Holding back from jumping-in when a key point comes to mind in the middle of a fast-paced conversation can be a challenge but it is also essential in order to avoid being written-off as one who does not listen or understand, especially if the leader is new to the organization.

The following steps help a leader stay in-tune and attuned and dramatically improve their odds of success:

• When someone talks, give undivided attention and do not interrupt.  While s/he is talking you may think you know what they are going to say and what you want to say next rushes to mind.  In that instant you experience an irrepressible urge to interrupt and jump-in.  Following the urge causes many bright, successful senior executives to often unintentionally and repeatedly use the power of their position to hijack conversations.  The pattern wears on those in the organization and soon the leader is written-off as one who never listens and who does not get, or care about, those they lead.

• Resist the temptation to jump-in.  Set thoughts aside in your mind or make a note of what you plan to share when the time comes.  Force yourself, instead, to concentrate on precisely what is being said.  Do not evaluate what is being said and do not begin to formulate a response.  Just listen word-for-word with the objective to repeat back exactly what you heard to be sure you got it right.  To force yourself to listen, try to write-down what is being said exactly as you hear it in the moment.  Strive to hear and understand each word as well as the overall point being made.

• When the speaker stops, ask for permission to repeat back what was heard.  Follow with an opening phrase such as: “What I heard you say is:…” and then repeat back what you heard, word-for-word.  When done, ask for confirmation that you heard correctly.

• If what you repeated back matches what the person intended to say then, upon confirmation, you are now in a great position to be heard and it is time to make your point.  With any luck the listener will repeat back what you say, just as you modeled, and the practice of effective communication begins.

• If what you repeat back is not what the speaker said, invite him/her to provide corrections. Edit what you said before and say it again.  Repeat this process until you get it right.  Once you have it right go on to say what you have to offer.

The process may at first seem arduous and that it unnecessarily slows down communication but, while it does slow the conversation down, it increases efficiency because things generally only need to be said once and are more likely to be fully understood which leads to faster buy-in, understanding, commitment, and action.

If you have a reputation for not listening and want to change to be more effective as a leader, follow these steps:

• Admit by saying out loud, first to yourself and then to those you work with (including bosses, peers, and subordinates), that you are an interrupter and that you would like to change.

• Ask those you work with for permission to change, both one-on-one and in groups.  Doing so will bring you great respect and admiration.  It is easier to do than it sounds and it is a great way to endear yourself to the community you seek both to be part of and to lead.

• Earnestly invite those you work with to help you change by both letting you know when you exhibit bad behavior and by complementing you when you exhibit the target behavior.

• Make a visible gesture both to add levity but also to make it crystal clear you are serious about changing.  One executive, for example, placed a sign in front of him during meetings to invite those present to tell him when he was not acting in accord with his stated desire to behave properly.  As a result, he dramatically made the point to himself and to others, got everyone in on it, and remarkably quickly became a far more effective leader.

Becoming a good listener is hard work; especially after a long period of success without having to think about when to say whatever comes to mind.  When the stakes are high it can be well worth the trouble and may even lead to an entirely new level of performance and growth.

Manage to Lead: Seven Truths to Help You Change the World

Click on the book cover icon to access its catalog entry on inkling.com.  Download the free chapter to try it out on any iPad, any iPhone, or on any Mac or PC using the Chrome browser.

Manage to Lead will soon also be available in print and as an e-book at Amazon.  Access from Android devices is slated for later in 2013

The interactive, digital workbook has:

• Work problems,
• Templates,
• Animations,
• Assessments,
• Videos,
• Graphics, and
• Executive team exercises and meeting agendas.

Workbook content is accessible, searchable and “findable” on the web using Google. One chapter (Get Aligned) is available at no charge.  Any of three units containing selected chapters may be purchased separately.

The entire workbook can also be purchased along with appendixes and a final assessment at a significant discount for a limited time in appreciation to all IntelliVen students, clients, followers, and subscribers who have helped make the book possible. Future updates and enhancements will forever be automatically pushed to purchasers at no additional charge.

Whether one wants to change personal habits, implement a new information system, improve a business process, get team members to work together, increase a community’s appreciation for diversity, or even to topple a monarchy, taking seven actions driven by seven disarmingly simple truths will individually and collectively help achieve the goal.

Manage to Lead presents a framework to describe and assess any organization. It also provides a structured approach to plan and implement next steps for an organization as it strives for long-term growth and performance.

Readers are invited to select a familiar organization on which to apply the tools and templates introduced throughout the workbook. Exercises in each chapter produce essential elements for the organization’s annual strategic plan and lay the groundwork for implementing that plan.

