On Leadership

When is a Business Like a Car Accident?

In a down economy a business is like a car accident because everyone slows down to watch.

 

During tough economic times keeping employees focused and engaged is critical to ensuring your company stays in the game.  Our research on top performing companies points to four leadership actions critical for success in the current environment.  

 

Be optimistic but realistic.  It’s important to be positive about the future without appearing naïve.  The key is to set realistic expectations and find the right balance between resources, time, and desired outcomes.  People have confidence they can succeed, even in a difficult economic period, when they feel that objectives are realistic and adequately resourced.

 

Hold everyone accountable for results.  Tough times demand that everyone bring their “A” game and pull their own weight.  Therefore, it is important that everyone understands what is expected of them and when.  Then monitor progress, celebrate successes, and recalibrate or coach people to get back on track when necessary.  It is also important to create an environment where people can raise problems and admit mistakes, rather than “covering up” or “pointing fingers,” which is more likely during challenging times.

 

Involve people in decisions.  When times are tough you want everyone’s best thinking and full commitment.  Now is not the time to close people out of the decision-making process in order to protect them or to ‘speed things up.  Involving people in decisions increases decision quality and acceptance, and enhances engagement.

 

Ensure plans and actions are coordinated across departments and levels.  Don’t let uncertainty or ambiguity push you into a day-to-day mindset, as this is not the time to “wing it.”  However, even the best plan will fail if everyone is not pulling in the same direction.  During difficult times, efficiency is critical and coordination is king.

 

Even in a weak economy there are winners and losers.  By consistently applying the four key actions you increase the likelihood that you and your team will end up in the winner’s circle.

 

We’re interested in your opinion.  What are you doing to keep your employees focused and engaged?

Four Ways Top-Performing Companies Stay Ahead of the Pack…Even in Tough Times

These are challenging times that test the competence and endurance of even the best companies.   Our research on how top-performing companies prepare for and manage change and what they do to ensure they are able to execute plans and strategies effectively reveals some interesting differences between companies that are able to weather an economic down turn and least successful companies. Top-performing companies are characterized by cultures that are flexible, adaptive, participative, and innovative—and they operationalize these cultural attributes through leader behavior.

 

Leaders in top-performing companies are capable in four areas—managing paradoxes, leading change, participative leadership, and leading by example.  If you’re a CEO, make sure all your leaders meet the following criteria:

 

• Get comfortable with managing paradoxes. Leaders in top-performing companies are better at finding the right balance between what appears to be mutually exclusive outcomes such as achieving short- and long-term goals and establishing control and providing autonomy.

 

• Use the five keys to managing change. OnPoint’s research identifies five specific behaviors that enhance the ability to lead and manage change effectively.   Leaders need to be forthright about the change and its impact, model behaviors that support the change, set realistic objectives, ensure that they have adequate resources, and take steps to maintain enthusiasm among employees.

 

• Involve team members in the decisions that affect them. Participative leadership matters. In 2006 the NBA introduced a new basketball and never asked the players for input during development. As a result, the players refused to use a new ball they felt was difficult to handle. Involving the players early on would have increased the quality of the ball and the acceptance of the “new ball” decision.

 

• Lead by example. Leaders in top-performing companies understand that people will not trust or follow them if they do not live by the same values and support the same priorities they require of others.  

The bottom line?  Staying on top is always a rigorous challenge—and it is even more difficult in tough economic times. But the alternative may result in a significantly downsized organization or a bankruptcy filing.  It’s easy to win when conditions are favorable.  The best companies have leaders who distinguish themselves by winning even under difficult conditions.

 

What’s Your Opinion?

 

What is your company doing during this tough economic period to ensure they come out on top?

Collaborating From a Distance: Success Factors For Top Performing Virtual Teams

"Globally linked virtual teams will transform every government and company in the world.  Any of our peers who don’t do it won’t survive."

-John Chambers, CEO, Cisco

 

Rising travel costs, coupled with the global dispersion of talent, are just some of the reasons that organizations have migrated toward virtual teamwork.  While numerous organizations have made significant investments in virtual teams and the technology to support them, a surprising number of virtual teams are not reaching their full potential.

