Effective Leadership Teams

Organizational leaders are often confounded by the gap between their approach to work and those of even their closest team members. Lack of follow up, follow through, and implementation of the agreed upon plan can frustrate and confuse high energy owners and CEOs.

Consider the best-selling business book by former AlliedSignal CEO Larry Bossidy: “Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done.”  Imagine writing a bestseller based on the simple concept of getting people to do what they said they’d do?

Nevertheless, the book does an excellent job of confronting reasons why, despite their good intentions, team members fall short on delivery and what can be done about it. And why the typical CEO response of “I’ll do it myself,” while effective in the short term, can derail any hope of instilling accountability between and among team members.

From the leader’s perspective, getting things done matters. How they get done is every bit as important. As organizations grow, so does complexity and the importance of proper planning, focus and execution.  More of this responsibility will naturally fall to senior team members. The assessment and understanding of team members’ strengths and preparedness rests with the CEO. It makes little sense to assign tasks to those who are not equipped, prepared, or willing to embrace and “own” this responsibility. In this case, (unlike financial investments) past performance can be a strong indicator of future results.

Assessment tools (Harrison Assessments, for example) are useful in understanding the natural tendencies, preferences and strengths of individuals and teams. So too is the track record of members. What have they accomplished in the past and under what circumstances? What is their batting average on delivering on commitments, on time, and on budget? To what extent did they involve their team members in completing assignments and did each member improve and grow as a result?

Three keys to growing and development leadership traits and competencies are: the willingness to take on responsibility, having commensurate levels of authority, and accepting accountability for results. While not exhaustive, these three steps, responsibility, authority and accountability, can go a long way in ensuring higher levels of performance and execution of the plan.

For more information and ways to energize your strategy and planning meetings and get the results you need, contact me at joe@ajstrategy.com.