Readers can package the key elements from Organization Exercises to form a strategic plan that communicates how the organization sees itself and where it is headed. At the end of the year leaders can compare actual results with what was described in the strategic plan to study what happened, why what happened was different than plan, what is to be learned from that, and what to do differently going forward as a result.

Repeat the process over several years and compare actual to planned results year-to-year to see the organization mature, perform, and grow to its full potential.

Enter a reply message below to request course syllabus and teaching tips for classroom or company use.

In the face of growth and strong performance, some may begin to wonder if the good times will soon end as founders, owners, and investors look to pocket the value that has been created through a sale of the organization to larger firm. Leaders sometimes struggle to keep up employee morale in such circumstances.

It can help for leaders to remind everyone in such circumstances that the best thing, in all scenarios, is to build the best possible business because doing so leads to:

• Making the most positive impact in the market served,
• Creating the most value for owners, and
• Creating the most opportunity for employees to assume new responsibilities, earn increased compensation, learn new skills, and be in position to take on attractive roles upon an acquisition.

Nearly all ventures eventually either go out of business or they get sold. A start-up might fold, for example, if it failed to consistently and predictably perform and grow.

The way to create the most value, and therefore attract the best sale price, is to do what the organization should also do to attract and retain the best talent and make the most positive impact in the market it serves, which is to build a business that grows and that consistently performs well relative to its past, its plans, and its peers.

Consequently, the best strategy is to build a strong, stable, growing business which leads to making a greater impact, creating more value, and more opportunity for employees. The owners of such an organization will someday have the enviable opportunity to choose between continuing to perform and grow, or to sell.  Either way everyone is better off by building the best business possible.

There are several ways for founders, owners, and investors to “realize” the value of the organization they build.  One is to sell the enterprise to another organization.  Another is to refinance (for example by taking on, or restructuring, debt or by becoming employee owned) and a third way is to sell shares to the public via an Initial Public Offering. One of these will most likely happen to any successful venture somewhere along the line.  The choice as to which, and the timing, is generally driven by the objectives of the majority owner(s).

The way things will change when part of an acquiring organization will be determined by the particulars of the players involved and the reasons that together make sense.  As long as there are no known suitors it is pointless to speculate further.  It is much more important for leaders, and everyone on board, to concentrate on building the most valuable and successful growth business they possibly can.

•  what problem their organization solves for whom,

• what is most important to do differently next, and

• who to count on for what.

Countless other day-to-day matters that will eventually impact long term organization performance and growth demand similar attention.  Many leaders struggle to reach a good, a better, or even a best solution to each. 

More important than the right answer, though, is all team members having the same answer.  Once all are aligned and on the same page on any matter, odds are performance will improve because everyone pulls in the same direction. The result is a multiplier effect suggested by the three arrows forming a much larger fourth arrow in the icon in the figure above.

An aligned team of top players all pulling in the same direction has enormous potential and capacity to accomplish their goals.  Together they will iterate to better and best answers, while also performing well, along the way.

To test for, and to achieve, alignment the best leaders:

• Invite each team member to make explicit (anonymously if desired) whose problem they believe the organization solves, what is most important to change next, who to count on for what, and any number of other important day-to-day matters.

• Consolidate and report back to the team what has been put forward, without attribution.

• Lead the team in a group discussionto come to common understanding.

It is the leader’s job is to make decisions on important matters when the group is unable to reach consensus.

The process outlined above allows the leader to tap into and benefit from everyone’s thinking and for team members to each be heard and to make explicit what is otherwise left unsaid.  The result turns hesitation, uncertainty, tentativeness, and speculation into engagement, commitment, and alignment.  All  of which contributes to peak performance.

• Work problems,
• Templates,
• Graphics,
• Slide shows, and
• Assessments

will be offered later this Spring at www.intelliven.com as an interactive digital workbook called Manage to Lead: Seven Truths to Help You Change the World available on the iPad, iPhone, Mac or PC powered by Inkling the leading platform for interactive higher education textbooks. Print and electronic copies will also be available on amazon.com.

Workbook content is searchable and findable on the web using Google. One chapter will be available at no charge and selected chapters may be purchased separately The entire workbook can also be purchased along with appendixes and answers to work problems. Future updates and enhancements will forever be automatically pushed to purchasers at no additional charge.

Selected intelliven.com blog content will soon be available as an interactive digital workbook.

Whether one wants to change personal habits, implement a new information system, improve a business process, get team members to work together, increase a community’s appreciation for diversity, or even to topple a monarchy, taking seven actions driven by seven disarmingly simple truths will individually and collectively help achieve the goal.

