Leadership Unity, Teamwork and Organizational Effectiveness

When I meet with management teams of organizations either for management team building or for leadership and management workshop, I would often see the manifestations of disunity as hindrance to their management effectiveness. Politics either cripple them or serve as a heavy burden that slows down the organization. It also diminishes the quality of life in the organization not only of managers but of everyone involved. Because of all these, isn't it just right to make it a matter of priority to eradicate disunity and crippling politics in an organization?

Management teams who demonstrate unity are easy to spot but they are difficult to find because they are rare. Is your management team one of them? Here are the signs that you are enjoying leadership unity:

Employees don't get mixed signals from members of management. When a policy is implemented or a decision is made, no member of management criticizes it. Everyone expresses support and does what is needed to make it succeed. Don't mistake this for herd mentality because it's not. Work necessary before policies are launched were done effectively that's why there's none of those usual griping that you hear directly from managers. You will know why after you are done reading this post.

Policies are clearly stated, fully implemented and fully supported by members of management from the top to front-line supervisors. New employees don't get confused by contradictions between what HR is saying during company orientations and what is happening on the floor. Managers and supervisors are not branded as strict or easy because strict implementation of rules is expected. ( if you don't want to be strict, make it a rule and then implement it strictly, know what I mean?)

When management instructions are unclear, employees go to their immediate superiors and they would get the information they need. They will not be asked to go to HR, IT, or Accounting for policy and procedures clarification because these things are perfectly clear to them. When they find that they are unclear about certain rules, they make it a point to ask the concerned department themselves so they can answer the employees' questions and the future ones to come.

Managers don't express their frustrations of other managers or criticize management in front of employees as they know that criticizing management is criticizing themselves. When issues arise from management decisions, they don't wash their hands off it. They find out what the issues are and work with other managers on resolving them. If it takes taking the decision back and coming up with a new one, they can and will do it.

There are no little kingdoms, no silos and no turf wars. The cohesiveness of the management team is so evident that employees emulate it. When issues of "them-vs-us" crop up, managers nip them in the bud by addressing the issues right away thereby preventing the building up of walls and gaps between departments and sections. Employees completely appreciate that "working together" and not "working against" is the norm.

It takes a cohesive management team to make it happen. One where roles and goals are clear and where norms for interaction, discussion of issues and decision making, among others are clear. There is so much to be gained in building this kind of management team. It improves decision making; it makes plans implementable; it helps resolve issues that get in the way of organizational effectiveness; and improves overall organizational quality of life.

The first step towards achieving this kind of leadership unity is to talk about it with the rest of your management team. Work with them on agreeing on a set of norms, and then relentlessly make it happen.

You can obviously do this among yourselves. It's not rocket science. But if you feel that you will need help in facilitating the process, we at EXEQSERVE can help. We've done so for several organizations already. It's a worthwhile investment. Invest on this and you will find that you will be getting the most return here and in your other investments in people, machines, processes and technologies.

Related courses:
- Team Culture building
- Team Leadership

HR Should Learn Aikido

No, I don't mean for HR to be violent! Read the whole post to know what I really mean.

I often see HR Departments caught in defensive positions because of what managers and employees feel they are unable to do. There are also times when getting things done become a sort of a struggle because of resistance from supposed stake holders. This is the reason why even some of the most well intended HR initiatives go awry.

In one of my Internet browsings, my fingers brought me to a Wikipedia page that describes the martial art, Aikido as:

"Aikido is a Japanese martial art developed by Morihei Ueshiba as a synthesis of his martial studies, philosophy, and religious beliefs. Aikido is often translated as "the Way of unifying (with) life energy"[1] or as "the Way of harmonious spirit."[2] Ueshiba's goal was to create an art that practitioners could use to defend themselves while also protecting their attacker from injury. Aikido is performed by blending with the motion of the attacker and redirecting the force of the attack rather than opposing it head-on. This requires very little physical energy, as the aikidōka (aikido practitioner) "leads" the attacker's momentum using entering and turning movements." And then I thought about HR. I feel that the same principle should be used by HR in dealing with their line counterparts. Here are examples:

Not Aikido:
"Line counterpart: "disciplining employees is not my job, it's HR's job"

HR: "ok;" or
HR: "no, its yours. If you don't discipline your employees, you'll suffer in the end."

Aikido:
HR: "I agree with you, maintaining discipline in the workplace is one of our jobs but it's something we can't do well without your cooperation. Why don't we talk about how we can be more effective in doing this?"

Another example:

Not Aikido
Line counterpart: "Those training programs you are proposing are a waste of time and money."

HR: "ok;" or complain to others that their line counterparts are too dumb to realize the importance of training.

Aikido:
"You are right, training can be a waste of time and money if they are not the kind of training that our employees really need. It can also be a waste of time and money if the training is not conducted well and when there's no effective follow through. Why don't we discuss what kind of competencies you want the employees need to develop and what you are willing to support. I believe that if we can put together an effective mechanism, training can be a very profitable investment.

The secret to this, I believe is understanding and appreciating where our counterpart is coming from and where they want to go. Aikido practitioners are different from other martial arts practitioners in that they do not stop opponents dead on their tracks by using force against force. Aikido practitioners flow with their opponents while at the same time making sure that the opponents don't get injured in the process ( which as I do, you might find confusing if you are watching a lot of those Steven Seagal movies!). HR is a support unit and a strategic partner. Partners don't fight each other. When making things happen feels more like a struggle and asserting what needs to be done feels like inviting counterparts to a fight, think about Aikido. See their thrust, flow with and direct the energy towards a common ground.

