Tag Archives: John Kotter

You’ve Got This!

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Panorama Of Empty Baseball Field At Night From Behind Home PateI have been hearing “industry experts” report that we are facing “unprecedented levels of change” for more than a quarter-century. Such pronouncements can cause a great deal of stress, and likely more than a few sleepless nights, for conscientious leaders committed to helping their organizations succeed. But . . . what if the experts are looking at it all wrong?

I lead a 165-year-old organization, and as I look back over our history it appears that significant amounts of change have been going on ever since 1853. Unprecedented means, “never done or known before.” People, we have done change! Yes, the circumstances are different, the speed at which occurs may be faster, but change is not an unprecedented thing . . . and when we act like it is, all we accomplish is to increase our angst, foster uncertainty in our staff and undermine our ability to respond most effectively.

Change is a process and there are specific steps you can take to increase your likelihood of achieving your desired outcome (I recommend John Kotter’s work as a good starting point). Here is what the industry experts don’t tell you — effectively managing change is far more about you than it is about any external factors that may be “unprecedented.”

Consider it through the lens of baseball. When you step up to the plate to bat, you may face all kinds of pitchers. Some throw right-handed, some left. Some pitch at speeds you may have never seen before, others have a change-up that can catch you off guard. The strike zone may be a moving target depending on the umpire, the sun might be in your eyes or the wind blowing dust in your face. The catcher may crowd you and the spectators may be creating distracting levels of noise. And even with all of these variables — some of which you may not have encountered before — your batting average is largely a result of what you do and not the uncontrollable factors swirling around you. Don’t allow yourself to get psyched out by the spectator (who may even see himself as an expert) shouting, “swing batter swing,” or by the reputation of the pitcher, or a host of other variables. Take a deep breath. You’ve got this.

Change becomes overwhelming when we focus more of our attention on what we can’t control instead of what we can. Yes, pay attention to what is going on around you, adapt if you need to, and then bring your focus back to what you can impact . . . the specific steps you can take. What you focus on grows. Focus on what you know and what you can control.

Unprecedented? Not so much. You’ve got this!

Climate Change

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climate-change

According to Daniel Goleman in his book Primal Leadership, an organization’s climate — how people feel about working at the company — accounts for 20 – 30% of performance, So what drives climate? According to Goleman, “Roughly 50 – 70% of how employees perceive their organization’s climate can be traced to the action of one person: the leader.” Hmmm . . . so I guess if some climate change is needed in your organization, at least you know where to start.

I’m not suggesting that life in your organization has to become one big party. However, counter- intuitive as it may be for some, peak performance isn’t all about the numbers either. It is the balance of head and heart that leads to maximum outcomes. Unfortunately, far too often the “soft stuff” gets pushed to the side when the going gets tough, to the detriment of all involved. Why do you think Harvard Business School researcher John Kotter wrote a book called The Heart of Change or Kouzes and Posner supplemented their well-know book The Leadership Challenge with another book called Encouraging the Heart?

The “soft stuff” matters.

Leaders have an oversized impact on organizational climate because people take their emotional cues from those with roles at the top of the organizational chart. If the leader “looks stressed” . . . if a typically outgoing leader is suddenly withdrawn . . . people notice. Leaders’ words are given more weight . . . their positive or negative outlook on an opportunity ripples throughout the organization. Climate can also be enhanced when a leader recognizes and accurately articulates the challenges staff is experiencing. Organization climate isn’t about “happy stuff.” It is about a leader’s attunement to, and resonance with, staff members. It is about a leaders’ emotional intelligence — his or her self-awareness and social awareness, self-management, and relationship management. It is not about leadership style. It is about being in sync with your people, and they with you.

So what should you do if you sense the need for a bit of climate change within your organization? For starters, get real . . . with yourself and your people. (They know when you’re faking it anyway, and you just lose credibility when you try.) It’s okay to say, “Things are tough right now.” But follow it up with, “and here’s how we’re going to get through this.” Ask for input and then really listen, don’t just wait to talk. Connect the dots for your people, point out what is important and tell them why.

Organizational climate isn’t about them — those people and variables outside your organization. It is about us, and you as a leader set the temperature. Need a change in climate? Lucky for you, you know where to start.

The Culture of Innovation

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bigstock-142999232Innovation has become the business buzzword du jour of late. The business press is filled with articles and guides on how to be more innovative. And while there are nuggets of insight and helpful information scattered among the books and articles, I think those well-meaning authors who try to boil innovation down into a 5-step plan short-change their readers.

Innovation is not a 5-step plan. It is a messy paradox of contradictions, and there is not one “right” way to do it. Innovation can be about tweaking something to make it more effective or developing a totally new concept. It requires structure and flexibility. Urgency and patience. It requires one to chart a clear path, and have a willingness to press ahead without knowing the final destination. It is energizing and exasperating. Perhaps most importantly, it is not a set of tasks, it is a culture that develops over time.

