Unleashing the Power of Culture and Coaching

When the history books are written about our time, many authors will focus on the flawless execution of brilliantly conceived strategies and the amazing level of teamwork that took place. Others will focus on the different personalities of our times showing how they were in command of smart people and delegated to them so they could solve amazingly complicated problems. Finally, these same authors will note that even in the face of adverse conditions these leaders and their companies did not give in or give up to the difficulties before them. Resilience and perseverance will become the buzz words of this decade.

While much of this is true on one level, the best leaders, especially the ones who are humble enough to not get caught up in the hype, will not let the focus be on effort and strategy alone. They will talk about the quiet revolution that took place when no one was looking. These leaders will talk about the interface between culture and coaching.  

From my experience of helping organizations and leaders improve or transform their organization over the course of 30+ years, I have watched the best leaders recognize that their organization’s culture is key to their strategic success. These thoughtful leaders focus on the systems that create this culture and sustain this culture. They understand that any cultural misalignment has the potential to impact the organization over the short and long term. Therefore, they are constantly monitoring for misalignments, and recognizing that these misalignments will have a profound impact on profitability and sustainable growth. 

At the exact same time, these profoundly successful leaders also focus on one to one coaching. While they can build and maintain amazing teams, the prerequisite to successful teams is to have a work place filled with successful people. Therefore, the best leaders are constantly focused on developing their people. This one to one level of coaching is mission critical to the culture and to the company. When people within a company are dedicated to constantly getting better, then a cultural flywheel is built. The power of all committed to continual improvement results in a company committed to continual improvement.  In short, organizational change and improvement is the sum of individual change and improvement.

For those leaders who are seeking to create and maintain this kind of flywheel during the next 3-5 years, then now is the time to sign up your key leaders for the 2017 From Vision to Action Leadership Training. Through a challenging, interactive curriculum which blends lectures, selected readings, small and large group discussions, and how to skill-building exercises, participants in this four part leadership training gain critical knowledge and skills which improve their ability to lead people to generate short and long term success.

For more information on this in-depth training and how to register for the 2017 From Vision to Action Leadership Training, please click on the following link: http://www.chartyourpath.com/VTA-Leadership-Training.html 

The history books about our time may or may not become bestsellers, but the impact of exceptional leadership will transcend this time because those companies will still be in business and still creating successful outcomes and solutions. I look forward to your participation in the 2017 From Vision to Action Leadership Training where we will explore these topics and many others that can make a difference.

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

How do leaders create a team during times of high turnover? - part #1

“Today’s teams are different from the teams of the past,” writes Martine Haas and Mark Mortensen in their article “The Secrets of Great Teamwork,” Harvard Business Review, June 2016. As they continue, “They’re far more diverse, dispersed, digital, and dynamic (with frequent changes in membership).” Haas and Mortensen call these kinds of teams 4-D teams.

First, let’s remember that in the world of team building the sequence that most teams go through to becoming a team is the following: “forming, storming, norming, performing.” What we forget is that this original process was created by Bruce Tuckman in 1965. A lot has happened in the last 51 years and yet Michael D. Watkins in his article, “Leading The Team You Inherit,” Harvard Business Review, June 2016, notes the following: “Ultimately new leaders want their people to exhibit high-performance behaviors such as sharing information freely, identifying and dealing with conflict swiftly, solving problems creatively, supporting one another, and presenting a unified face to the outside world once decisions have been made.” Whether it is 1965 or 2016, we want our leadership teams to be very successful.

Martine Haas and Mark Mortensen in their article “The Secrets of Great Teamwork,” Harvard Business Review, June 2016, note there are four key elements to successful teamwork. They are a compelling direction where “People have to care about achieving a goal”, a strong structure where “Every individual doesn’t have to possess superlative technical and social skills, but the team overall needs a healthy dose of both”, a supportive context where all involved have the resources, information and training they need, and finally a shared mindset. As Haas and Mortensen explain, “Distance and diversity, as well as digital communication and changing membership, make them [teams] especially prone to the problems of “us versus them” thinking and incomplete information…. The solution to both is developing a shared mindset among team members - something team leaders can do by fostering a common identity and common understanding.”

This week, before you start thinking about how to reduce turnover on your teams make sure you have the right elements in place for them to be successful.

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

Going To The Next Level

During the last 90 days, more and more senior leaders have been discussing with me about how to help a functional leader become an enterprise level leader. At the same time, many middle managers who want to be a future senior executive have talked with about the exact same subject. While there are no quick fixes to this challenge, there are three key concepts that I have observed when people transition from being a functional leader to a successful enterprise level leader.