 

A new study conducted by OnPoint Consulting surveyed 48 virtual teams across industries and found that there are specific practices associated with successful virtual teams.  We were surprised to find that many of the virtual teams in our study struggled with fundamental issues such as not having clear roles and responsibilities or not having a shared process for decision making.

  

What makes top performing virtual teams successful?  Our research identified nine practices that are the key ingredients for optimal virtual team performance: 

 

Team members demonstrate a high level of initiative.   Members of high performing teams are more proactive and engaged, and they demonstrate higher levels of initiative.  Thus, it is important to ensure that team members have clear roles and celebrate team success.  One way to do this is by creating a team charter to enhance commitment and accountability.

 

Team members are willing to assume leadership responsibility.   Even though the majority of teams had dedicated team leaders, team members on high performing teams proactively took on leadership responsibilities as required.  In contrast, members of less effective teams were less likely to do this.

 

Teams have a shared process for decision making and problem solving.   Low performing virtual teams did not establish processes to facilitate problem solving and decision making.   Effective team leaders ensure that communication processes are established early on and revisited over time.

 

Team members are clear about how their work contributes to the success of the organization.    High performing virtual teams have an understanding of how their work aligns with the strategy of their organization.  This is extremely important in a virtual environment where team members may feel isolated and it is common for team members to become disengaged.

 

Provide timely feedback to one another.   Communication challenges are more pronounced in virtual teams, especially when there is a lack of face-to-face contact and time zone differences.   However, high performing virtual teams find ways overcome these challenges.

 

Trust one another to get things done.  Trust is a top factor for virtual team success but task-based trust (a belief that team members will do their job) is especially difficult to develop when planned or spontaneous interactions among team members are infrequent and difficult to arrange.   Trust builds when team members follow through on commitments and hold one another accountable for results.

 

Team members are willing to put in extra effort to get things done.   Team members of top performing virtual teams are willing to go above and beyond what is required to accomplish team goals.  Therefore, it is important for team leaders to inspire team members and regularly monitor members’ motivation.

 

Team members work together effectively.  Successful virtual teams have determined how to effectively collaborate.  If organizations invest time and resources in virtual teams, then it is important to capitalize on this and ensure that team members understand how to work together to achieve their goals.  Successful teams develop operating guidelines to help structure team communication and coordination.

 

Team members help one another achieve team goals.   High performing virtual teams involve team members rather than independently executing tasks and objectives.   They place greater importance on leveraging others to get work done whereas less effective teams do not involve one another as frequently.

 

If organizations want to maximize their return on investment, they should ensure that these core practices are in place and continually assess the performance of their virtual teams against these factors over time. 

  

^{_{I’m interested in your opinion:  What challenges have you encountered as a leader or member of a virtual team?}}

Build a Culture of Accountability: Five Ways to Enhance the Level of Accountability in Your Organizations

"By making your employees more accountable, you make your organization more productive."

-Jack Welch

 

Anyone in a leadership or management position knows that holding people accountable for results is the foundation of an organization’s performance; it’s management 101.  Yet it appears there is a gap between knowing and doing.  

In our survey of over 400 senior and mid-level leaders, 40% report that employees in their organizations are not being held accountable for results. 

 

Why do some organizations succeed at instilling accountability as a core element of their culture and others fall short?  What can a leader do to create a culture of accountability?  Our research on top performing companies identified five actions that have the greatest impact on an organization’s ability to build a culture of accountability and achieve optimal results:  

 

1. Translate strategy into specific objectives.  Beyond developing a shared picture of the company’s strategic direction it is necessary to clarify key priorities related to execution and translate these into specific work-unit goals.  This increases the likelihood that implementation plans will be targeted toward outcomes that have the greatest impact.  In addition, clear department goals facilitate goal-setting at the individual level, which greatly enhances accountability.

 

2. Coordinate actions across levels and work units and follow up on progress.  Coordinating and monitoring activity is a critical aspect of execution and it is an essential ingredient for building a culture of accountability.  It’s how companies keep people focused on high-priority goals and actions.  The most effective leaders are ruthless in monitoring goals and reinforcing appropriate actions and behaviors. 

