Do you have the right team to make change happen?

Hi,

Welcome to this edition of the People of Transformation

A question I have been thinking about a lot over the past weeks is…. Do you have the right team to make change happen?

This question applies to C-level, executives, middle managers, and managers.

Today, we will talk about the makeup of your leadership team and how this can accelerate or hinder your strategy execution efforts.

Not every leader is cut out for change & transformation work

The job of leading the way towards the future and making impactful changes is not a job you inherit because of your rank in the organization’s chart.

The mindset required to run BAU (Business As Usual) is vastly different from creating and leading change. It is like the difference between running a marathon vs. a sprint (they are both doing running but the capabilities and mindset required are very different)

In many cases, the makeup of the executive team does not help drive effective change and simply because of the collective energy, mindset and ways of thinking they bring

• Some might be too much in the weed
  
  
•  Some have their heads in the cloud
  
  
•  Some are feeling the FOMO (Fear OF Missing Out) of not doing what others are doing
  
  
•  Some want stability and are not interested in rocking the boat
  
  
•  Some are not content with the status quo
  
  
•  some are all about making the change and leaping into the future
  
  
•  Some are too risk-averse

……

You get the picture.

The make-up of the team matters

The below works whether you are a CEO or a leader managing a team to lead a change (scalable as you see fit)

Whatever make-up you have will determine your pace in building the organization's future in a way that is faster and better.

That is why it is absolutely crucial to be very intentional about hiring the right leaders to help build the organization’s future. However, in most cases, the leadership team is inherited, and you have to work with them. And in doing so, while guaranteeing the best outcome for the organization, you might want to consider the following:

1. Identify who is who - See the chart attached.
   
   
2. Identify what drives them and what matters to them. This is crucial in identifying hidden motivators that will shape their behaviour, decisions and your conversation with them.
   
   
3. Ensure that they understand what the change means to their world
   
   
4. Identify their individual strengths and how they can effectively contribute to the overall future of the organization
   
   
5. Build their capabilities through effective coaching and mentoring. This is one step further than the traditional out-of-the-box training and cookie-cutter leadership development programs
   
   
6. Measure their effectiveness and growth in driving change
   
   
7. Clean up the house. If you do not see that it is working because they simply can not fit in, then you have to clean up your house. I can not stress this enough, as many organizations don’t do that, and this decision costs quite a lot. It leads to disrupting and slowing down the change efforts, frustrations in the teams and peers, and leading to your best talent leaving.
   
   

Ways forward

In organizations where they are aware of the above make-up and who is who, it is important to follow through with action and see what best serves the organization going forward

It is also important to understand that you need all roles to keep the organization growing but also have the balance of the other types of leaders. Being a Type D leader is not worse than being a Type C. It is not like that. There is no good or bad. You need to have the right mix for what the organization needs now and in the long term. You need different dynamics and motives to strike a balance in creating steady, meaningful growth in the organization.

There are a few ways forward that I have experienced in my many years of change & transformation as a leader, an advisor/consultant, and an executive coach.

• Invest in growing their capabilities: As mentioned above, coaching and mentoring the team member(s) is key to elevating their perspectives to the next level.
  
  
• Add a layer: Create a separate (sub) team that is empowered to design and lead through the change.
  
  
• Clean up the house: As mentioned before, it can come down to this. The problem is that it takes too long to make this decision (if ever)

I would love to hear your thoughts and experiences. Just comment on the post or message me directly.

Till next week…

Jess “Leadership” Tayel