The recent controversy most commonly known as the "Port Deal" has illustrated the need that leadership must address behaviors, not the people or person. The Port issue peaked this week when the bipartisan House Appropriations Committee voted 62-2 to stop the port deal without further discussion.

The controversy began when DP World, a Dubai owned port management company, purchased Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company of Britain. P&O managed 6 American ports and had operations at 16 other American ports. The controversy ended when the government of the United Arab Emirates announced they would transfer the ports to a United States owned entity.

It is too early to the long term price in the relationships between America and Middle Easterners.

Opponents of DP Worlds management of the ports used the argument that the United States should not allow a foreign country to control an American port. It quickly came to light that other US ports were managed by the countries of Singapore and a "private" company in China where in reality the government owns virtually everything. However there were no steps to change the management of these ports and opponents to the DP deal stated that in these ports the ports were only managed, not controlled. In reality all situations were the same, leaving the only issue being that DP World is Arab while the others are not.

The controversy got out of hand because those involved did not follow the leadership principle of focusing on the business behavior instead of the people, says Rick Weaver, Chief Operations Officer of Detroit based Multicultural Business Council. Had foreign ownership of American ports been the issue, the impact would have been less. Instead, the issue revolved around the trust-worthiness and integrity of Middle-Easterners.

Any business leader needs to understand that when they have an issue in the workplace, regardless of what it is, they must address the specific behavior, not the people. For example, if a company is dealing with rampant employee theft they can take a very expensive tactic of terminating individual employees. The most effective leaders would look at why the leadership had allowed the situation where employee theft seemed acceptable by the employees at large.

Had the issue been a security issue focused on foreign port ownership, the UAE offer to end the controversy would not have resolved the issue. It would have continued until Chinese and Singapore owner ports had been turned over also.

The lesson for business is that in a multicultural business world, never focus on the culture, focus on the business behavior.

Rick Weaver

Rick Weaver is an accomplished business executive with a wealth of experience in retail, market analysis, supply chain enhancement, project management, team building, and process improvement.

Rick career began in retailing as a stockclerk, eventually becoming the Director of Vendor Development at Kmart Corporation during it?s heyday. In this position he worked with hundreds of Kmart?s suppliers to improve mutual processes, procedures, and profits.

As a consultant, Rick has worked with companies in various industries to develop leadership and business strategies. These companies include Sara Lee, Procter & Gamble, 3M, GM, The State of Michigan, OLHSA, Fruit of the Loom, Eastman Kodak, Kmart, Coleman, Pope & Talbot, Atmosphere Heat Treating, Rinchem, Builder's Industry Association, Ingersoll-Rand, Dow Chemical, HIS Jeans, Wrangler, Confab, S. C. Johnson, Kimberly-Clark, Exxon-Mobil, Pennzoil, Kraft, Remington Arms, US Playing Cards, and Johnson & Johnson.

As an entrepreneur, Rick has founded or co-founded six successful organizations, including non-profit and for profit. All organizations have been consistantly profitable since their second quarter.

Now in his role as president of MaxImpact, Rick uses his vast experience helping individuals connect to their dreams and teams connect to a common vision.

Rick?s presentation style of blending humor, real life examples, and easy to implement ideas has made him a popular speaker at seminars, workshops, and conferences in in 43 states, Canada, and Puerto Rico.