I’m not suggesting that every organization has to be innovative. Much of the world is designed to reward coloring inside the lines. In many ways, that is a safer, easier approach and individuals can build successful, rewarding careers by leading within established guidelines. And even within organizations noted for being innovative, significant portions of their operations may follow a more traditional approach. So what is different about innovative organizations? Their culture.

Culture is “how we do things around here” — what we believe and how we think, feel and behave. Is it okay to challenge someone up the organizational hierarchy? What does the organization lead with . . . people or profits, mission or metrics? Now please hear me . . . all four are important components of success . . . an innovative company still has to be able to keep the doors open. A culture of innovation, however, has to have a higher tolerance for the messiness of trial and error and the fluidity required to maximize the unique gifts and graces of people scattered throughout your organization.

John Kotter’s concept of a dual operating system visually captures what this type of culture may look like, with part of an organization functioning in a more traditionally hierarchical way, and other parts much more fluid, drawing from all areas of the organization. In such a culture, it is okay — it feels safe — for someone with more front line experience to tell someone from an administrative function that their idea simply won’t work (respectfully, of course) and then offer their suggestions for a better approach. Good ideas are the great equalizers, and there is a spirit of productive experimentation as opposed to “this better work or else . . .”

Building a culture of innovation doesn’t happen with a pep talk or a plan. It happens based on your approach, your attitude, and your willingness to act . . . one step at a time. Maybe you’d better get started!

Dual Exhausts Increase Performance

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Exhaust PipeIt’s true, they really do (just ask my son the car nut), but I’m not talking about cars here. The same concept works for organizations, too. Let me give you a bit of context . . .

When it comes to leadership development, John Kotter is one of a small handful of authors I consistently recommend because he is able to distill the fundamentals of leadership, management and organizational change down to very digestible concepts.  I was recently reading an article he wrote for the Leader to Leader Journal entitled “Capturing the Opportunities and Avoiding the Threats of Rapid Change.” It was one of those head-slapping moments where he clearly articulated something we do in this organization that a) I thought was rather unconventional, but worked for us, and b) gave a convincing rationale for a strategy that, quite frankly, we implemented instinctually. His concept had to do with maximizing impact by using dual operating systems — in effect, dual exhausts.

Kotter’s observation is that many organizations start as flat interconnected networks, which maximize speed and flexibility. As the organization grows over time, hierarchies necessarily begin to develop and the network approach tends to shrink until ultimately, in many organizations, there is an evolution to a pure hierarchy model. His assertion is that, to respond to the volatility of today’s market, organizations need to strive for dual operating systems that capture both the speed and agility of the network, and the efficiency and reliability of the hierarchy.

I absolutely agree. As someone who leads an organization committed to dual operating systems (even though I couldn’t have put that name to it until I read Kotter’s article), I would also add that the balance point between network and hierarchy is a moving target, and while ultimately effective, “dual exhausts” can be rather messy. Why? Because you do not have two separate operating systems that function side by side in a silo. Rather, the fast, agile network system pulls in people from all points in the formal hierarchy who have the unique skills, energy and commitment for the project at hand. Managers whose job it is to ensure the reliability of the hierarchy have to be on board with this, and allow at least some of their people to function with a foot in both worlds.

Why would your staff subject themselves to living with two sets of rules and expectations (those of the network, and those of the hierarchy)? In a word . . . passion. These people are so excited about the chance to do something extraordinary, that they are not only willing, but eager to take on an additional role to have a hand in creating something new and meaningful. And when you give them a target and let them run, amazing things can happen.

I’m told the advantages of a dual exhaust system include more horsepower, better gas mileage, better sound, cooler look . . . yep, sounds about right. Thanks, Mr. Kotter

Cheerleader for Change

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Executive Cheerleader fIf you ask a successful leader to identify his or her primary job responsibilities, it is probably unlikely that “cheerleader” would make it onto a top five list. . . . but maybe those same leaders would be even more successful it if was.

From my perspective, strategy and organizational culture are two of a leader’s primary responsibilities — in effect, how can your organization position itself (change) to better fulfill your mission, and how can you motivate employees to embrace that change. Hmmm . . . sounds like a job for a cheerleader for change.

Change is hard — necessary to survive in today’s fast-paced environment, but hard none-the-less. If we as leaders can’t clearly and enthusiastically state, repeatedly, why a change is necessary, the task becomes even harder. Leadership expert John Kotter states that most companies under-communicate their vision by at least a factor of 10. Maybe there is a reason that cheerleaders repeat the same chant (or vision) over and over again.