3. Provide accurate and timely information to employees.  This involves clear communication at the organizational level about strategic priorities, as well as ongoing dialogue between managers and their direct reports.  Goal setting and ongoing coaching are key elements of most organizations’ performance management systems, yet too often, performance management is viewed as an administrative, HR-driven activity, rather than a tool to help achieve results.  When managers view performance management as a tool to drive business results they are more successful in creating a culture of accountability.

4. Ensure that your actions are consistent with company objectives, values, and priorities.  You can’t expect people to trust you or follow you if are not willing to live by the same values and consistently support the same priorities that you require of others.  If you expect people to be accountable for results, you must model this behavior and take swift action when people fail to deliver expected results.   

 

5. Clarify expectations and head off potential problems.  Effective managers use three simple techniques to drive accountability:

§         Clarify exactly what needs to be done

§         Establish a specific date for when the task needs to be completed

§         Agree on checkpoints to review progress

 

These actions are based on three fundamental premises:

§         Never assume people know what’s expected of them.  Even tenured, experienced employees will not know what your expectations are for performance unless you clearly articulate them.

§         Don’t just talk about ideas.  Avoid the pitfall of talking about an idea, but not agreeing to actions and accountability (and people assuming someone else is going to do something)

§         Don’t ignore when someone has dropped the ball.  It is critical to provide timely feedback and help people understand what caused them to miss a commitment and, even more importantly, identify what they will do differently next time.

While it is not easy to create a culture of accountability, it is critical for the health of your team and the success of your business.  Few factors negatively impact morale and productivity more than the perception that others are not held accountable for their behaviors or results. 

 

Share your experience:

 

• What is your greatest challenge as you work to build a culture of accountability?
• What other tips do you have?

The “Below Standard” Boost: Seven Ways to Head Off Employee Performance Issues—Before They Poison Your Culture.

All leaders are familiar with employees who exhibit “below standard” performance. You’re not ready to fire them—not yet, anyway—but if you don’t do something, their performance issues are sure to escalate until they become full-blown problem employees. This is a problem faced by many leaders.  They are hesitant to deal with performance issues, so they send indirect messages and subtle signals, or simply avoid the situation hoping it will go away. 

 

So why don’t some managers deal with performance issues early on?  It appears that they don’t always think of performance management as a tool to manage the business and aren’t addressing performance issues within that context.  This is an extremely pervasive problem: our recent survey involving 115 HR professionals and 441 line managers found that more than half of the respondents have a negative view of their companies’ performance management systems.

 

So what can you do to keep below standard performance from snowballing out of control?  The first step is to take a hard look at the performance management system and determine whether it’s really serving you.  Here are some more specific tips for giving your “below standards” a performance boost:

 

Paint a clear picture of what “good” performance looks like.   In order to be able to pinpoint poor performance, you need to get very clear about what high performance looks like, and translate that into specific behaviors and outcomes. Until you can articulate specific behaviors and outcomes, it is very difficult to communicate when standards are—or are not—being met.

 

Clearly communicate your expectations.  You must make sure people know what’s expected of them. Don’t assume they know.  When setting goals, its helpful to clearly state, ‘Here’s what meeting expectations looks like are and here’s what exceeding expectations would look like.’  

 

Don’t let expertise or revenue production be a get-out-of-trouble-free card for the employee. (Or a get-out-of-confrontation-free card for you!)  One of the biggest challenges for leaders is to take corrective action with an employee who is a top producer but whose behavior is not consistent with company values.  If the espoused values are to have any real meaning then ‘how’ something gets done must be considered just as important as ‘what’ gets done.

 

Don’t delay. Raise performance concerns while they are fresh. Confrontation can be awkward and difficult, but it must be done—it’s the only way to prevent performance issues from becoming a problem employee.  When goals and expectations for behavior have been clearly described and agreed to, these conversations can be easier.  It doesn’t have to get ugly if you focus the discussion on the agreed upon behaviors and performance targets.

 

Provide ongoing coaching and feedback, both scheduled and “on the spot.” Behavior change is much more successful when efforts are regularly reinforced. That means giving individual feedback (both positive and constructive) to employees around their progress on goals not just once a year at the annual performance review, but periodically and consistently. Leaders should stay on top of this strategy, even if the performance management system does not require it—which, as our survey found, is often the case.  

