How do we help our people connect with the path forward when the path forward is not clear? - part #2

When we seek to help people connect with the path forward, we need to engage them in the change process. The quickest way to do this is to create a series of planned short-term wins, because they generate credibility for long term efforts. John Kotter in his seminal book, Leading Change (Harvard Business School Press, 1996) writes that “a good short-term win has at least three characteristics.” First, “It’s visible; large numbers of people can see for themselves whether the result is real or just hype.” Second, “It’s unambiguous; there can be little argument over the call.” Third, “It’s clearly related to the change effort.”

Upon reflection, I think we can build on Kotter’s insight by re-reading the following book: Sutton, Robert I and Huggy Rao. Scaling Up Excellence: Getting To More Without Settling For Less (Crown Business, 2014). As they write, when big organizations scale well, they focus on “moving a thousand people forward a foot at a time, rather than moving one person forward by a thousand feet.” They achieve this success by doing the following two actions. First, they “spread a mindset, not just a footprint.” Our challenge in helping people connect with a path forward that is unclear is to figure out the mindset in advance before focusing on generating multiple short term wins. 

Second, Sutton and Rao remind us that “scaling requires addition and subtraction.” The problem of more is also a problem of less. Therefore, we as leaders need to deal with those problem people before they spread toxicity as we move forward to execute a series of planned short term wins.

A major insight from the book, Scaling Up Excellence, comes later in the book when the authors state that in order “to spread excellence, you need to have some excellence to spread.” This has multiple implications on so many levels, but when it comes to having people connect and move forward the goal of a planned short term win is to create pockets of excellence upon which you can build and scale change.

As we plan and create a series of short term wins, we have to do some serious work ourselves, namely we need to embody the change. For me, the first and only step to embodying change involves in-depth studying and learning. This is more than reading one book and calling it done. This involves reading and studying a subject, and then entering into dialogue to gain greater depth of understanding. 

A wonderful example of this concept took place not too long ago when one of my clients realized that he did not fully understand the concept of white fragility. He knew he needed to grasp how this and other social justice issues were playing out on his team and within the workforce. So, he dedicated 5 hours a week listening to podcasts and forums plus reading articles and books on the subject. Next, he visited with people so that he could move from unaware to aware and hopefully over time to a better understanding. As he said to me, “my goal is to learn about the blind spots in my life” when it comes to issues around race and social injustice.

As Herminia Ibarra in her book, Act Like A Leader, Think Like A Leader (Harvard Business Review Press, 2015), writes “Sustainable change in your leadership capacity requires shifts in three areas: finding new ways of doing your work/your job; expanding your network through new relationships; connecting to and engaging with people.”

The path forward may not be clear right now, but we can be clear about the choices we are making to help people move forward. Generating planned short term wins and embodying the desired changes are good first steps in the journey.

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

A Recovery Period Means A Recovery Period

During recent executive coaching sessions, I have noticed that more and more leaders are feeling hopeful about the future. They sense that we will sooner rather later enter into a productive recovery period where more normal business operations can take place. They are eager to get back to normal and to return to a time period where every day is not a mix of emergencies and adaptation. 

As their executive coach, I have to remind them that a recovery period means an actual recovery period. It is not a binary state of feeling like things are crazy one day and then the next day we are fully recovered. Instead, it is a gradual transition from being in a difficult global pandemic into no longer being in a difficult global pandemic. More likely, we will be feeling the impact of COVID-19 for many years even after the majority of the world’s population has been vaccinated.

Therefore, I have advised quite a few leaders to think carefully about the future and to remember that a normal recovery can take between three to five years in length. Thus, while they might like to create a new five year strategic plan in 2021, it probably would be best to create another one year to eighteen month bridge plan because we just don’t know what we don’t know at this time period. We can clarify our strategic intent or direction, but honestly we can not expect everything to be peaches and cream immediately after we hit the point when 75% - 80% of the US population is vaccinated. 

Being nimble, flexible and agile during the next two years is a competitive advantage. This means we move forward cautiously. With disciplined vigilance and by staying attuned to threats and changes within our industry, our society and the lives of those who we serve, we can channel our worries and fears into preparing for multiple contingencies and maintain large margins to assure a safe pathway through a possible, prolonged recovery.

As my late father always said, “Be prepared; the future is unpredictable.” And given what we have lived through in the last year, we know this is true. From now and into the spring, be disciplined and be hopeful. Create realistic plans and execute them in a thoughtful manner. We can not predict the future but we can prepare for it nonetheless.

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

Why Invest In Leadership Training During A Global Pandemic? - Part #4

Years ago, David Dell, research director of The Conference Board's Capabilities Management and Human Resources Strategies area, wrote:

”The challenge to employers is to not only make potential employees aware of the company as a good place to work and bring the best applicants successfully through the recruitment and hiring process, but also to retain them and ensure their understanding of the company's goals and commitment to them." 