Okay, so I’m sure some of you are thinking that being a cheerleader sounds a bit too “foo-foo” for a serious leader like you. Really? Kotter’s research also shows that 70% of all change efforts fail, and one reason is that leaders don’t get enough buy-in, from enough people in the organization, for the initiatives to succeed. How do you get buy-in? Clearly and enthusiastically state the goal, and then repeat it, again . . . and again. . . . and again.

It’s easy for people to get excited at the beginning of an effort, when the expectations are high, and the roadblocks are not yet apparent. It’s when you are a few quarters in, when the unexpected barriers and the crises du’jour zap your energy that you need to rally the troops around the importance of the effort. A good cheerleader can motivate a discouraged crowd to get back into the game, to stick with the effort through the inevitable ups and downs, to reach a successful conclusion.

For better or worse, as a leader, you set the tone for your team. If you are distracted, or visibly concerned, or lose enthusiasm, your team will too. That’s not to say you should fake enthusiasm. Rather, you should be so committed to your end goal that a few bumps or detours don’t dampen your resolve to reach your destination. I’ve yet to experience a project that went exactly according to plan, but when the goal is important enough, you find a way to get there. You have to be the cheerleader who challenges the team to dig deep and find another way around whatever is blocking your path.

Sometimes the difference between a successful change effort and an unsuccessful one comes down to the enthusiasm and determination of the (cheer)leader.

Limber up. It’s time to cheer!

Look Out for that Bus!

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Bus

If you get hit by a bus tomorrow . . .

I have started so many discussions with my Leadership Team this way that it has become a standing joke in our organization.  And while it may have resulted in a bit of bus phobia among the team, they all also recognize that part of their job expectations include grooming their successor.

Succession planning and building the bench-strength of your organization is one of the most important responsibilities of a leader — regardless of whether you or your senior staff plans to retire any time soon. Of course, that means giving up a bit of control, which admittedly is something many of us have a hard time with (yes, this is the pot talking to the kettle!)

Giving up control of the details, however, is a far cry from giving up responsibility for establishing a leadership culture within your organization. That one’s all yours. Leadership philosophies are a dime a dozen, and so it is your responsibility to set the tone for the leadership style that will be rewarded in your organization.  And guess what? You can’t just pick up the latest best-selling leadership book and find a perfect fit. To be effective, you have to do some of soul-searching, and a bit of trial and error, to find the style that is the best fit for you and your organization.

Right out of college, I tried to be a Debra. I really tried. Couldn’t pull it off. The only time Debra is really a fit for me is if I’m talking to my insurance company, or if I’m in trouble with my mother. Otherwise, I’m a Debbie. I am not an overly formal, rule-laden leader. I encourage my Leadership Team to challenge my thinking, and I believe in being as transparent as possible with my staff (if I trust them with the kids, I ought to be able to trust them with the numbers!) If you try to “wear” a leadership style that isn’t a fit for your authentic self — trying to fulfill some picture of what you thing leadership “should” look like — your staff will smell it a mile away and your credibility will suffer.

But back to the bus . . .

In my experience, the key to good succession planning is to deliberately develop a leadership culture within your organization. Impacting culture is not a one-shot deal. It takes a consistent layering of efforts to make the concepts part of the vocabulary of the organization. We have done it through multiple versions of an internal  “Leadership Academy” that has ranged anywhere from 9 – 18 months, through all-staff meetings and focus groups and intentional discussions, and most importantly through our actions. People who have demonstrated the leadership style we espouse have advanced in the organization, and those who don’t have either remained stagnant or are no longer with the organization.

Jim Collins has had a significant impact on our leadership culture, as have John Kotter and Max DePree, along with less traditional thinkers such as Chris Guillebeau, Dan Ward and Daniel Pink. We held supervisor discussions on books such as The Speed of Trust by Stephen M.R. Covey, which gave us a shared language with which to break down departmental silos.  And after a while, really cool things started to happen. People started talking more, and solving problems themselves, rather than “running them up the flag pole” for fear of what would happen if they made the wrong decision. Not every time, but we’re definitely moving in the right direction.

Today, we are consciously making choices to prepare for staffing needs five years down the road. We actively work to align staff members’ “gifts and graces” with the needs of our organization. We encourage staff to take little risks  — that will either build their confidence or teach them that someone can stub their toe and survive. And we challenge our supervisors to find creative ways to maximize the unique skills of their staff, even if that means supporting them in moving to a different role in the organization.

And slowly but surely, we are overcoming our fear of buses. We have a clear plan, on paper, of who would step in if any of our directors were incapacitated. Would those “designees” have to stretch to fill the larger role? Of course they would, but they all also possess the core skills and experience necessary to keep us moving forward.

Sooner or later, there will be a bus coming your way. Are you prepared?