 

Celebrate small victories. Another key in turning around performance problems is to be sure to recognize progress toward improvement.  While it is clearly important to recognize high performers, it is just as important to recognize all positive behavior, especially when it’s a step in the right direction for an employee who has a performance issue.

 

Goal setting and coaching don’t just magically happen. Make sure managers are competent in these skills. Without these fundamental skills, no performance management system can turn performance problems around.  The majority of companies in our study provide managers with training to conduct effective performance evaluations, yet fewer organizations provide the training related to setting goals and coaching and feedback.

 

When managers understand that performance management is about achieving business results and not simply an administrative task mandated by HR, they start providing coaching and feedback on a regular basis, and they stop rubberstamping year-end reviews.  Think of it as preventive medicine that keeps your organization strong and healthy.

 

Avoiding the Imminent Decline in Virtual Team Performance

The results from our recent study on geographically dispersed teams (“virtual teams”) produced some very surprising findings:   Many teams face an imminent decline in performance after one year.   Specifically, we found that virtual teams working together for 6 to 12 months scored significantly higher in several performance areas than teams that worked together for 1 to 3 years. 

 

Interestingly, 77% of respondents said they expect their teams to work together for more than one year, which suggests that, for these organizations, it is even more important to periodically examine the level of team performance and take action to maximize the productivity of their virtual teams. 

 

If virtual teams are increasingly used in organizations and truly have an impact on bottom line performance (66% of respondents said these teams were important or very important to business success), then it is difficult to understand why more organizations do not fully invest time and resources to monitor the progress of these teams and better understand their unique barriers.  

 

Perhaps this can be attributed to the fact that it is more difficult to assess the progress and performance of these teams.   Or, maybe it is because organizations treat these teams as if they were conventional teams rather than approaching them with a unique perspective.  Either way, there is clearly a strong business case to focus on improving virtual team performance.

Avoiding the Commitment Dip: Four Ways to Keep Employees Committed to Change

Change initiatives often start off well, but in the first month after the big kickoff, the momentum can begin to wane, sapping the initiative of its power. 

Early on, change managers are traveling from office to office promoting the initiative and making sure everyone is on board. When those managers return to their day-to-day jobs, employees frequently lose focus and enthusiasm. We call that point the ‘commitment dip.’ It’s where employees’ support for, clarity about, and commitment to change falls off, sometimes dramatically. 

In reversing a commitment dip, time is of the essence. In fact, our research found that if an organization does not take corrective action in the first one to three months, there is little likelihood that the initiative will achieve its objectives.

It is possible to avoid the commitment dip. The findings from our proprietary study shows that there are four key steps that leaders can take to keep employees highly committed and focused:

Be forthright about the change and its impact. Sixty-four percent of the 655 respondents surveyed said that open and honest communication from leaders makes change easier, even when they don’t have all the answers. Employees want leaders to be accessible and to engage in what we call “change talk.” 

Model behaviors that support the change. If employees perceive that there are two sets of rules and behaviors—one for them and one for senior leaders—the change initiative will lose credibility. It is not enough to just say the right thing or even enthusiastically communicate the benefits and the business case for the change. Employees want to see those words backed up with behavior.

Be realistic about milestones and resources. Unattainable goals will demoralize employees during those first few critical months, while reaching realistic goals makes team members more positive about the initiative. Keep in mind that employees have regular jobs aside from the work they’ll do to make the change a success, and offer them the resources they need to do both jobs well. Eighty-two percent of the people at top-performing organizations we surveyed said that the availability of adequate resources is a key element in successfully achieving change objectives. 

Maintain enthusiasm among your employees for the duration of the change. You have to keep the change in front of your employees at all times—not only during that first month. It’s another reason why you can’t put your plan on automatic pilot and why leaders need to model behaviors that support the change for the duration of the initiative, not just at the kickoff. 

Closing the Gap Between Strategy and Execution

Start an Execution Revolution: Ten Ways You Can Help Your Employees “Get It Done” Every Day

Goals and mission statements don’t mean a thing if people can’t back up the words with action. Here are ten keys to starting an “execution revolution” at your company.

