The Guardian recently carried an article with the theme “an obsessive focus on people - rather than a rod of iron” is the key” in tough times. They reported on research by The Work Foundation challenging the assumption that workers with a “controlling and target - driven approach” are essential. Their report stated that in tough times “Outstanding leaders focus on people. Instead of seeing people as one of their many priorities they put the emphasis on people first.”  In short the report finds that those leaders with good emotional intelligence are able to bring people through change and enable change to succeed.

Our experience of working with leaders who are driving substantial and often painful change reinforces this. Insensitive leadership of the “we have not got time to discuss this, just flipping do it” camp can produce early results but also produce disengaged, resentful, antagonistic staff leading to poorly implemented and unimaginative change. Change is not judged by the calibre of the change plan but by the effectiveness of its implementation - which in turn is driven by engaging key stakeholders. The Guardian article also quoted an extensive piece of research by the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) showing that 31% of UK employees have low or no trust in senior management. This lack of trust will fuel resistance to change and leads to situations where many people bring their bodies to work but leave their commitment at home!

The good thing about emotional intelligence is that whilst some people will have some natural traits much of it can be taught. Leaders can raise their self awareness, can learn to manage their emotions and frustrations, and can develop their ability to make a positive impact and build good relationships with others. The Work Foundation encourages leaders to understand their staff. Our experience shows that leaders need to be more hands on in change; they need to monitor morale closely and recognise that even their most gifted staff can adopt strange behaviours in times of stress. Leaders need to be more prepared to give their team’s clear focus and to intervene when there are blockages. Leading change is about enabling others to change - those leaders that enable well in the coming months will make the difference between success and failure.

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Oliver Nyumbu, Caret’s Chief Executive, will consider how senior managers can minimise the risk of haemorrhaging good talent at a forthcoming Birmingham Forward lunch event on 2 February 2010.  He will also explore sustainable strategies for developing an engaged and energised workforce.

For more information and booking details please click on the link to the Birmingham Forward website below:

http://www.birminghamforward.co.uk/civicrm/event/info?reset=1&id=137

Thomas Watson Snr turned IBM from a small scale mechanical data processing company to an industry giant.  He was driven by a passion to discover new ways of doing things. He believed that success was based on enthusiasm - his sales people needed to discover what their customers’ problems were and discover the best possible solutions. Around the organisation a one word poster was prominent - IBM managers and staff were constantly reminded to “Think”. In the 30’s to 50’s he took the organisation on a remarkable journey that laid the foundations for computer driven data processing.

IBM had its eccentricities under Watson (let’s all join together in the company song whilst wearing our conventional blue suits) but no one can argue with the fact that this was a period of dynamic growth.

We need thinking organisations and people today. We need cultures that encourage proactivity, and seek out new ways of doing things. Most of all given all the changes around us we need high quality thinking time. When in future years we look back on the traumas and challenges of 2009/2010 I wonder will we regret that in the busy and demanding circumstances we faced we did not mobilise our organisations to give quality time and quality discussion to thinking? Perhaps we need some posters?

Perhaps annual or six monthly performance appraisals are a resounding success in your organisation.  If that is the case, then count your blessings because on the whole, performance appraisal is a failed enterprise. Consider for example the fact that, as research shows: 

• Managers don’t like doing appraisals - some would rather attend ten dentists’ appointments on the same day than do an employee appraisal.
• Employees don’t always find a positive experience

Or consider this:

• Employees hired by the appraiser receive higher scores than others
• Evaluations are more positive for underlings with managers from the same social demographic
• Performance reviews (in jobs where work is difficult to assess objectively) mostly reflect employees’ ability to ingratiate themselves with the boss

The spectacularly damming aspect of the traditional review process is that it fails to help employees to learn something about a better way to work. But as Professor Jeffrey Pfeffer’s article suggests ‘A recession is a good time for managers to focus more on evidence and less on received wisdom or old habits. Asking hard questions about performance management would be a good place to start.’ Read his whole article for further discussion

“In the seven seconds it takes to complete an average Grand Prix pit stop, a driver will get four fresh tyres, a tank of fuel, an inspection to remove debris from nooks and crannies, and maybe some shiny new parts to replace any track casualties…115.8 man-seconds of work are completed in just 7 seconds” reports Tony Borroz in the November ‘09 edition of Wired Magazine.

The achievements of Formula 1 pit stop crews are amazing whichever way one looks at it.  Consider for example the fact that some of these jobs would take an afternoon at your local garage. I can’t help but wonder the looks and verbal abuse suffered by the person who first suggested this was all possible. In terms of what you and your team have recently achieved, what has constituted your equivalent of F1’s longest seven seconds?

