My previous column was about an experience at this year's Roskilde Festival, where I, as a volunteer team leader in a food stall, was met by young Danish volunteers who, unlike their foreign counterparts, did not take the responsibility you would expect.

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Why is it interesting? Because for me, the experience says something about the dilemmas you can face as a leader, and perhaps also about a current trend that we as a society and companies need to be aware of.

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ALSO READ: Food stall at Roskilde gave me a "memory cake"

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The column got a lot of reactions, so here's a follow-up with a question for you, dear reader: What would you have done as a team leader in this situation?

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One girl among the volunteers has been given the responsibility of making chili sin carne together with another volunteer. After a short time, she sits down on a box with her hands under her chin and watches. I think she needs a two-minute break. But no, she stays seated for a very long time. I ask if everything is OK, if there is anything she is unsure about or if there is anything else - no, everything is OK and she starts again. Shortly after, she's back on the box again. Now I tell her that the team is depending on her to do her job. Reluctantly, she goes back to work.

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After a while, we circulate the tasks and she gets a new task. Here the pattern repeats itself. Now she also asks for a half-hour break for "personal reasons" and she is allowed to leave. After an hour, she hasn't returned. Her friend tells her that she is in the bathroom.

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I can see that this is not true. Now the other kids are also noticing the absence because the 'supply chain' is not efficient. When the girl finally shows up, I have a one-on-one conversation with her. She's embarrassed and says she wants to do better, but it never really becomes bearable. The will and sense of responsibility is simply missing.

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ALSO READ: Disagreement on strategy can be fruitful

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So what did I do?

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In addition to all volunteers attending a physical meeting where expectations, tasks and contracts are thoroughly reviewed, we held a meeting before each shift where we again aligned expectations and asked if there were any special task requests.

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Along the way, I tried to listen to the young people's wishes and input while respecting the fact that they would probably rather go out and listen to music than work. That's one of the reasons why we changed workstations along the way, so that it wouldn't become monotonous and "boring".

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After each shift, we gathered for a debrief. Here we highlighted what had gone well, what could be done better and everyone got a beer for an overall successful shift. Those who had top form (yes, they were foreigners) were discreetly pulled aside and given extra praise.

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I approached the leadership role at the food stall with the same starting point as in my own business - that employees should be involved and experience meaningfulness - knowing that I and the young people are all volunteers, with all the joys and drawbacks that entails.

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But honestly. How far should we really go as leaders? After all, there are plenty of important tasks in our workplace that many people find uninspiring, routine and at odd hours. The kind of tasks that require will, good old-fashioned diligence and a sense of responsibility.

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Perhaps a volunteer job at Roskilde cannot be compared 1:1 with a "real" job. Still, I can't help but wonder whether we/ I, in our efforts to recruit future employees, can become so preoccupied with creating involvement and meaningfulness. We must not forget to make demands on the individual's diligence and sense of responsibility for their colleagues and the whole, because as Plato once said: "Diligence is the mother of luck".

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This column was published in Jyllands-Posten business and FINANCE on August 7, 2023.

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When I was done, I realized that the immediate (and of course Bullet-proof) plan I had needed to be revised due to some factors I didn't include in my intuitive planning process. A big thumbs up and a big 5 from me to MakeMyStrategy™👍

Ronnie Vindbjerg Pedersen

Regional Director, Nordics

Insights

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