For me, this is a critical place where leadership can play a significant part. The recruitment and the retention of employees revolves first and foremost around who people work with and who they report to over time. As the Gaullup organization has pointed out numerous times, people join companies and quit their team, their boss, or both.

Our challenge when we look at the road ahead during a post pandemic time period is to retain our best people, help our struggling people get better, and recruit the best new people. To do that we need people in leadership positions who can create highly effective teams and excellent collaboration between teams. We also need these same leaders to help employees feel fulfilled in the work they are doing, make regular progress on their goals, and know that their job matters. In short, employees want a leader who respectfully manages them as people, not merely workers.

If you wanting this to happen more often within your organization, then now is the time to sign people up to participate in the 2021 From Vision to Action Leadership Training. For more information about the dates, location, price and how to register for this unique learning experience, please click on the following link:

https://chartyourpath.com/VTA-Training-Details.html#Train2021

Better leaders create better teamwork and collaboration. They also create better work places. And that is going to make a major difference during the next 3-5 years.

I look forward to hearing from you.

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

How do we help our people connect with the path forward when the path forward is not clear? - part #1

The big question as we end the first month of 2021 is the following: How do we help our people connect with the path forward when the path forward is not clear? The key word in the question is “connect”. The dictionary defines this word as the ability “to establish a relationship” and “to create an understanding.” I think the combination of the two is critical to answering this question.

As leaders, we want our people to feel connected to our strategy, strategic intent and the strategic direction of the company. We also want them to feel connected to our 2021operational goals, operational priorities and the idea of operational excellence. Finally, we want them to feel connected to their supervisor, their team, their department and the company as a whole. This is a lot of relationships and a lot of understanding when we look at it holistically. What we have to understand as leaders is that clarity, connection and communication create commitment. It is all interconnected. And to make all those connections, we must engage in bridge building activities.

The concept of bridge building first showed up in the book by Herminia Ibarra called Act Like A Leader, Think Like A Leader (Harvard Business Review Press, 2015). Ibarra defines two roles for leaders, namely being a hub or a bridge/bridge builder. She defines a hub leader as one who sets goals for the team, assign roles to their people and assign tasks. They also monitor progress toward goals, manage team member performance and conduct performance evaluations. Finally, they hold meetings to coordinate work and to create a good climate inside the team.

A bridge leader aligns team goals with organizational priorities, funnels critical information and resources into the team to ensure progress toward goals, and gets the support of key allies outside the team. They also enhance the external visibility and reputation of the team, and give recognition for good performances and place team members in great next assignments

For us to act like leaders, we will have to devote much more of our time to building bridges between diverse people and groups. The first step to doing this is to not exhibit or tolerate silo based team behaviors or hunkering down, i.e. only thinking of me behaviors. As we do this, we as leaders need to not get caught in a narcissistic pattern of relationship formation, namely to prefer interacting only with people who are similar to ourselves and who think like us. 

One way to successfully achieve the above is to go to the places where the mission is alive and well, and go to the places where it is not. In both locations, we must listen carefully to both groups of people and learn what motivates and de-motivates people. I suspect we will discover in this bridge building action that the former feels like they are making progress, and the latter feels like no one cares about what they are doing. Thus, their definition of success is maintaining a past definition and model of success.

Second, we need to envision new possibilities. Currently, we are in an on-going adaptive period which could last another 12 - 18 months. During such periods, these adaptive challenges requires new perspectives, expertise and solutions. Most of the time defining the problem may require learning and it will call into question fundamental assumptions and beliefs. To build a bridge during an adaptive period, we have to recognize that it will only happen when new ways of thinking are created which include a change in people’s priorities, beliefs, habits and loyalties.

As we do this level of work, let us remember one small, but very important point shared by Ron Heifetz, Alexander Grashow, and Marty Linsky in their excellent book, The Practice of Adaptive Leadership: Tools and Tactics for Changing Your Organization and the World (Harvard Business Press, 2009). As they write,“... the common factor for generating adaptive failure is resistance to loss…. A key to leadership, then, is the diagnostic capacity to find out the kinds of losses at stake in a changing situation from life and loved ones to jobs, wealth, status, relevance, community, loyalty, identity and competence.” We need to remember that every new beginning in an adaptive period starts with an ending.

One way to build bridges is to get together with people via a digital platform or a socially distanced conference room set up and discuss the following question: “If we had the kind of culture we aspired to, in pursuit of the strategy we have chosen, what kind of new behaviors would be common? And what ingrained behaviors would be gone?” This excellent question comes from the following article: Katzenbach, Jon R. and, Ilona Steffen and Caroline Kronley,“Cultural Change That Sticks,” Harvard Business Review, July-August 2012. The question starts with cultural change and yields possibilities in changing systems, structure, and desired new, better or different outcomes in customer service and/or product creation and delivery.

This week, start building and maintaining bridges within your organization. It will help people connect with the path forward.

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

Spring 2021 Roundtable

With more cold weather coming to the midwest this week, it is time for all of us to turn our attention to April 7 - 8 for the Spring 2021 From Vision to Action Executive Roundtable.