Companies frequently develop vision and mission statements about being number one in their industry, the great service they provide to customers, and their rewarding work environment. Yet more often than not, these statements are so far from reality that they become joke fodder for customers and employees alike. It doesn’t have to be this way. Your company really can keep the promises you make—but first you must create a culture of execution.

Creating a culture of execution begins with the knowledge that developing plans and strategic initiatives is just the starting point. It also requires adopting the mindset that a highly skilled and engaged work force—while important—will not ensure effective execution.

Many leaders have a blind spot in this area. Either they believe that their job is setting the direction, and execution is the responsibility of lower-level managers, or they assume that if they clearly communicate an exciting vision of the future to an engaged work force, everything else will fall into place.

A survey conducted by OnPoint Consulting shows how widespread the problem of ineffective execution is. Results show that almost half of those surveyed believe there is a gap between their organization’s ability to develop a vision and strategy and its ability to execute that strategy, and even more—64 percent to be exact—lack confidence that the gap can be closed.

But companies can make a conscious effort to close the execution gap. You simply have to take some tried and true steps to creating a “get it done” culture. For example:

Recognize that execution starts with a plan. A solid plan can immensely improve the efficiency with which a project is carried out. It facilitates the organization and coordination of related work activities, prevents operational delays and bottlenecks in work processes, helps people avoid duplication of effort, and helps employees set priorities and meet deadlines. It also helps you prepare for potential problems before they happen so that one snag in the system doesn’t throw everyone completely off course. Remember that the best and most useful plans are flexible starting points that can be easily changed to address new needs or challenges as you encounter them.

Ensure plans are aligned and coordinated across the organization.  A common snafu at many organizations is that the head of one department will implement a new initiative without considering how it will affect the overall company or specific departments. When a New York-based mutual insurance and financial services company realized it wasn’t going to meet certain financial goals, division heads focused on cutting expenses in their individual departments. Unfortunately, they did not develop operational plans that were compatible across the organization or that helped coordinate the day-to-day activities required to achieve overall business objectives. In fact, these individual cuts made it difficult to maintain support and service to internal customers.

When the CEO became aware of the problem, he worked with his executive team to clarify cross-organizational initiatives that were priorities for the entire company. Then each divisional leader identified the specific cost reduction targets for his or her division that would support the achievement of the corporate objectives and initiatives while not inhibiting the ability of other departments to achieve their goals.

Clarify, clarify, clarify. It’s often difficult to get things done because people don’t understand their role, responsibilities, or what exactly is expected of them. One reason employees aren’t always clear on what they should be doing and when is because their manager assumed that they would understand what needs to be done. Another common problem is that managers fear they might insult an employee’s intelligence by stating what seems obvious to them. Finally, some leaders may simply believe they are too busy to spell things out, not realizing the possible consequences of failing to do so. Don’t underestimate the importance of taking time to make certain that everyone is on the same page and understands what needs to be done. Clearly communicating roles and responsibilities and checking for understanding is never a wasted effort.

Establish clear expectations. Goals help everyone focus on important activities and responsibilities. They encourage people to find more efficient ways to do the work. And they facilitate constructive performance feedback by ensuring that managers and direct reports or team members have a shared picture of expected outcomes. Setting specific performance goals or task objectives is also an important form of clarifying. Performance improves because specific objectives guide effort toward the most productive activities, and challenging objectives tend to energize a higher level of effort. Goals should be set even for those things that can’t be easily measured. It’s much easier to measure an improvement in sales than it is to measure an improvement in service quality or customer satisfaction. It’s important to remember that although some goals may be difficult to quantify, all goals can be verified. For example, you’ll know if you are meeting your service quality goals by looking at improvements in responsiveness, handling of problems, on-time performance, and availability of products. The only way to improve the way you’re doing things is to set clear, measurable goals and constantly monitor your success in those areas.

