Competitive Advantage - Part #1

As we enter this New Year at work, strategic choices are plentiful, and overcoming operational difficulties is mission critical. Having a clear competitive advantage is also more important than ever.

For many companies this winter, the economy’s pendulum swinging between a few good months and numerous poor months is very frustrating. At times, executives feel dammed if they do something and dammed if they do not. The result of such economic uncertainty is more meetings. The book, Death by Meeting: a Leadership Fable . . .About Solving the Most Painful Problem in Business (Jossey-Bass, 2004), by Patrick Lencioni could become a best seller again in the next six weeks given how many groups are gathering to figure out the future.

As one who sat through many such meetings in December of 2010, I love listening to the language used as the different strategic choices are explored. I can guarantee you that someone is going to voice the idea during an upcoming meeting that “our people are our competitive advantage.” Then, the more educated leaders and managers in the room will add that “having the right people is our competitive advantage.” And finally, some one, with almost gospel level reverence, will state that “having the right people on the right seats on the bus” is the most critical thing to do in the first quarter of 2011. While I whole heartedly agree with this idea from Jim Collin’s research in his book, Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap. . . and Others Don't, HarperBusiness, 2001, few people realize that having the right people in 2011 also means keeping the right people.

In theory, we always hire the best candidate and then we do our best to orient them to their new job and the company as a whole. CEOs regularly lead classes to assure that new hires know the the company’s history, mission and core values. Alignment and perspective are critical first steps to the on-boarding process.

But at some point, the early romance of recruitment and the honeymoon of orientation stops and the actual work starts. Then, the e-mails flood their in-box, the paper work stacks up like planes circling Chicago before a winter storm, and meetings fill their calendar. Numb from hours of worthless meetings and overwhelmed by problems that have no quick or simple solution, these new and old “right people” turn to the one person who can make or break their day, namely their supervisor. And if this individual wakes up on the wrong side of the bed, has a bad hair day, misses their morning cup of coffee, and is generally irritable over factors they have no control over, e.g a pendulum swinging economy, this critical interaction can end up being a disaster just when it needs to be most helpful.

During the last 90 days, I have listened to more and more of these key or “right” people share how deeply frustrated they are with their supervisor and thus their company. They want to do good and they want to solve problems. They want to be successful and they also want the company to be successful. But when they report to and interact on a daily basis with some one who is not clear about their expectations, can not communicate and solve problems in a healthy manner, and does not role model the organization’s mission, vision or core values that were talked about during orientation, then these “right people” go back to their desk, dust off their resumes, and seek new opportunities for more productive work and life experiences.

I am convinced from what I have seen and heard in the last 90 days that more and more companies are suffering from a loss of competitive advantage due to poor supervision, management, and leadership than from economic factors over which they have no control. I am also convinced that many companies do have appropriate strategy and sound operational systems in place, but what they lack is the realization that having the right people on the right seats on the bus is only as good as having the right relationships between those people on the bus.

This week and this winter, spend more time making sure you do not loose your competitive advantage by loosing your best people. We can not afford to have them leave due to poor leadership, management or supervision. Things are hard enough as they are without adding this element into the mix.

Geery Howe, M.A.Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer inLeadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational ChangeMorning Star Associates319 - 643 - 2257

Improving Organizational Communication

THEME: Spring 2010 From Vision to Action Roundtable Report

FOCUS: Improving Organizational Communication

Tuesday morning: June 1, 2010

Dear friends,

With many organizations moving faster and faster at the tactical and strategic levels, communications is suffering. When this happens, we need to remember the first three disciplines from Patrick Lencioni’s book, The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive, Jossey-Bass, 2000, as we solve this problem. They are as follows:

- Discipline One: Build and Maintain A Cohesive Leadership Team

- Discipline Two: Create Organizational Clarity

- Discipline Three: Over-communicate Organizational Clarity

If we seek a realistic solution to improved communication, then we need to create organizational clarity and over-communicate it. The first step is to remember Marcus Buckingham’s comments about fear in his book, The One Thing You Need to Know ... About Great Managing, Great Leading, and Sustained Individual Success, Free Press, 2005. Here, he outlined the “Five Fears” we all share. The first is our fear of death, our own and our family’s. Leaders work with this fear by recognizing our need for security. The second is our fear of the outsider which can be resolved by the development of community. The third is our fear of the future which can be eased by an organization having a clear sense of direction. The fourth fear is the fear of chaos which recognizes our desire as people for sound leadership, and the need for someone to make the right decisions. The final fear is the fear of insignificance. We solve this one by recognizing our desire to want to know that our work is making a difference. As Buckingham constantly points out, when you want to manage, begin with the person; when you want to lead, begin with the picture of where you are headed.