Given the vaccine will not have been widely distributed by these dates and we will not have reach the required herd immunity, this year’s Spring Roundtable will be held on the Zoom platform.

Here is the agenda for your review:

Wednesday, April 7, 2021

8:45 am - Enter Zoom and get settled in

9:00 am - 10:15 am - How do we create a more resilient organization during this transition from a global pandemic to a post pandemic world?

10:15 am - 10:30 am - Break

10:30 am - 12:00 pm - How do we generate successful teamwork during this transition?

12:00 pm - 1:00 pm - Lunch and Networking 

1:00 pm - 2:15 pm - How do we deal with resistance to change during this transition?

2:15 pm - 2:30 pm - Break

2:30 pm - 4:00 pm - How do leaders communicate effectively during this transition?

4:00 pm - Adjourn

Thursday, April 8, 2021

8:45 am - Enter Zoom and get settled in

9:00 am - 10:15 am - The Road Is Not The Journey

10:15 am - 10:30 am - Break 

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

12:00 pm - Adjourn

The price for the full Roundtable is $ 295.00.

The price for the one day Roundtable attendance is $ 200.00.

Here is the link to the registration form:

https://chartyourpath.com/VTA-RT-Details.html

I hope you will reserve April 7 - 8 on your calendar, and e-mail me today about whether or not you and your team are coming. 

Then, when the first crocus and daffodils are just starting to bloom, all we will need to do is tune into Zoom and experience together the Spring 2021 From Vision to Action Executive Roundtable.

In the meantime, stay strong and stay healthy. We are going to make it through this global pandemic.

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

Better Delegation Will Create Better Results

Right now, there is light at the end of this global pandemic tunnel. More and more people are getting vaccinated. Leadership teams are starting to think this could be the beginning of the end. They are hopeful for the first time in quite a while. Still, they are being conservative in the amount of risk they want to take on. They want to be certain that the worst days are behind us.

During recent executive coaching sessions, many leaders are asking me what they should be focused on during the next three months. And my answer has been direct and definitive: better delegation.

There is only so much a leader, manager or supervisor can do each day. With limited time and multiple problems before them, the common choice is to either work all day and all night, or to delegate certain issues and problems to others to solve. The difficulty for all involved is that most people in leadership and management positions are not very good at delegation. They did not have a class or a coach to help them with this subject.

When I teach people to delegate, I remind them that the dictionary definition of delegation is “the transferring of authority and responsibility from one person to another in order to carry out a specific activity.” The challenge is the person receiving the “authority and responsibility” may not have the capacity to do what is expected of them. Therefore, I suggest the person delegating “a specific activity” start by asking the following important questions.

First, do you understand the problem? Remember: awareness is not understanding.

Second, do you know what I want done? If the answer is not concise and specific, e.g. 35 words or less, then there will be problems during execution.

Third, do you have the authority to do it successfully? Commitment without understanding is a problem. Responsibility without choice is also a problem.

Fourth, do you know how to do it? Having the right knowledge and skills will make a difference.

Fifth, do you know how to measure progress and/or success? Being able to gauge progress builds confidence and better outcomes.

Sixth, do you know what difference it will make when the specific, delegated activity is done correctly? Knowing how our work will impact others makes us feel needed and reminds us that our work matters.

The road ahead will continue to be difficult. Yet, through improved delegation, we can create better results for all involved. This is the week to start asking the above questions if we truly want to create a better future for all of us.

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

Why Invest In Leadership Training During A Global Pandemic? - Part #3

Years ago, Kevin Wilde, former Chief Learning Officer for General Mills, wrote, “Ultimately, leadership development has to integrate the depth of inner self-awareness with the breath and complexity of external marketplace and cultural dynamics. Enduring leadership development brings together both of these inner and outer realities.”

As one who has been teaching leadership for nearly 35 years, the inner reality of leadership begins with self-awareness about the choices we need to make on a daily basis. It also begins with the capacity to think strategically and execute well operationally. The union of these two inner and outer realities takes time and in-depth learning. It does not happen in a single day workshop.

I am often asked why the From Vision to Action Leadership Training is four parts, each 2.5 days long, and spread out over four quarters. And I explain that the kind of in-depth learning people are doing in this class needs to be followed by a period of reflection, practice and continued reading. I am not just providing vast quantities of material. Instead, I am creating a learning journey which gives people the awareness and understanding of how to lead, how to think strategically, and how to translate that strategy into effective outcomes while understanding what is normal in the midst of it’s execution.

If you or some of your key people are in need of an in-depth, interactive and productively challenging learning journey which will help you become a better leader, then I encourage you to sign up for the 2021 From Vision to Action Leadership Training. 

For more information about the dates, location, price and how to register for this 2021 training, please click on the following link:

https://chartyourpath.com/VTA-Training-Details.html#Train2021

The current external marketplace may be volatile, but with the right people in leadership positions within your organization, you will have the capacity to make the right choices no matter what happens.

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