What is a blunder? My Oxford dictionary defines blunder as “a stupid or careless mistake; to move clumsily as if unable to see.” Crisis is defined as “a time of extreme difficulty or danger; the time when a problem or a difficult situation is at its worst point.”
When we, as leaders, are ill prepared or poorly organized for the event we are about to lead and we are unable or unwilling to admit what we don’t know, we blunder; we move clumsily because we don’t know what we don’t know.
How do blunders lead to a crisis? A turnaround is, by its nature, a crisis or “a time of extreme difficulty or danger.” It’s really all in the way it’s perceived. If we feel organized and prepared, while the intensity may be high, there is not a perception of crisis. However, as soon as the participants feel disorganized and ill prepared, especially when the intensity is high like in turnarounds, we begin to feel and move clumsily and that uneasiness or intensity leads to crisis.
Here are my top seven faux pas (in no particular order) that lead to the organization moving clumsily through the events thus transforming a turnaround’s natural intensity into an atmosphere of crisis and poor performance.
- Focusing on the “what” at the expense of the “how.” Much emphasis is put on job planning or the “what” and rightfully so. It is an essential part of preparation — identifying the work to be done and tabulating the resources required to do it. More important, however, is the “how,” which is developing the strategy for the work. Strategy is a mindset more than it is a document. It addresses the interface between the organization and the turn-around. It is the basis for high performance.
- Thinking and acting as if only we can manage well. We manage events and we lead people. High performance leadership is all about “Trust” with a capital “T.” We must trust in character and in competence; no trust — no followers. Don’t wrest the desired results from people.
- Underestimating the value of practice. None of us were born masters of anything. We learn and develop skills over time. Mastery, whether by individuals or organizations, is achieved by practice. Practice makes permanent — not perfect. Let’s make sure we are practicing the right things. We must invest in training our organizations if we want high performance turnarounds.
- Not leveraging the power of delegation and teamwork. We usually think of delegating to individuals, but in managing turnarounds, leverage is created when we delegate by decentralizing roles, responsibility and authority on an organizationally wide basis. Whether work groups or teams, pushing accountability down the organization creates a one-to-many relationship and that is leverage. Empowerment equals high performance.
- Failing to create organizational clarity. Alice in Wonderland asked the Cheshire cat, “Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?” The cat responded, “That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.” Establishing a charter, what the goals are and having a strategic plan provides clarity and pro-motes self-governance.
- Avoiding conflict. It has been said a goal is simply a scheduled conflict with the status quo. The word infers stress and struggle, but I think of it as the behavioral side of change management. A turnaround is nothing more than a series of conflicts that must be resolved. Conflicts are either disruptive or constructive based upon our approach. Conflict is inevitable because it is the basis of growth.
- Failing to value feedback. Someone said, “There is no such thing as failure, there is only feedback.” Someone else said, “If you want to manage anything you have to be able to measure it.” While high profile measures like budget, schedule and safety compliance drive the actions we take, we must find leading measures that will tell us if we are achieving the desired results or do we need to alter our course as we go. The quicker and more reliable the feedback, the more direct the course. High performance costs less!
For more information, contact Mike Bischoff at (281) 461-9340, email sales@tamanagement.com or visit www.tamanagement.com.