Manage to Lead presents a framework to describe and assess any organization. It also provides a structured approach to plan and implement next steps for an organization as it strives for long-term growth and performance.

Readers are invited to select a familiar organization on which to apply the tools and templates introduced throughout the workbook. Exercises in each chapter produce essential elements for the organization’s annual strategic plan and lay the groundwork for implementing that plan.

Readers can package the key elements from Organization Exercises to form a strategic plan that communicates how the organization sees itself and where it is headed. At the end of the year leaders can compare actual results with what was described in the strategic plan to study what happened, why what happened was different than plan, what is to be learned from that, and what to do differently going forward as a result.

Repeat the process over several years and compare actual to planned results year-to-year to see the organization mature, perform, and grow to its full potential.

• Deep: Look for an extraordinary depth of competence in a functional or technical area or a methodology that is essential to the organization’s business;

• Conceptual: The best leaders have an ability to abstract fully-formed concepts from a collection of parts and are able to communicate complex concepts clearly even to those who are not conceptual;

• Connected: Target those who have strong interpersonal relationships with prospective or current clients, employees, partners, or funding sources; and

• Driven: Look for an extraordinary inner commitment to achieve targeted results on time, on target, and on budget.

A diverse team of Deep, Conceptual, Connected, and Driven leaders who really like working with each other and who seek to accomplish the same end-result for the same reason and in the same way, have the collective capacity to accomplish nearly anything!

Peter DiGiammarino will present a one-hour summary of his Manage to Lead: Seven Truths to Help You Change the World framework, that can be used to describe and assess any organization, at the Northern Virginia Society for Human Resource Managers dinner meeting on April 30.

He will also provide a structured approach to plan and implement next steps for an organization as it strives for long-term growth and performance.

In the role of chief executive, director, and manager, Peter DiGiammarino has led dozens of successful organizations, which ranged in maturity from initial concept to employing thousands of people and, collectively, generated billions of dollars in economic value and social impact.

Survey the leader’s top team and ask them each:

• To describe the current state, that is: how things are today.

• What really good things happen if we change and what really bad things happen if we do not?

• To describe how things would be in the future if their ideal changes were successfully implemented.

• What needs to be done in order to get from where things are today to where things would ideally be next?

• What will make it hard to do what needs to be done in order to get from today to the targeted next state?

Review results with the leader to bring him/her up to speed on the group’s data. Look for and discuss fully any points the leader finds confusing or surprising.

Convene an offsite with the leader and the leadership team to review collected data, reach consensus on each of the five topics, and decide what needs to be done. At the offsite, review survey responses one question at a time in the order above. Highlight responses that are the same or similar thereby indicating progress towards consensus. Guide the group to discuss the data until agreement is reached on how things are today, why things need to change, and how things would be if the desired change had been implemented.

Use the Change Framework to make the case for each Strategic Initiative.

The diagram in Figure-1 presents a convenient way to visualize and store the group’s consensus in a Change Framework diagram similar to that originally introduced by Richard Beckhard and Wendy Pritchard in Changing the Essence: The Art of Creating and Leading Fundamental Change in Organizations, Jossey-Bas Inc., San Francisco, 1992.

Fill out the Change Framework to make a clear and compelling case for each initiative.  Iterate with the team until all members are crystal clear about each initiative.

If participants share their thinking openly, fully, and honestly they can go a long way towards achieving clarity and alignment. An effective leader then holds the results of these efforts and furthers their development, communicates progress to stakeholders, and assigns, aligns and drives resources in their pursuit.

Figure-2: Follow the above tips to build a clear and compelling case for the change driven by each initiative.

A well formulated initiative, using the Change Framework, tells a story about where things are, why they need to change, how things would be if the intended change occurred and what must be done to get from here to there. A well crafted change framework is rational, compelling, and flows smoothly from the present through to the future.

Follow the tips in Figure-2 to piece together the context and the story for each of the initiatives the organization must do next to stay on track to long-term growth and performance.

Figure-3: A classic looking list of initiatives from an executive off-site.

Many management offsites produce a list of initiatives, such as shown in Figure-3, after intense effort and exhilarating breakthroughs. A list without context, though, fails to reveal the motivation and importance behind each initiative and so makes it difficult to communicate or to muster the energy, resources, and commitment beyond the session needed to implement them.

Using the Change Framework instead of a simple list helps but even still, far too often, the same initiatives are again listed at the next offsite with little if any progress since last time simply because no one was put in charge and resources never allocated to implement them.

Upon reaching agreement, the group may feel drained but good about what it has accomplished. It is important to make sure the group knows it has done great work and come a long way but there is still more important work to be done. Their effort may be for naught unless one more step is taken.

