Leverage the Power of the Strategic Nexus

We were eating lunch at the most delightful coffee shop. There were papers and reports spread out across the table. There were graphs and charts poking out from a file folder, and there was a line of sugar packets reflecting a possible new way of organizing the division so it could be more nimble and agile.

She looked up at me from the line of sugar packets as I pulled out a paper with their mission, vision and core values on it. “I think we need to review this document,” I said. “We have to be sure that what we are discussing is in alignment with this page.”

She nodded and said “Yes. It always comes back to the strategic nexus.”

I smiled. She was right.

In the trough of chaos, it is easy to forget the strategic nexus. We are often focused on dealing with resistance, endless problems and making sure everything is still on track given the strategic plan. With our heads down and pushing forward, we rarely pause for reflection.

However, the best leaders routinely pull out the strategic nexus and review it. First, they make sure they are not compromising the mission, vision and core values. They understand that this is the foundation of all that gets done. It is the non-negotiable elements of the organization.

Second, they review the strategic plan. Tactical action can at times be so consuming that we forget where we are going and why. The strategic plan offers direction and metrics to measure progress. These are vital to overall success of the company.

During these interesting times, make sure you are routinely checking your company’s strategic nexus. It will provide on-going clarity and focus. 

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Support Creates Resilience

At the bottom of the trough of chaos, people struggle. They are working hard, trying to stay focused and hoping that they are making progress. Day after day old problems come back and new problems present themselves. People can be come pretty burned out by all of it, and start to wonder if trying so hard is really worth it. They question the goals, the strategy, the company and, sometimes, even themselves. The trough of chaos can have a high price.

But when I visit with leaders and their teams, veterans of living through multiple troughs of chaos, I learn one simple and powerful lesson. They have worked hard to support each other through thick and thin. This is not a one time thing, but something that has gradually been built over time. Common language and a common understanding about mission help. Being trustworthy with each other, and building team level trust has taken place because they have defined acceptable group norms and behaviors in alignment with organizational core values. They also have developed a shared mindset, knowledge, experiences, and common identity amongst themselves. 

And they haven’t done the above once and moved on to other things, they have done it over and over. They do it whether they are in the trough of chaos or not in the trough of chaos. They have done it when old team members have left and they have done it when new people have joined their team. By supporting each other in this manner, they have created resilience and perspective, which is a powerful combination when working through the trough of chaos in interesting times.

This week, reflect first on whether or not your team role models a healthy level of support for each other. Next, figure out if you can define the team’s shared mindset. If you can not do this, then it is time to build it. And finally, reflect on whether or not your team celebrates the achievement of short term wins at a collective level or an individual level. With this information in mind, sit down with your team and discuss your findings. It could be the turning point for a whole new level of focus and outcomes in your organization.

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Making Progress is Powerful

We were seated in the Board room when she looked up from her notes and said, “Now that is an interesting perspective. You’ve got me thinking. So, planned short term wins really make a difference?”

“Yes, they do,” I replied. “When people know they are making progress on a daily basis and can measure it within a reasonable time frame, this creates forward momentum. When they achieve a planned short term win, e.g. hitting a number on a predetermined date, this deepens their commitment and creates confidence in the team and in the goal.”

“I have seen this with kids in school,” she continued. “When a students sets a stretch goal and can achieve a particular score or mastery along the way, they have more commitment to keep learning the new material.”

“Exactly. And employees need the same thing. The critics will say some thing can not be done, but those who are achieving consistent short term wins can point to the progress they are making. They can connect effort with desired outcomes.”

“So why are people in leadership positions not developing more planned short term wins every day?”

“I don’t think that it has occurred to them,” I responded. “In the eyes of many leaders, a goal is binary, namely done or not done. There is nothing but the two extremes. However exceptional leaders, particularly ones who are living and working in interesting times and working through an extended trough of chaos, recognize that working on a goal in the midst of difficult times often is an exercise in frustration and constant interruptions. But by setting smaller goals or short term wins, referencing the work of John Kotter, people realize that step by step they are moving forward, and making a difference. It takes time to create planned short term wins, but it is worth the effort.”

