating a larger issue.

Someone needs to step up and answer two main questions: When the housing market bottoms, which it will, where will the company be? What are the number one, number two and number three things that you're doing to make sure equity value returns to the bottom line?

Time to turn the page, folks. Present a real vision. Quit blaming the market. Leadership is about the future, not the past. Getting back to "the Home Depot culture" is impossible.

Or to use a jingle from an old preamble: Yesterday is gone forever; tomorrow is yet to be. But where are you going to be? Fully mature, trying to find original DNA or re-positioned to win the do-it-yourself market at all costs?

Message to the board: If you can't answer these questions publicly or find leaders who can, then it's time to evaluate whether you're headed in the right direction. Plain and simple.

Or keeping with the subject's affinity to quip, "Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore."

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