Don’t micromanage your entrepreneurial-minded employees. But do monitor them. Your entrepreneurial-minded employees—those who take individual initiative and do an effective job without much direction from you—are the gems that make your company special. But just because you feel like you can let them loose with a project or client doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t follow up with them periodically. In fact, when you empower employees in this way, monitoring becomes even more important. As your employees take on new roles and responsibilities, they are using new skills, working in new arenas, and making and implementing decisions that can have a powerful effect on your organization’s success. You may be concerned they’ll think you’re micromanaging them if you’re keeping an eye on things. Don’t be. When done right, monitoring does not have to feel like micromanaging. Use it as an opportunity to recognize effective behavior, involve your employees in developing meaningful measures of performance, and get their feedback in determining the timing of periodic follow-up meetings. Then, your efforts will be valued by everyone involved.

Encourage employees to openly share bad news. Getting information from employees can be easier said than done. If there is a problem, mistake, or delay, they may be hesitant to inform you because they fear your reaction or think it will make them look incompetent. Even an employee who is not responsible for a problem may be reluctant to report it if he or she is concerned about being on the receiving end of an angry outburst. It’s essential to be careful about how you react to information concerning problems. (Said another way, don’t shoot the messenger!) Strive to always be constructive and non-punitive. When an employee presents you with bad news, express appreciation for the accurate information, no matter how negative it may be. Respond quickly to the problem with specific actions to deal with it. Help your employees learn from mistakes collectively rather than singling anyone out.

Balance careful analysis of a problem and decisive action to solve it. Effective leaders move quickly to deal with a threat or problem. Nevertheless, they know they must make an accurate diagnosis of the problem and identify relevant remedies before taking action. Otherwise, they may end up implementing ineffective solutions or solving the wrong problem—both of which can make things worse instead of better. Leaders should always use a systematic, logical analysis to identify the cause of a problem before taking action. Great leaders know when additional information or analysis will only delay action without adding value. To facilitate a rapid, effective response, top performers anticipate potential problems and disruptions and develop contingency plans in advance.

Make decisions as close to the action as possible. The key here is ensuring that decisions are being made where the best information is in order to increase speed and quality of responsiveness. It’s not uncommon for organizations to swing back and forth from centralizing work and processes to decentralizing as they try to deal with a strategic issue or competitive threat. Organizational redesign is not necessarily the best solution to a competitive or strategic problem. Leaders frequently find that the change just presents a different set of problems and issues. The key is to determine what processes and work would benefit from centralization or decentralization. In addition, if you want to improve the quality of your decisions and gain support for them, involve the people who are closest to the situation as well as those who will be affected by the decision. Involvement at the early stage of the decision-making process ensures critical information surfaces in a timely manner and enhances people’s ownership of the ultimate outcome.

Facilitate informal and spontaneous interaction among employees.  Your employees’ informal relationships are key in getting things done. The ability to connect with a colleague “in the moment” when you have a problem or new information is essential for effective execution. In today’s fast-paced global businesses, it can be difficult to make these connections. When people are in the same location, it’s easier to arrange the work space so that employees can easily interact with one another on work and non-work topics. Employees in these organizations can meet up in a breakroom or kitchen area, but more and more frequently organizations have employees who are working all over the place, whether they’re out in the field or working from home. These global organizations use technology—virtual workspaces, video conferencing, instant messaging, electronic social networks—to provide proximity and access to a dispersed group of people.

Turn your performance management system into a business tool. This system is one of the most important tools leaders have to ensure effective execution. It ensures goals are aligned across levels and work units, helps people know what they need to do and how they need to do it, and allows leaders to monitor progress toward goals. When used effectively, it provides early warning when things are off course and allows time to get back on track. If, however, you view performance management only as an end-of-the-year review along with a form to fill out for Human Resources, then it isn’t going to help you get things done any more efficiently.

When you put these elements in place at your organization, you’ll see a general improvement in individual, team, and overall organizational ability to execute plans and initiatives. Your employees will start getting things done more easily and consistently, and these regular wins will encourage them and inspire them to redouble their efforts. It becomes a self-perpetuating cycle. They’ll get focused on being more efficient, retaining customers, responding and acting on customer feedback, and monitoring the quality of their work. One day you’ll look around and realize your mission statement actually rings true—and that’s one of the best feelings you’ll ever have as a leader.