Do you ever get frustrated with people on your leadership team while solving problems or brainstorming ideas? They may ask too many questions, jump to conclusions too fast, are too quiet, or are always a pessimist. Do you sometimes wish they all had your “MO” when discussing these things? Wouldn’t that be great? Or would it?
I’ve observed an ailment in many sessions over the years, and lately I’ve been prescribing the remedy more than ever, so I thought it worthy of a blog. It occurs during issue solving, and odds are that you’re dealing with it too. When a leadership team is addressing an issue and one of the leaders is explaining the issue to the entire team, many times he or she makes very general, generic statements to all team members when the issue really only has to do with one or two people. This normally stems from a fear of conflict or lack of accountability on the team, and it’s costing you valuable time and causing murkiness, confusion, and lack of resolution.
Imagine a world where everyone takes responsibility for their actions. Okay, maybe we can’t accomplish this in the entire world, but you can in your company. Why not start there? You should be able to call each other out when necessary, so why don’t you? What’s wrong with saying, “You dropped the ball?” How refreshing would it be? Or even better, someone says, “I dropped the ball” before you have to.
Having now worked very closely with over 100 companies, I find it easy to provide some very interesting stats on a percentage basis. One, which is the subject of this message, has to do with changes to leadership teams during the EOS Process. I’ve found that 80 percent of the time, one or more people change on the leadership team within the first two years of beginning the process.
Forgive me for getting a little Kumbaya on you here. I’ve had an unusual number of conversations lately about clients selling their companies versus keeping them.
I’m always fascinated with many leaders that I meet and work with who really believe that reaching consensus is the most effective way to make decisions. This is very dangerous due to delays, missed opportunities, and lack of respect from the troops waiting to be led. In addition, historically, the biggest and toughest correct decisions have been made when going with the minority, not the majority.
