OBAMA’S LEADERSHIP STYLE
BACKGROUND: People who've worked with President-Elect Barack Obama say he leadsin a non-confrontational manner and favors consensus. Obama signaled he's no patsy in his victory speech. And a political leadership expert says he'll take advantage of technology to reach out to the people as president. Fred Katayama reports from New York.
REPORTER: President-Elect Barack Obama wasted no time after the election displayinghis own brand of leadership. He met quickly with his transition team, and witha broad array of economic advisers, then held his own with reporters in hisfirst post-election press conference.
OBAMA: I'll confront the economic crisis head on by taking all necessarysteps to ease the credit crisis, help hard-working families, and restoregrowth and prosperity.
REPORTER: The President-elect's resume is relatively thin, so few clues exist as tohis leadership style. But public leadership expert Barbara Kellerman ofHarvard's KennedySchool says Obama has shown excellent managing skills.
BARBARA KELLERMAN, LECTURER, HARVARDKENNEDYSCHOOL:He is a superlative manager who has in fact run one of the bestAmerican presidential campaigns ever.
REPORTER: Those who have worked with him say he's good at listening, conciliation,and getting things done. Loretta Augustine-Herron, interviewed before theelection, helped Obama successfully lobby for a jobs training center forChicago's South Side during his days as a community organizer.
LORETTA AUGUSTINE-HERRON: If you brought him an issue, he wouldn't just say, 'yeah, yeah, all right.' He would usually take either written or mental notes, but you know what - in two days, he'd get back to you.
REPORTER: He skirts confrontation, unlike many community organizers of the past.Gerald Kellman hired him for that job.
KELLMAN:He knew that the person who you were in conflict with today you'd haveto work with tomorrow.
REPORTER: Some pundits have questioned whether a conciliatory consensus builder wouldact quickly enough to tackle a big crisis . Obama the communicator signaledhe's no patsy in his victory speech.
OBAMA: To those who would tear the world down, we will defeatyou.
REPORTER: And he showed he could be steely by naming the brash Democratic congressman Rahm Emanuel - known in Washington as Rahmbo - as his chief of staff. Kellerman says he'll also find new ways to communicate with the people.
KELLERMAN: In order to get over his deficiencies, in particular, he'll probably turnto the American people both on the tube and via the Internet and garner theirsupport in ways we've never before seen in the American presidency. This is again anew kind of leadership, a 21st century leadership.
REPORTER: Indeed, Obama has already launched a website for the presidentialtransition. Its address amplifies his campaign theme: change.gov.
Fred Katayama, Reuters, New York.