Why we'd probably fail Leonard da Vinci at performance review time

We all know Leonardo. Genius, artist, inventor, scientist, military engineer,…. just to name a few. He left behind what is arguably the most famous and compelling piece of art every created; around 10 million people visit the Mona Lisa every year. He invented concepts and designs for the first tank, mechanical robot, diving suit, flying machines plus more. He undertook the most detailed anatomy studies that weren’t replicated until the 20th Century and amongst other discoveries, figured out details around how the heart worked (which was then “re-discovered” hundreds of years later).

Yet, look at the facts. 

We have around 20 paintings; many of these not complete. He took around 12-13 years (at least) to paint the Mona Lisa, carrying her around with him until his death. He wrote thousands of pages of notes (7000 remaining) including incredible anatomical studies but never got around to finishing anything to actually publish (this meant many of his discoveries were “re-discovered” centuries later because he never actually got these out to the world in his lifetime). He was notorious about delaying or simply not completing commissions. He played patrons off each other to be able to ignore what he didn’t want to do. He experimented and failed with new techniques (like The Last Supper) which started disintegrating in his lifetime. He would decide he didn’t agree with a certain requirement of a commission and do it a different way; often causing issues with the church or the patron who paid for something they didn’t get.

So let’s put that into the average annual performance review feedback today focused on short term results.

·        Failure to deliver on agreed objectives and contractual commitments

·        High levels of perfectionism resulting in work not being delivered on time in in full

·        Playing off key stakeholders against each other

·        Failure to undertake work in line with stakeholder expectations

·        Lack of change management and engagement with stakeholders

Of course, he was also a charming and popular prominent member of society and by this, (and his undeniable genius) managed to get away with behaviour that no corporate would be likely to accept today.

Yet this person who didn’t actually deliver and close off much of his work in his lifetime, is probably one of the most impactful individuals in world history. If we were to measure his performance through a different lens, we might say instead:

·        Extremely high levels of innovation and creativity, evidenced by experimental painting techniques, that while may not have worked, provided great learning opportunities for young artists

·        High collaboration with the wider artistic community; developing and mentoring young talent

·        Tenacious and resilient in exploring the science of the anatomy even in challenging condition

I don’t have THE answers around this, but I am always keen on a good question (or four). 

How do we balance results versus impact? How do allow time for true experimentation (knowing with experimentation comes failure) in an increasingly busy world?

Would any of our workplaces really allow a 2020 version of Leonardo to thrive?

What do you think?