How many lives have you got?  SecondLife, a free 3D virtual world, isn’t just for nerds; it’s a lively role - playing blogosphere of the imagination, one where role play is as real as it gets, partly because you choose what/who you want to be and in what kind of life - and feedback isn’t obligatory!

How might it help in ‘real’ life? It provides an opportunity to try things out safely. You have an alter ego where your real identity remains hidden. There’s a lot to be said for experiencing how it feels to be someone entirely different - gender, race, religion, historic time - can provide a huge learning experience. How about designing a spacecraft which looks more like a flying Tudor ship and being able to solve an organisational problem at a stroke? Or climate change? Or design a new hospital? Or local authority office?

Many universities now have second life sites; you can walk into the library, the students’ union, visit a lecture….

One of the most wonderful things is that SecondLife provides opportunities for the severely disabled to have an alternative life, to experience the same world as others in that second life community. Their voices are heard; they feel affirmed; they play.

What might all this teach us in the here and now? That profound things can be said where there is trust and no comeback; that mistakes can be made and learned from; that play is a basic need and one which enables ideas to sparkle; that we can all be innovators…

“What’s going on?” “Can we make this work?” “What do you think?” Three normal questions. Do we get honest answers? Jim Collins in Good to Great talks about facing the brutal facts; history tells us of lots of situations where groups working together failed to face the brutal facts - whether it be Hitler in the Führer bunker or airlines where the crew did not challenge each other with fatal consequences. The ability to gather all the information needed; to encourage the introverts to share, the nervous to be bolder and the reluctant to take some risks is a key leadership skill. Given the long term impact of many of the decisions we are making at the moment, leaders need the ability to ensure people are engaging in conversation, thinking things through robustly and challenging “group think”.

It is worth reflecting - next time you ask “can we make this work?” how do you get your colleagues fully engaged? How might you challenge them to raise their game in the next round of decision making?

‘Most managers look for golden opportunities when the good times are rolling. This is a mistake. The best ones often arise during downturns.’ So said Donald Sull, from Managing in a Downturn. Caret Consultant Tammy Tawadros recently wrote an article discussing how harnessing inquiry and capturing learning can often make the difference between an organisation that thrives and one that fails.

The current economic climate has left many organisations in the grip of huge anxiety and uncertainty about future survival. Many face grave external challenges. Internally, many are in a state of crisis. And crisis, like the proverbial cloud, carries within it the silver lining of opportunity. This is the kind of opportunity that can only be grasped and transformed into competitive advantage when there is space and the ability to think and learn collectively within the organisation. It is the very capacity that is diminished by crisis and the feelings of threat, danger and anxiety that it engenders.

It takes wise, humble and self-knowing leadership, with considerable ability, to enable the organisation to metabolise ‘toxic’ emotion, to resist overconfidence and the urgent call to action and, instead, to create the space to reflect and learn during crisis. Whilst it appears to be unfashionable still to talk about wisdom, the other qualities required by leaders at times of crisis have been well documented: humility and fierce resolve; psychological presence and personal authority; and emotional and social intelligence.

Just as each failure carries within it the germ of success, opportunities to learn abound at a time when so many leaders and organisations are in the grip of anxiety and uncertainty. But they are also, arguably, least able to harness them. Harnessing inquiry and capturing learning can often make the difference between an organisation that thrives and one that fails. During an economic downturn, successful leaders are likely to be those best able to capitalise on their personal humility and determination.

Click here to read the whole article

I am not a big fan of Formula One - it’s a sport I have never attempted to understand. But even an ignoramus like me spotted that Jenson Button won the World Championship. Are there any lessons for leadership in the boy from Frome’s historic win?

I think there are two key things for me:

1. It’s not just one race - it’s a championship: in today’s challenging environment we may feel we are judged race by race. At the beginning that was good news for Button - he won event after event. But there came a time when he looked uncertain and others literally overtook him. But the challenges facing many leaders are more than on race - can they prove their long term capacity to win the World’s ‘most engaged staff in a crisis’ challenge, at the World’s ‘making difficult financial decisions’ drivers championship

 2. It’s about the delivery vehicle - Button without the right vehicle would be a nobody. Brawn emerged from very difficult circumstances at the beginning of the championship to create a winning car and driver combination. What’s your delivery vehicle - is it the organisation that works for you? Is it a lean, clean, driving machine? Does it perform like a dream or like a three legged hippo on ice? Will it take the difficult corners at speed? Is it robust enough for the drive you want to take it on in the next few months? Will the vehicle get you where you want to go next year, or does it need time in the pits?

In sport, last year’s car is often not good enough to beat this year’s. In organisations, next year’s vehicle will be taking a very bumpy and fast moving ride…is yours ready to help you win the championship?