Val Grubb & Associates - The Office Operations Problem-Solvers

The Seven Core Competencies of Successful Leadership

Warren G. Bennis was an American scholar, advisor to four Presidents and professor at MIT where he chaired the Organizational Studies department. He’s widely regarded as the pioneer of the contemporary leadership studies and he had this to say about Leadership:

“The most dangerous leadership myth is that leaders are born – that there is a genetic factor to leadership. This myth asserts that people simply either have certain charismatic qualities or not. That’s nonsense; in fact, the opposite is true. Leaders are made rather than born.”

Increasing your leadership abilities starts with defining what it takes to be a leader. What core competency traits are present in the greatest of leaders? Then, it’s time to determine how you stack up and what you can do to improve (don’t worry, we’ll help you along the way!).

Through our experience and research, we have gleaned the following 7 core competencies of successful leadership:

1. Visionary

Create a clear picture of the Company’s future and what needs to be pursued/accomplished. Translate your vision into a realistic competitive advantage. Seek input on your vision to gain broad support throughout the organization

2. Inspirational

Communicate your vision, mission and direction in an exciting, compelling way. Promote open, honest communication in all directions. Identify and overcome barriers to open communication and trust.

3. Strategic

Balance short- and long-term opportunities and threats by assessing situations, risks, costs and benefits. Think imaginatively, act intuitively and grasp new ideas quickly. Understand the strengths and weaknesses of the organizations, then develop creative solutions.

4. Tactical

Stay bottom-line oriented and extraordinarily committed to results. Review and assess all variables to define key issues and options for solving problems. Leverage the experience, expertise and work of others.

5. Persuasive

Guide others to their point of view using logic, reason, emotion and the force of their personalities. Motivate by persuasion rather than intimidation. Hone interpersonal skills to promote teamwork.

6. Decisive

Quickly make the right decisions sometimes without every detail in place. Make bold decisions and formulate bold strategic plans. Understand the big picture and identify trends while maintaining a sense of reality.

7. Ethical

Set high, challenging goals and standards for yourself and others, holding all accountable. Demonstrate and uphold values and principals that create a climate of trust and integrity. Speak the truth, even in the unknown.

What do these competencies mean on the front lines of day-to-day management? And where do you stack up? Check back in our next blog for more on the leadership front.

How to Tailor your Message so that it Resonates across your Organization

Communication needs to be driven from the top-down AND the bottom up, ensuring your change initiative messages are clearly and properly conveyed.

In last week’s blog, we discussed how to create your communications plan, which answers the 5-W’s: who, when, why, where and what. However, you’re not done yet!

In their book, the Change Management Pocket Guide: Tools for Managing Change, Kate Nelson and Stacy Aaron* refer to two “levels” of communication needed to garner buy-in from across the company. Their point (and it’s a good one) is that messages need to be tailored to specific departments or individuals and that you need to get away from a “one-size fits all” plan.

Start by tailoring your messages (i.e., Level One and Level Two Communications) to those departments most affected by your change initiative. This methodology will ensure you’re addressing those issues most critical to the department and can also be used when targeting key stakeholders to support your initiative.

To help get you started, I’ve recreated their worksheet on my website so you can finalize your communication plan.

Meanwhile, keep in mind the following when speaking with line managers and employees:

Line managers are critical because they…

• Are directly responsible for the implementation of your initiative.
• Have a pulse on employee morale and can combat negativity.

Ensure line managers…

• Thoroughly understand the goals and are committed to accomplishing them.
• Understand they are a part of the solution to ensure the Company’s survival.
• Are trained on how to engage and obtain commitment from their employees.

Employees are critical because …

• They are responsible for executing your initiative.
• Their individual goals facilitate the success of overall organizational goals.

Help your employees to…

• Re-focus on achieving company goals and how the change initiative will help the company overcome the challenging economy.
• Make the link between achieving their individual goals and the company’s future success.

When attempting to overcome resistance from employees, keep in mind:

It’s all in what you say. Keep it short and chunk your messages. Eliminate the technical jargon. Don’t ignore setbacks or changes to the plan. Face them head-on and explain your decisions.

And HOW you say it. Ensure communications are a two-way street, so your employees feel heard. To gather feedback, consider using surveys or message boards on your intranet.

And HOW OFTEN you say it. Over-communicating your message stifles rumors and combats the natural fear of the unknown. You’ll re-iterate the need for change while keeping the pressure on your project team and employees to get the job done.

And saying it CONSISTENTLY, over time. Continually tout the initiative and employee successes. Communication is something you need to sustain throughout the course of the project and beyond, affirming change as a part of your corporate culture.

By crafting a solid plan that resonates with employees and communicating your message often and consistently over time, you’ll ensure that your sound project plan and well-managed team drive a successful change initiative within your organization.

*Reference: The Change Management Pocket Guide: Tools for Managing Change by Kate Nelson and Stacy Aaron, 2005.

Shaping your Vision and Defining your Project Plan

The chart* to the right provides an overview of how to effectively lead change, ensuring the sustainability of a change initiative into the future.

As the chart illustrates, successful change initiatives begin by defining the need for change and shaping the vision for the future state of the company. This vision needs to be delivered in such a way that it mobilizes commitment amongst employees as well as your customers. ALL employees need to understand what value this change brings to the organization or conversely, the impact to the company if this change is not implemented.

From there, leading a successful change management initiative involves three factors:

1. Capable Project Planning
2. Clearly Defined Roles and Responsibilities
3. Exceptional Communications Planning

Capable Project Leaders start by defining the Project Plan in terms of:

Goals and Objectives

Establishing SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound) goals and objectives narrows the focus for the project and clearly delineates what’s IN and what’s NOT IN for your change management initiative.

Project Deliverables/Requirements

Consider creating a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) to help organize deliverables.  The WBS starts at the top with Project Initiation and then defines (in excruciating detail) the specific tasks that need to occur for a project to be completed.

Capturing the Voice of the Customer

Many times a customer’s requirements are not at a level that can easily be measured from a business perspective.  Therefore, it’s up to the business to collect Customer’s Needs, translate them into Customer Expectations, which in turn are translated into Customer Requirements that are useable by the business.

Establishing a Realistic Timeline

Using the WBS, construct a Network Diagram to show dependencies of the tasks (i.e., does one task have to be completed before the next task can begin or can they be done in parallel?).  In addition to how long the project will take, the Network Diagram will show you the critical path (i.e., those tasks that define the project length).

Identifying the Project Team

As the Project Leader, it’s critical to ensure:

• The right resources are available at the right time.
• Clear priorities have been defined between your project and current responsibilities for each team member.
• Each team member has the available time to put towards the project.

Once your Project Plan has been defined, it’s then critical to clearly define roles and responsibilities within your company to support the Change Initiative.  Tune in next week for this discussion.

*Chart: Becker, B., Huselid, M., and Ulrich, D. (2001), The HR Scorecard; Linking People, Strategy, and Performance. Harvard Business School Press, Boston, MA.