Why Invest In Leadership Training in 2019? - Part #2

There are two factors right now that are impacting the world of leadership and the ability of organizations to meet the needs of it’s customers. The first is called the “Silver Tsunami.” This refers to the fact that the enormous Baby Boomer generation is aging. By 2020, 25% of the United States workforces will be comprised of workers age 55 and older. Worldwide, those age 60 and over are expected to double by 2050, and triple by 2100. 

With this aging of the workforce will come a major exodus, i.e. retirement, of people in key leadership positions. While some companies are focused on a talent acquisition strategy to solve this problem, others are trying to figure out how to keep Baby Boomers working and how to prepare Gen Xers and Millenials to step up to the next level of leadership. 

The second factor is not so noticeable as the Silver Tsunami. It is under the radar screen and yet it is definitely impacting strategic and operational execution. People who work on teams right now are struggling because the idea of what is a team is shifting. For decades, teams have been analog based. Everyone worked in the same office. Everyone saw each other every day. And people who lead these teams could build relationships and role model effective communications on a daily basis.

However, as teams have shifted from an analog model to a digital model given the movement to a digital economy, and as companies became more focused on centralization and standardization, then team members have became digitally connected, geographically dispersed and more project driven. Now team leaders have to lead people who they do not see face to face on a regular base, communicate with them via e-mail, and manage outcomes via dashboards and project management software. In short, leaders are struggling to meet expectations and deadlines. Many are not clear about their role.

So, why invest in a four part in-depth leadership training in 2019?

First, we need more people who have the capacity to step up and fill the positions that will come open during the next five years. We need bench strength, capacity and clarity before we need to execute rather than as we execute.

Second, we need leaders who have the mindset and the skill set to build effective teams, analog or digital.  Given the technical and adaptive problems that are surfacing at this time period, particularly the complex adaptive problems, we need leaders who can create and maintain a group of people so they can work well together, stay focused and solve these problems. This will require team leaders who can work with multiple generations of people, e.g. Baby Boomers, Gen Xers and Millennials, and keep them focused on collective outcomes rather than individual outcomes.

This kind of leadership can not be taught in a day long seminar. It takes time, in-depth learning, reflection, practice, reading and then more learning. The 2019 From Vision to Action Leadership Training is designed to create this depth of capacity and clarity. It gives participants the tools, the resources and a holistic understanding of how to solve problems, lead people and create effective change in the midst of such problems as the Silver Tsunami and the movement and subsequent struggle between analog team models and digital team models. If you are wanting to be prepared for the future, then now is the time to sign up your key people for the 2019 From Vision to Action Leadership Training. 

For more information about this unique training experience, please click on the following link: http://www.chartyourpath.com/VTA-Leadership-Training.html

For more information about the dates, location and price of this 2019 training, please click on the following link: http://www.chartyourpath.com/VTA-Training-Details.html#Train2019

I look forward to helping you and your company prepare for the future.

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

What is the foundation for long term, successful teamwork? - part #2

In a world where the digital economy is having a big impact, we as leaders need to understand the 4-D team development journey if we are going to be successful. However, the first in this process is to step back from focusing on 4-D teams and understand somethings about “analog” teams.

Analog teams were created and became successful because of the following factors. First, there was daily face to face communication. This happened because everyone worked in the same office. Second, leaders role modeled key behaviors before, during and after teamwork. Some of those behaviors were social and others involved more technical skills. For the most part, task focused behaviors often trumped relationship oriented behaviors on analog teams. Third, heritage relationships, i.e. ones built over a long period of time, often impacted success. Furthermore, there were limited opportunities for networking outside the office location. Finally, qualitative measures were valued as much as quantitive measures of progress. The “feel” of success was valued as much as the facts around getting it all done. In short, analog teams generated success through mutual trust, shared values, and a clearly defined mission/purpose, all of which resulted in collective pride. What we do not recognize is that the above required lots of self-discipline plus a degree of self and group awareness

On the other hand, 4-D teams are more “global, virtual and project-driven.” 4-D teams struggle because they have limited face time and are dependent on digital communication which often prevents the ability to understand nonverbal and contextual clues which often provide insight into what is going on.

Next, 4-D teams rarely hold in-person meetings which removes the ability for an understanding of individual and collective moods of the group. This, in combination with a limited number of heritage relationships, means that leaders have a limited level of role modeling due to distance between team members.

Furthermore, 4-D teams are routinely multi-office based and they involve people who are highly networked through out multiple circles of individuals, inside and outside the company e.g. Face Book & Linked-In. Therefore, people are more consultation or coordination focused rather than typical teamwork focused. They also have more social network connections rather than technical, and analytical connections. There is more data-based decision-making involved and they use a series of dash board measurements to make these decision. Many have multi-level definitions of success.

Over time, it has become clear to me that 4-D teams generate success through transparent performance measures, where everyone is able to see the “dash board results.” These transparent performance standards with their clear tracking of results by everyone assumes that all team members know what is expected of them, know how performance is measured and know why it matters. 

However, there is a rising problem in the 4-D team model, namely that communication about “why the team needs to work as a team” is rarely done and often is the main cause for why most 4-D teams fail. Furthermore, this in combination with not knowing how to “read” the data and transform it into useful information is causing many teams to struggle quite deeply in problem solving and execution.

This week, reflect on the differences between 4-D teams and analog teams. Are you equipping your people and your teams to be successful in the 4-D team model?

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