First, the best enterprise level leaders know that diagnosing a problem is as important as solving a problem. Therefore, they follow the advice of Roger Martin in his June 2007 article in the Harvard Business Review called “How Successful Leaders Think” by asking the following three questions:

- What are the salient factors to take into consideration?

- What is causing what? i.e. an analysis of causality.

- What is the correct decision architecture to deploy?

The answers to these three questions give them a framework to making the right decision rather than simply rushing in to solve the immediate problem. In essence, these questions help them see the bigger picture and understand the impact of making a decision.

Second, the best enterprise level leaders recognize that commitment is a mindset more than it is an action.  Beginning with the perspective that awareness is not understanding, the best enterprise level leaders are focused on creating a strategic level mindset in everyone who has to develop and execute a strategic plan. They agree with Bill Gore when he wrote, “Commitment, not authority, produces results.” Therefore, they are constantly seeking out ways to help people be better committed to the mission of the organization.

Third, the best enterprise level leaders know that competency is not mastery. Many people can do things in a competent manner. But those who are committed to mastery understand that there are never really experts, only people who commit a life time to constant learning of the fundamentals and the willingness to take risks to achieve a higher performance. With intentionality and continual practice, the best enterprise level leaders are always willing to be the beginner. Continual progress is the foundation of all they do.

The goal of becoming an enterprise level leader is a worthy one. The goal of becoming one of the best takes profound depth of character and commitment. The path is not easy but it is worthwhile. I hope the above helps you as you move forward in your career or if you are coaching some one in their career journey.

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

How do leaders create an understanding of a problem and buy-in for the solution? - part #2

One of the biggest challenges to creating buy-in for the solution to a problem starts with creating the environment for understanding and ultimately ownership of the problem. This means we have to help employees feel that they are technically competent to deal with the problem but also committed and motivated to deal with it. This is why more leaders need to read or routinely review the following book: Lencioni, Patrick. The Three Signs of a Miserable Job: A Fable for Managers (and their employees), Jossey-Bass 2007. This is a great resource for building the right environment for ownership.

Second, John P.  Kotter and Lorne A. Whitehead in their book, Buy-In: Saving Your Good Idea From Getting Shot Down, Harvard Business Review Press, 2010, write that the elements that work together to achieve buy-in happen when we capture peoples’ attention, and then “with people paying attention, winning over the minds and their hearts.” From my experience and observations, people only do this when they feel safe and cared for by their managers and supervisors.

Finally, while this may seem immensely simplistic, the best leaders at helping people buy-in to a solution show how the solution and it’s related new behaviors and practices will lead to improved results. While this may not be a latest and greatest, hot-off-the-press, best-seller, new idea, it is nevertheless a practical one. When people see improved results, they support and advocate for the solution to continue.

This week, keep building the right environment for ownership, and keep helping people to see improved results. It will make a world of difference for all involved.

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

How do leaders create an understanding of a problem and buy-in for the solution?- part #1

In some companies, preparing for strategic planning involves numerous power point presentations to middle management. Recently, I was with one company, sitting in the audience of middle managers in a darkened room, when the VP came up and started to talk about their upcoming strategic planning sessions. When he finished early and there were no questions, I was asked if I had any comments to make. I came to the front of the room and asked the VP to return to the second slide in his power point presentation. It was about creating an improved value proposition for the customer. I turned to the large group of middle managers and asked the question: “What is the difference between a customer and a partner?” The room erupted into a very active strategic level dialogue with great debate about what the words “customer” and “partner” meant. No one agreed and people did not understand the definition of "value proposition" either. 

Weeks later, it happened again with a different company. This time a VP gave a power point presentation related to the upcoming roll-out of a new performance management system. Again, they ended early and asked me to comment. Again, I went to the front of the room and asked if we could go back in the slides to the one that talked about cascading goals. Then I turned to the room of managers and asked the question: “What is the difference between a goal and an expectation?” The response was similar and intense dialogue with little agreement followed.

Right now, we are getting so busy as leaders, dealing with details and participating in endless meetings, that we have forgotten to be architects of meaning. An architect of meaning focuses on building clarity about the strategic nexus and focuses on explaining why this work is meaningful. At the same time, the leaders needs to be a translator who focuses on building clarity about context outside of the organization. It is the combination of the two, architect and translator, that sets the stage for employees at all levels of the organization to understand the problems and challenges before the organization, be they operational or strategic.

