Optimizing Leadership as Situations Change
Diagnosing Performance Problems in Individuals, Groups, and Organizations
Creating a compelling vision is a skill set that clearly requires a leader with a crisp vision and exceptional communication skills. A leader with a compelling vision spends time understanding the current situation and how the team is performing, then moves to setting expectations depending on what values and behavior he/she wants to promote. Leaders’ ability to manage conflict and recognizing that a level of conflict can have positive effects is a must, in addition to using different conflict resolution strategies as needed. And one interdependent skill is the ability to negotiate with various parties as well as diagnosing performance issues across the board.
Many of us have or will come across a situation where a team member or a follower is not performing to the required standards. This applies to a group, a department, or a whole organization. It goes without saying that the more wide-spread the performance issue, the more difficult it will to correct. A leader’s success will no doubt be undermined with performance issues and their seriousness. The authors suggest a model that can scientifically equip leaders to resolve or at least understand what causes a performance issue. This is the Model of Performance, where four components are of equal importance.
Expectations, capabilities, opportunities, and motivation are the four components that are interdependent but their impact is independent. Performance is measured as a function of the last four components and I am interested in examining and learning how to apply this concept in the real world. Expectations make a big difference when it comes to performance because it diminishes confusion and lack of guidance. Employees who simply do not know or understand what is expected of them are more likely to under-perform. In addition to setting clear goals and objectives, the leaders need to understand how capable their employees are. They need to identify the skills needed to perform a particular job, and verify if the employee is equipped with those skills. Moreover, providing employees with adequate opportunities and resources to deliver their expectations is key to satisfactory performance. Finally, employees who lack the right levels of motivation will always find reasons to avoid delivering their expectations.
Hughes, Ginnet, Curphy. (03/2011). Leadership: Enhancing the Lessons of Experience.
Effective Stress Management: Is It Even Possible?
I believe that there are more stressors and factors that contribute to higher levels of stress than ever before. Our work and personal life are busier due to increased commitments and more competition for fewer opportunities. Therefore, one has to become more cognizant of how they deal with stressful situations. We can start by asking a few simple questions to help recognize some stress symptoms. A good first step is to pause from everyday activities and take a little time to breath and step away from the moment, which would help shed a different light on the situation.
The level of stress that can be experienced by leaders compared to followers can be varied and substantially different, but the dynamics of these relationships is a major contributor. Followers do experience stress; however, their stress level can be diffused or hugely improved based on their leader’s management style. Developing these three habits can help improve how we manage stress levels. Monitoring one’s stress levels might sound straightforward, but it does tend to go unnoticed until it has a toll on the person’s health and or performance. Identifying any stress causes early on. And finally, make use of the A-B-C Model more often than not, which simply means encouraging and displaying a positive attitude.
Sometimes the smallest changes can yield the biggest outcomes. Practicing the top three steps by especially focusing on the positive and reducing stressors in our daily life is a start. What is more key is becoming more aware of our environment and paying attention to how we react to situations. This cognizant attitude will lead to more controlled reactions and interactions.
Is Iteration a Business Process?
In the traditional sense of the word the iterative process is a systematic and structured approach to business operations, mostly applied in a Lean Start-Up Model. I argue that it’s more of a culture than a process. Similar to change, many organizations (less so start-ups) struggle with pivoting. If anything, 2020 was the year to pivot for most and on different fronts. I have been working for the past decade with start-ups and non-profits primarily to build the framework for agile and fast pace business operations, allowing accelerated growth and scaling. I think business processes and structures are important, however, if the culture is built with iteration as a common practice then having processes will have a far bigger impact.
A successful iterative process is the ability of a team to build through gradual and steady improvements. In my experience diversifying the inputs and data points is also extremely important. Let’s take building a sales and marketing strategy, for example - the natural and effective process in my experience follows these steps:
Establish the product-market fit (5 Ps)
Develop a strong pitch that’s mostly niche (tell a story, a compelling one)
Adjust pitch based on client needs (always start with a discovery phase)
Establish the gap; where is the client today versus where they want to get (the bigger the gap, the more lucrative the sell)
Follow up, follow up and follow up
What became more evident over time is that we don’t have to wait for step 1 before we do step 2 and so on. What ends up happening is that all the steps are happening simultaneously and iteratively. That makes the structure element less important and the habits of iteration more prominent.
Keep it Lean
The best part about iteration in my opinion is the level of efficiency it allows, especially for bootstrapping startups who tend to have very small teams. Resources are limited, which makes eliminating unnecessary processes and steps extremely valuable. The golden rule is to shift the focus from proving to improving. Another reason why I believe iteration is deeply rooted in culture is the need for experimentation and feedback, especially from the client. When I say feedback, I’m not actually talking about quantitative or qualitative research, I’m referring to A/B and beta testing. This approach shortens the NPI process and allows teams to hone in on the product adjustments that are needed to close that gap for the client.
One of my favorite rules is the “Don’t Major in Minor Things” by Jim Rohn. For any business leader, it doesn’t matter whether their function is customer-facing or not, a good rule to abide by is to always ask: Is what I’m working on closing the gap for our clients? If it’s not, it’s most likely not going to add value and is a waste of resources.