The problem
A CEO-backed company-wide initiative would almost certainly improve its bottom line. But how can this senior manager steer a path between dissenters and his own entrenched views?
David is a senior manager who has been with his company for 15 years. He has been asked by the CEO, with whom he works closely, to pioneer a work/life balance initiative for the organisation.
David believes that his workload and that of his team is reflective of those throughout the company and feels nervous that his top team will merely pay lip service to an initiative that could, if implemented appropriately, make a real difference to the bottom line. This will, however, mean staff dealing not only with professional issues but also working through personal dilemmas that should in turn link back to improved performance. Having discussed this at length with the CEO, he has been reassured that, provided there is a clear positive impact on revenue over the next 24 months, he has his ultimate backing. David is now left with the dilemma of how to raise awareness, implement, sustain and show a return on all of this investment in a culture that, while being supportive of its staff, tends to do so on a one-to-one manager to individual basis, rather than through company-wide initiatives.
The Solution
Margaret Kett
Director
8th Wonder Consulting
As David’s coach, I would approach this at both a macro and a micro level. Initially I would work with him on his assumptions to check whether they are the reality. As he has been with the company for so long he may well have entrenched certain methods and behaviours simply because they were ‘the right way to do it’ when he started. Then I would look at ways to help him improve on this, possibly by using the Wheel of Life. This would identify key areas in David’s life such as career, money, personal growth and relationships, on a scale of 1 to 10 in terms of satisfaction. David could then work on those areas he would like to change. So, if David feels his career is an issue, we could work on a new ‘career’ wheel, dividing it into key components such as hours, status and workload. I would then encourage him to work with his team in a similar way to clarify his view of the reality. We could define what David is trying to achieve and develop a project plan with clear milestones. CEO sponsorship is critical David should ensure the CEO makes his commitment clear. Next, we would discuss the option of using cross-functional, cross-grade focus groups to identify what the staff understand work/life balance to mean and what they may expect from such a programme. One proviso may be to have a separate focus group for directors who can often affect the dynamics of a group. He may have spoken with individual directors to identify those for and against the scheme. He should use his influencing skills to help the focus group become a forum for dissenters. We could work on how managers could be developed to use a coaching style and underpin this with detailed management reporting to clearly show measurable outcomes.
Charles Helliwell
Business
Personality Audits
David’s dilemma is twofold: managing the perceived risk with which colleagues will view his initiative and how to clearly demonstrate a tangible outcome for the CEO. Company-wide programmes are often risky affairs, mainly because of lack of ownership, so David’s first task will be to create a small team of stakeholders to act as pathfinders for the more reticent members of the organisation. It is unlikely they will wish to share his risk, so he must initially shoulder that responsibility, while providing them with opportunities to show their capabilities, creating a micro-culture of dynamic winners and advocates of change. Having raised awareness about the culture change programme and provided his team of pathfinders with positive wins, his challenge will move to building and maintaining the interest and momentum it has created. Companies are comprised mostly of johnny-come-latelys and dissenters in equal number. These people are the reason why so many company-wide initiatives are doomed before they begin. The key to turning them around is by creating chances for self-improvement, self-awareness, self-belief and self-promotion; the better someone is at their job the more opportunities they will find. Those opportunities may be money, status, responsibility, awareness, kudos or power. David must sell ‘collaborative engagement’, where everyone may participate at whatever level they choose, where all they have to consider is whether they are ‘in’ or ‘out’ and how important is it to them to influence their company in ways they may have previously considered only a pipedream.