When we grasp the importance of a healthy and viable strategic nexus, we have to explore why so many leaders, teams and companies are struggling right now. While the economic head winds are profound, we have to remember that they have been bad before, e.g. think 2008 or certain times in the late 90’s. As the old Haitian proverb goes, “After mountains are more mountains.” And before us right now are lots and lots of mountains.
So, why are we struggling?
First, we are not unpacking the meaning and purpose found within the nexus. Recognizing that “words make worlds,” referencing the writing of Krista Tippett, people have to understand what the words mean within the nexus and then people have to understand what behaviors go with the words to make them real. This is a critical step. Ideas need to become behavioral and we are desperately under-communicating about all of this.
Second, because we are not unpacking the meaning and purpose within the nexus, we are experiencing connection deficits and knowledge deficits at the same time. Using a medical example of these two terms, a connection deficit is when we can see the symptoms and to a degree can describe the problem. But we are not able to connect the problem to the knowledge we already have about how to solve the problem. Often, this happens because we are siloing up the knowledge and separating it from the problem/symptoms. Therefore, there is a connection deficit. A knowledge deficit, on the other hand, takes place when a person is missing critical knowledge, i.e. no understanding of the problem, and thus are unable to solve the problem.
As this relates to the strategic nexus, a connection deficit happens when people are not making the connections about the relationship between core ideology and progress/strategy. Thus, the “tyranny of the or” still reigns supreme, referencing Collins and Porras language. A knowledge deficit happens when people don’t know what is core to their company, and thus, they do not know what is essential vs. non-essential. Therefore, they are not preserving the core.
At the same time, they also do not know the strategy or strategic intent of the company. Thus, they are not making progress or supporting on-going mutations or variations of the strategy to happen. To build on this, when the nexus is connected to a specific individual and has not been institutionalized into the very fabric of the company, then the company will struggle.
Currently, there are two major problems before companies right now, namely The Great Resignation and The Great Renegotiation by those who are staying. One big problem within The Great Resignation is the loss of talent and knowledge. While this is a huge loss and does have a significant impact, what I am seeing is the loss of the social networks within the company.
I talked about this concept of social networks at the Spring ’21 Roundtable. A social network helps you manage current internal operational responsibilities. When it is healthy and taken care of on a regular basis this operational, social network gives you connective advantage, namely the ability to marshal information, support and other resources from other people in your network. These interdependencies within your operational social network give you the capacity to balance maintaining the core and creating progress.
Within The Great Resignation, we are loosing people, but we are also loosing the internal social networks which help us to get information, support and resources to solve problems. Therefore, we need to proactively engage in building more and healthier social networks. We need more people connected to more people rather than a singular individual who may or may not leave.
As Jim Collins and Morton Hansen wrote in their book, Great By Choice: Uncertainty, Chaos, and Luck - Why Some Thrive Despite Them All (HarperCollins, 2011), “... it’s what you do before the storm comes that most determines how well you’ll do when the storm comes. Those who fail to plan and prepare for instability, disruption, and chaos in advance tend to suffer more when their environments shift from stability to turbulence.” And we all know, there is more instability, disruption and chaos on the horizon. There are mountains after these mountains. So, now is the time to be prepared.
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