This, week map out the short term wins you want to achieve in 2018. Share them with others and then collectively start working on making them happen. Over time and with patience, you will emerge from the trough of chaos with a better team and a better organization.

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Delegation is Not Dumping

When things get crazy busy in the trough of chaos, some leaders just dump and run. They race into a meeting, late from their last meeting, and listen for a few minutes before deciding what to do. Then, they speak quickly and dump all of the work onto those in the meeting before running off to their next meeting. It’s a classic dump and run form of leadership. It’s not even command and control which, for the most part outside a strict military hierarchy, is mostly control and command. No, this form of leadership is mostly listen, freak out, react, dump, and run. It never works even if you’ve been doing it for eons.

First, dumping work onto people is not delegation. It’s just plan disrespectful to those who receive it, and who more likely are already busy themselves. Second, it reflects internal chaos rather than just external chaos. Third, it never builds ownership and quality outcomes. It’s just plain sloppy leadership.

When you meet excellent leaders who work for very good companies, they recognize that delegation is the transferring of clarity, focus and the authority to complete a task or project in a timely and accurate manner. They start by building ownership and clarity. This happens before the act of delegation takes place. When an excellent leader builds a day to day work environment where people are respected, trusted and treated with dignity, this same leader also role models these characteristics. Then effective delegation is a successful by product of their initial work.

Next, when an exceptional leader does delegate, they first make sure people understand the problem they are trying to solve and understand the decision architecture around the problem, i.e. who can and who can not be involved and how to make the important decisions related to the issues that are being delegated.

Finally, exceptional leaders recognize that the day to day experiences of employees impact not just the day to day life of the company, but also impacts the company’s ability to execute it’s strategy. I keep reminding leaders at this time period that the ways they lead and delegate in 2018 have a direct impact on what kind of company they will be in 2023, a mere five years away from this winter.

This week, do not choose to dump and run. Coach everyone within your circle of influence to not do it either. When we no longer tolerate poor delegation, we are making a long term commitment to doing the right things for the right reasons.

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

When working through an extended trough of chaos, many leaders are focused on getting lots of things done. They want order and predictability to be once again the norm. They are very conscious that cash flow can make or break an organization so they are constantly focused on the financial health of the organization. As they race from meeting to meeting, the goal often is to get all of the things that are creating the feeling of chaos back under control. The difficulty is that many leaders forget a simple truth in their rush to get this done, namely that actions speak louder than words.

Every day people listen to what leaders say. They try hard to discern what is the message being sent. They interpret everything as either positive or negative. And for the most part, they define things as negative during the trough of chaos. If the leader is feeling overwhelmed in the tough of chaos, the follower is feeling lost and has no idea what or why this is all happening.

Here is where the best leaders step up to the challenges before. They understand that not everyone is going to hear directly from them. Therefore, they focus on making sure their message to the organization is clear, concise and can be easily cascaded down into the organization. They focus on core themes and recognize that it may take time for people to understand all that is being communicated.

They also are extremely thoughtful in their actions. In particular, they always conduct themselves with the utmost integrity. This means treating everyone, from the maintenance and the house cleaning staff to an SVP or a member of the board with dignity and respect. Being courteous and kind is not a show but a reflection of character and clarity. They recognize that role modeling integrity is vital to helping everyone move forward together.

This week, define the core themes you are going to talk about during the next 90 days as you move through your extended trough of chaos. And then role model clarity, respect and integrity with every fiber of your being. Do not slip up because actions always speak louder than words. 

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Teamwork is Not Collaboration

In the trough of chaos, too many people think teamwork and collaboration are the same thing. The problem is that most leaders focus on team work. They rally a group of people together and charge the hill, i.e. try to solve a specific problem. With enough focus and group effort, they will solve just about any problem. The difficulty is that in the trough of of chaos solving a singular problem does not always take into consideration that solving a problem within one part of the company may cause problems to rise up in other areas of the company.

When I teach people about how to move through the trough of chaos, I remind them that team work is an intra-group activity and the collaboration is an inter-group activity. The best leaders focus on both. 

Clearly, everyone wants a team to be a high functioning team with good levels of trust, dialogue, focus and the ability to hold each other accountable for collective results. This takes time and effort to build. It also takes routine maintenance to sustain.