Not too long ago, I was invited to lunch with two exceptional women executives. We met at a restaurant and they encouraged me to order first. Being born wet and hungry, I ordered up a plate full of slow burning protein and complex carbs plus a house salad. They each ordered a glass of water with lemon and half a salad. Once my embarrassment about ordering so much had passed, they shared with me that they were struggling with communications at the senior team level. They could not figure out what the problem was but thought that a communications workshop would be helpful. As we talked about what was happening, I discovered that the main problem mostly resolved around a senior leader sending mixed signals and those listening not being able to generate a clear picture of the future.

In particular, when we communicate, it is essential that we are clear about what we are communicating and what we are expecting. For example, many issues are brought up at the senior team level but the individual who surfaces these issues is not clear about whether or not they are sharing information for input, seeking consultation before a decision, wanting help to coordinate different parts of the strategy, or communicating a decision that has already been made. We, at times, forget that what is evident to a leader may or may not be evident to a follower or colleague. Therefore, it is time to clarify and/or explain the obvious.

This week clarify inside your own head first what you are trying to say and why before you open your mouth.

Have a delightful week,

Geery

Geery Howe, M.A.Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer inLeadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational ChangeMorning Star Associates319 - 643 - 2257

Leading Through Complexity: The Core Four Actions - Part #4

THEME: Fall 2009 From Vision to Action Executive Roundtable Report

FOCUS: Leading Through Complexity: The Core Four Actions - Part #4

Monday morning: November 16, 2009

Dear friends,

The last of The Core Four Actions seems simple but it is a complex leadership activity. As it states, “What you provide, activates and energizes.” The first verb, “provide”, focuses on what we supply or make available to those who report to us. To understand what leaders make available, we first need to understand the concepts of “activate” and “energize.”

The word “activate” means to “to set up or formally institute (as in a military unit) with the necessary personnel and equipment.” I like to think of this in the context of making sure you have the right people with the right equipment working on the right problems. Think Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman in their book, First, Break All The Rules: What The World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently, Simon & Schuster, 1999, where they explain the importance of matching talent with opportunity.

The word “energize” means “to put forth energy” or “to make energetic, vigorous, or active.” When we dig deeper into this concept, an important clue to it’s meaning is found in the definition of “vigorous” which means “to make strong.” When something is energized, it is made stronger and often with this increased strength comes an intensity of feeling and commitment.

So when implementing the fourth of the The Core Four Actions, many leaders think about creating SMART goals, realistic timelines, short term wins, functional and cohesive teams, empowered people, and continued talent development. Everyone of these is mission critical to short and long term success but they only deal with the surface. When leading through complexity, there needs to be more.

First, with complexity comes confusion. Therefore, successful leaders create clarity around what is our competitive advantage. They recognize that customers choose us for a reason. They delve deeply into this reason and make sure all know it and remember it when days are full and busy.

Second, with complexity comes overload. Therefore, they prioritize work and clarify who is responsible for what and by when it needs to get done. The combination of these two factors limits confusion and reinforces the focus on factors that make a difference.

Third, with complexity comes arrogance and hysteria. Some people tend to down play the difficulties and think it is no big deal while others go nuts and blow everything out of proportion. Therefore, leaders provide opportunities for in-depth strategic dialogue where they do not shy away from constructive ideological debates and conflict. This level of communication strengthens the organization and helps it to avoid the “hubris born of success”, a term from Jim Collin’s recent book, How The Mighty Fall and Why Some Companies Never Give In, HarperCollins, 2009.

Finally, with complexity comes sloppiness. Working outside their comfort zone due to complexity, some people do not always get everything done or done well. Poor leaders let this slip by and do not take notice. Exceptional leaders provide a structure so that all are held accountable for their behaviors and actions. This is very important because it does not let a precedent get set which could end up becoming a cultural norm.

When we as leaders embrace the fourth of The Core Four Action, namely “what you provide, activates and energizes”, we are position the organization for sustainability in the midst of complexity.

This week reflect on what you provide different groups of people and the organization as a whole. Does it activate and energize?

Have a fantastic week,

Geery

Geery Howe, M.A.
Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in
Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change

Morning Star Associates
319 - 643 - 2257