Strengthening Partnership Between HR and Line Managers

Some months ago, I helped facilitate a focus group discussion for a government agency to gather inputs on what the line managers expect from the HR Department if it is to play a strategic partner role. In the process, the participants also learned that the partnership can only work if they participate well in HR's activities. One of the managers approached me saying this; "If line managers like me and HR are to work as partners, we better start understanding what the work entails because at this point we hardly do. You see we didn't get any training." It made sense. It was obvious not just in that government agency but in many other organizations.

Fast forward to a few weeks ago. I facilitated two batches of "Introduction to HR Management for Line Managers Workshop. " We did it for a printing company in Cavite. HR attended too not just to support the line managers but to catch a few tips in HR Management themselves. It was a fulfilling experience for me. I hope the same is true for the participants.

The first part of the day was spent discussing the 4 major roles of HR as strategic partner, change agent, administrative expert and employee champion as presented by David Ulrich in his book "Human Resource Champions."

The participants realized how ineffective HR can get whenever the line managers fail to do their part in the partnership. What is even more worth noting is that when HR fails, it's the line managers who feel the pain.

The discussion paved the way for a more interesting discussions, workshops and brainstorming exercises on how HR and the line can work effectively together in recruiting, training, performance management, career and succession management and maintaining discipline in the workplace among others. The line managers learned some techniques in screening and interviewing applicants. The HR staff learned that they need a documented Recruitment strategy and methodology and then train line managers on how to use them. The line managers learned that they have an important role to play in training and development and performance management. I also threw in some quick but very useful technique on coaching using the GROW Model as part of Performance Management. The participants tried their hands at crafting a career path for their employees and then clarified their role in creating, implementing and championing company policies. They learned that the integrity and credibility of these policies depend on their ability to model the way in following and seeing to it that everyone is compliant.

Just before the workshop ended, the participants put together a forward agenda to make sure that whatever they learned in the workshop will be applied at work.

With top management support and an HR Department that is keen on playing a more relevant role as a strategic partner to the line, I can't see how things will not become better.

If you wish to explore how we can help you do the same for your organization, please do not hesitate to let us know.

The Multiplier Effect of Training for Leaders

So, you have a limited training budget and you need to prioritize where you will invest it? Take Pareto's advice. Spend it on the 20% whose performance make 80%(or thereabout) of the impact. Invest it in equipping your managers and supervisors who make strategic and tactical decisions everyday. if you do and if you make sure all the necessary preparations and follow through are in place, the benefits will cascade down to the ranks. If you are asking what I mean exactly by what I just said, see my article on strategic training and development planning.

Which training has the most multiplier effect? Here are my suggestions:

Leadership Training - People perform better when they are inspired and influenced by their leaders. They care more about the organization and the others in the team. A good leadership training equips the leader to communicate goals, build teamwork, establish norms for collaboration, demonstrate the right behaviors and motivate people to align themselves with the organization's goals. It should also equip leaders to be flexible in how they deal with their employees. While many people intuitively do most if not all the things I just said, I don't think anyone will not benefit from validating their leadership practices and then fine tune them. I've heard several times how some hr managers defend the idea that their managers don't need this kind of training by saying, they've gone to a similar ones. I can only agree if these leaders they are talking about happen to practice what they learned from past training. If they haven't, I'd say it's time for some refreshers.

Basic Supervisory or Management Course - if your supervisors or managers are at work without understanding the basics of planning, leading, organizing and controlling, they are driving by the seat of their pants. That is not a comforting situation to any passenger. I suggest that you make sure they know and use these basic tools of management.

Managing Employee Performance - If there's any training that I expect to have the most multiplier effect, I believe this would be it. If your managers and supervisors make the habits of clarifying goals, monitoring performance, developing employees' capacity to perform through training and coaching, appraising performance and rewarding good performance, people will learn how to do their jobs better and perform better. Performance Management is such an important managerial skill. I wonder why very few HR Managers champion it. Really, very few.

Coaching and mentoring - Do your managers and supervisors deliberately use coaching and mentoring tactics when working with their team members or are they driving by the seat of their pants again? Some people mistake coaching to just talking to their employees about performance issues. This is why some managers call scolding sessions as coaching sessions and then they take pride of their so called coaching skills. Don't you think it's time they put this idea of coaching and mentoring into perspective and use proven techniques that help people become better at what they do?
Facilitating problem solving and creativity sessions- Building a culture that breeds creativity requires that leader give enough opportunity for people to solve problems and think creatively. In order for them to perform this leaderly task effectively, they should have some tools they can use to facilitate the discussions. Tools like 8D, Kaizen, Six Thinking Hats and mind mapping comes to mind as great tools to harness the team's brain power. As people are allowed to flex their mental muscles, they become more creative and innovative. All these should benefit the company and return your training investment well.

Leaders, whether they go by supervisor, manager, officer or any other title, play a much too important role to just be left alone without being properly equipped. In these trying times when training money is hard to come by, spend whatever amount you have in training your leaders. Want to make sure the multiplier effect happens? call this number (02)8933199. Look for April or Loren or call me at 639189399294 (Ya, I know, shameless self promotion again, yada,yada,yada!)