Yet for a company to be successful as it moves through interesting times and a trough of chaos, we also need exceptional collaboration. This work also takes time, and lots and lots of communication. Typically, leaders rush to the team work side of the equation rather than investing time to build bridges between teams. This is more time intensive work, but if done correctly, it can be a valuable competitive advantage. 

Over the course of my career, I have witnessed some amazing levels of collaboration between teams. I have seen leaders build these bridges and develop inter-team relationships. The secret that I have been able to discern in this process is the development of two things, namely a common language and a shared sense of mission. While this sounds so simplistic and basic, it is rarely done well. The best leaders and companies that I have worked with invest years in building that common language. They understand that effective communication is the first step to collaboration. They also understand that having everyone understand the mission of the company keeps us all focused in the right direction.

This week, keep building common language and spend lots and lots of time unpacking and discussing the meaning of the company’s mission statement. Then good team work and good collaboration will start to take place.

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

The Daily Struggle

Right now, leaders at all levels are struggling. Change, that once used to be a linear process, is now dynamic and continuous at both the operational and strategic levels. Information, that used to be presented in an organized manner with concise summaries, is now overwhelming all involved so that no one is sure what is what anymore. Finally, culture, that once used to be defined by the company alone, is now being influenced by internal and external stakeholders who all want it to be favorable to themselves alone. And leaders stand in the midst of this swirling dervish of events, people, and information feeling frustrated and confused, hoping there is a path forward.

The answers may not be quick or easy. The work of leaders at this time period is difficult and complex but there are solutions, which with dedication, focus and clarity can generate new beginnings and solid steps forward. The best leaders understand that they need to slow down and step back from the pell mell rush to the future and understand that the current state of their organization is a reflection of past strategic choices. Leaders recognize that an organization’s history, it’s current culture and whether or not the work is meaningful for those who are most present to the moment of truth, i.e. the time and place where the goods or services become real and are utilized by the customer or clients, can impact now and the future.

As a result, we as leaders need time and space to reflect, think deeply and to reorganize our thoughts before moving forward. These spaces can, at times, seem few and far between in the midst of our daily schedule, filled with back to back meetings.

And yet, there is a place where exceptional leaders gather. It is the Spring 2018 From Vision to Action Executive Roundtable. Here, all involved catch their breath, pause and take stock. They reconnect with the bigger picture and they reconnect with their organization’s strategic nexus. The Spring Roundtable is a time for renewal, and a time for new insights, fresh ideas and perspectives. It is a place where we realize that we are all in this together and we all have pieces of the puzzle and insights to share.

This year, the Spring ’18 Roundtable will take place on April 4-5, 2018 at the Courtyard by Marriott in Ankeny, Iowa, which is just north of Des Moines, Iowa.  The agenda for this event is as follows:

Wednesday, April 4, 2018

- 8:30 am - Arrival & Visiting Time

- 9:00 am - 10:15 am - What is the connection between organizational history, culture and meaningful work within successful organizations?

- 10:15 am - 10:30 am - Break

- 10:30 am - 12:00 pm - How do leaders improve thinking and relating throughout an entire organization?

- 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm - Lunch & Networking 

- 1:30 pm - 2:45 pm How do leaders help themselves and others to learn better?

- 2:45 pm - 3:00 pm - Break

- 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm - What is the importance of caring within successful organizations?

- 4:30 pm - Adjourn

Thursday: April 5, 2018

- 9:00 am - 10:15 am - How do leaders be both bold and brave during difficult times?

- 10:30 am - 12:00 pm - Integration and Application

- 12:00 pm - Adjourn

The price is $ 295.00 for the two days and $ 195.00 for a single day. Here is the link to the registration form:

http://www.chartyourpath.com/pdf/2018-From-Vision-To-Action-Exec-Roundtable-Regist.pdf

I hope you will give yourself permission this spring to pause, step back and recharge with a room full of dedicated and thoughtful people, all seeking insights and new perspectives. It will be an exciting time, where we can struggle a little less and gain renewed perspectives of how to move forward in an effective manner.

See you at the Spring ’18 Roundtable!

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257