A New Year note from Mike, 2009

It's no secret that organizations are being uniquely challenged by our current economic times.

Our personal research indicates that reactions to this financial storm are somewhat polarized.  Predictably, as leaders feel more out of control many are pulling in the reins, personally making more decisions and taking on deeper levels of responsibility.  The problem with this natural and understandable reaction is that in the process of trying to get more control over their circumstances, they are taking away decision-making authority and involvement from the very people they need more engaged at this point and narrowing the stream of input gathered to make key decisions. 

With everyone working so close to the bone right now, the decisions, actions and alignment of leadership teams are likely more critical than ever.

Those that realize this are reacting quite the opposite.  They see the opportunity these times create to drive healthy change, engagement and accountability that will serve them now and in the future.  They see this as a time when their leadership teams can't afford to be less than 100% engaged and aligned.  They see it as a time when decision making and buy-in to strategies is more important than ever.  A time when healthy conflict* has to be the expectation.  They need to know that they have all critical information, questions and concerns on the table when they are making decisions.  They need their leaders to walk out of those meetings rock solid that they have heard ALL of the best thinking available and that everyone is 100% behind the decisions.  Given these times they know they can't settle for anything less.  The cost of not discussing "what really matters" at this time is just too high.  

You've got a good leadership team.  What is the cost of your team functioning "just fine" in these times?  Sure, we all know some relationships are better than others.  Some talk before the meeting and then get together and debrief after the meeting to discuss what's really going on.  But that's to be expected.  That's just the nature of teams, right?

An issue that can make it challenging for any leader to make the necessary compelling business case to invest in the development of their leadership team now is that so many teams operate just fine. So what's wrong with just fine?  Just fine can mean that there isn't open conflict, everybody does their job and they are good at what they do.  But on leadership teams that are doing "just fine" leaders might not be dealing with each other directly when there is a problem, or they aren't taking the risk to share information that affects performance, or they aren't asking for help when they are in trouble, or they aren't involving people in decisions that affect them**.  If people have not been part of a leadership team that was really aligned, engaged and not holding anything back, they might not even be aware that their expectations are too low.  

Over the years a key learning that has significantly impacted our perspective on performance is that a team can't move faster than the leader.  As a result some of the most important work we do initially is to convince leaders to keep the door cracked open to a higher possibility and the significant impact it can have on their company's success.  That is not an easy task, but once a leader is there, they have started down the path that leads to tapping into the real power and potential of the team.

Okay, if you are still reading then this is for you.  Here comes the sales pitch.  A few months ago I had a conversation with my Dad.  He saw the economic problems and believed that Michigan might even be at the vortex of things, likely the first to be impacted and the last to pull out of it.  He asked me if I should be considering moving my family to an area where it might be a little easier to be successful doing what I do.

The question stayed with me.  Here is my current thinking.  I believe that we are at a crossroads.  Me.  Crux Move.  Michigan.  Our country.  Corporations.  Even the way humans do work and why they do it.  Big change, transformational change is always driven by something powerful.  And that something powerful is either reaching for something really important OR running from something really scary (currently there seems to be plenty of both).  There is a lot going on right now and I don't want to imply I understand it all but I do know that these times create an opportunity for leaders.  Corporations, businesses, organizations, all can do better.   I think that just like leaders working to be open to a higher possibility when it comes to the performance of the teams they lead, organizations need to spread out the gutters on the bowling alley of life and add a few more metrics to their formula for success.  The transformation has already started, evidenced by the relatively new focus on the expansion of corporate values adding into the conversation words like sustainability, social responsibility and green, to mention only a few.

Leadership is about seeing the opportunities to make for a better world and creating great places for good people to contribute to that better future.  So, the point here is that maybe we are all in this vortex.  We are all at this crossroads.  And it's a great thing.  Regarding the transformations that are impacting our workplaces, our economy and our world, maybe we are all in the best seat in the house. 

We see many of the same challenges you are facing.  We are excited about the possibilities this year brings.  When the tide has turned and we look back at the good things that happened for your company in 2009 we are hoping that our relationship with you is one of them.

Best regards,

Michael

*Healthy conflict or healthy debate is necessary in truly having the complete conversation required to consider all vital information, pros and cons, and allows all stakeholders to share their fears and concerns to be considered or addressed so that when a decision is made, everyone can fully commit without hesitation, bolstered by the knowledge that nothing has been held back and all the critical information available at this point has been considered.  The ability for leadership teams to have healthy conflict requires a high level of trust in the skill of the team to manage the conflict and protect the relationships.  And it happens rarer than you think.

** Those are just 4 of the 39 measures on Crux Move's Team Self Assessment.  If you are interested in seeing the entire assessment, or better yet having your leadership team do a self assessment, please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or 269-342-2411.

 

 
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