Along this same line of thinking, we as leaders often forget that understanding a problem can be a complicated process. While the most common cause of failure related to dealing with problems, as noted by Ron Heifetz, Ronald, Alexander Grashow, and Marty Linsky in their book, The Practice of Adaptive Leadership: Tools and Tactics for Changing Your Organization and the World, Harvard Business Press, 2009, is treating adaptive challenges as if they were technical problems. Furthermore, we as leader often forget that most problems do not come neatly packaged as either “technical” or “adaptive.” Often, for example, adaptive challenges can have significant technical aspects.

This week, remember to be an architect of meaning and a translator for your organization. This will help all involved understand better what are our problems and our challenges.

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

Understanding What Is Normal

There is nothing finer than helping a struggling group of people understand what is normal. Whether they are bogged down in complicated systems change, or frustrated that the brilliant, recently created strategic plan is not translating into performance improvements during the first 90 days post roll-out, I have observed excellent leaders rise to the challenge and state the obvious, “That’s normal.”

And their people respond, “Really? What a relief. I thought we had done it all wrong.”

The challenge for most leaders, who are trying to improve their organization or transform it, is that they do not know what is normal. They just keep doing what they have always been doing and hoping this time it works. The result is that insanity rules, people burnout, and someone remains convinced that effort alone should simply make it all happen.

While I fully endorse the importance of focus, endurance and commitment, the key to leading people is to know what is, and what is not normal. And then plan and execute the plan accordingly.

However, the solution to understanding what is normal requires a unique step. First, we must learn about the world of leadership and organizational change or transformation. This learning journey will build a common understanding and common language throughout the group of people who are involved. Second, we must utilize this knowledge in planning and executing. Finally, we must hold people accountable to the learning and make sure they utilize it in all that they do. Nevertheless, the first step is to learn together.

If making change happen inside your organization has become a daily struggle, then now is the time to sign up yourself and your key leaders for the 2017 From Vision to Action Leadership Training. Through a challenging, interactive curriculum which blends lectures, selected readings, small and large group discussions, and how to skill-building exercises, participants in this four part leadership training gain critical knowledge and skills which improve their ability to lead people to generate short and long term success.

For more information on this in-depth training and how to register for the 2017 From Vision to Action Leadership Training, please click on the following link: http://www.chartyourpath.com/VTA-Leadership-Training.html 

Understanding what is normal is not always easy, but once learned it can be transformative. Success begins by being better prepared for the normal problems. Now is the time to sign up for the 2017 From Vision to Action Leadership Training so you and your organization can be better prepared for the future.

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

How do leaders know if they have the “right people on the right seats of the bus”? - part #2

Having the wrong people on the wrong seats on the bus can cause many problems. These individuals often look out the metaphorical office window and blame others for the problems within the world and the company, rather than looking into the mirror and asking the important question: “What do I need to change about myself in order to make this better?”

From my observations of working with people for over 30 years in the areas of leadership and organizational change, I have noticed that the right leaders "fit" with the company values. They personally fit with the values because they are similar to their own values. But they also fit strategically with the values. By this I mean, they can role model the values and can teach the values to others. They also know what to do and how to do it when there is a misalignment that occurs with the organization’s core values.

Right now, one major problem I am seeing is in the teaching of the values. It is not the repeating of them, and it is not about knowing them as in where they are on the wall. The critical difference, I have observed, is that the right leaders can create an environment where people want to embrace them. In essence, people feel safe enough to embrace the values, and try them “on for size.” The outcome over time is that they will own and internalize them.

The other thing I have discovered about these unique leaders is that they understand the difference between operational leadership and strategic leadership. They also are competent in both skill sets. As Joel Kurtzman wrote in his book, Common Purpose: How Great Leaders Get Organizations to Achieve The Extraordinary, Jossey-Bass 2010: “Strategic leaders are people within organizations who plot the course... Strategic leaders generally can think far into the future...The best of these people understand where the future is going and how to get there.

“The role of operational leaders is quite different from those of strategic leaders. Operational leaders make certain the trains run on time, the manufacturing processes are adequate, the logistics systems work, the technicians are well trained, and the the trucks are where they are supposed to be.... like strategic leaders, operational leaders are vital to an organization’s success.”

Finally, these exceptional leaders display a level of maturity. Maturity comes from two things, namely respect and humbleness. The right leaders have respect for people, their effort, and for what they are doing. And they have humbleness to recognize that we always have more to learn about respect. 

This week, if you have not done so already, I recommend you read the following: Lencioni, Patrick. The Ideal Team Player: How to Recognize And Cultivate The Three Essential Virtues, Jossey-Bass, 2016. It will help you plan better for 2017 and help you make sure you have the right people on the right seats on the bus.

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