After the list of initiatives is developed and before ending the session the leader assigns each team member to:

Figure-4: Click on the figure to fill out and submit the Initiative-to-Action form for a Strategic Initiative.

• Take 20-minutes to fill out an Initiative-to-Action template using the link in Figure-4, for a specific initiative, preferably one the leader would like the team member to sponsor; and then to

• Lead the group in a brief discussion about the assigned initiative.

Each team member, in turn, briefs the group on their initiative using the filled out Initiative-to-Action form. As each speaks, the rest of the leadership team adopts the mindset of close adviser and on the same team as the one speaking. Their objective is to ensure that the key points from the group’s work are captured so that the best thinking of the group is at-hand and in mind as efforts to progress with the initiative proceed on the heels of the session.

Filling out and briefing the Initiative-to-Action form launches the governance process and gets a leadership team member into the role of the initiative’s executive sponsor and on-the-hook to make progress on behalf of the group.  As such the team member becomes accountable to the group for progress on their initiative. Motivation and commitment soar and the odds of making progress go up as well. Over the ensuing performance period, the leader calls on each team member at some point to brief the group on how their initiative is progressing.

Example Change Framework:

Example Change Framework for an organization whose leaders decided to move from a functional to a cross-functional approach to client services.

If what to monitor is not known then:

• Watch everything and whittle away what turns out to not be useful and keep watching what turns out to be useful.

• Study similar organizations to learn what they track.

• Look up industry analysts and market researchers to find out what they watch.

Set targets for chosen metrics based on what similar, ideally the best, organizations do.  For example, if sales and marketing expenses combined total 15% of revenue for the best organizations that do something similar then use that as a benchmark (i.e., a point of comparison).  Note that it is OK to have a different target as long as there is sensible justification.

Prior to any given period of performance, predict how what is about to happen will show up in the targeted measures. Then perform and monitor what happens.  Compare measured  actual results with what was predicted.  The shorthand for this is: Predict-Act-Measure.

Study what happened to determine why what actually happened varied from predicted results.  Learn from the experience and then decide what to do differently going forward as a result.  The short hand for this process is: What-Why-So What- Now What?

The process chart below diagrams the sequences starting in the upper-left with defining overall success and moving down to the lower-left to determine what to watch based on what others who do something similar watch.  Next, in the lower-left, make a projection about what will happen upon performance.  Then perform, measure, and compare actual results to projection as suggested along the diagonal to the upper-right. If actual results are in-line with projection then all is well and the cycle is repeated.

When actual results differ from what was projected, analyze what has happened after making sure measurements are correct, to move from the upper-right to the lower-right.

Moving from the lower-right along the bottom back to the lower-left are the four all-important questions:

• What happened?
• Why is what happened different than what was projected to happen?
• What is learned from this? and
• What will be done differently going forward as a result of what has been learned?

Appropriate changes are implemented and the entire process is then repeated over and over until desired results are achieved and the ultimate long-term goal is reached.

Summary

Every important thing an organization does should be subject to a continuous and rigorous Do & Review cycle.  Doing so is essential for the organization to learn, to grow, and to perform up to its potential.

The Do & Review cycle is a planning and control learning model that works with everything any one or any organization wants to do in a predictable and improving way.  As such it is ideally applied to the three core systems of any organization; i.e., the systems we referred to earlier as:

• Do,
• Sell, and
• Grow.

Ensure compare and explain projected and actual results to:

• What others (especially the best) do to look for and demonstrate favorable comparison to others in an industry.

• What the organization has done previously to look for and demonstrate continuous growth and improvement.

• What was supposed to happen according to plan and projection to demonstrate consistent accountability to a plan.

Note that the virtues of Do & Review apply to every level of system (person, team, unit, organization, etc.) and in all time-spans (i.e., monthly, quarterly, annually, etc.).

• Is not answerable in a single word, i.e. it is open-ended and inspires an engaging dialogue on a broad agenda.
• Builds credibility and demonstrates knowledge of relevant subject matter  without being forced, boastful, or pompous.

• Opens up and expands multiple dimensions of awareness and concern beyond what was previously known or imagined by the customer or prospect.

• Imparts knowledge, information, and/or guidance.  And provides a gateway for ensuing dialogue in which the customer learns more about something s/he is trying to do while the questioner learns about where the customer’s or  prospect’s head is at and provides an opportunity to move his or her thinking in the most productive direction.

• Uncovers new areas of interest and concern.

• Identifies conflicts and inconsistencies.

• Inspires Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt relative to specific issues that may impact the customer or prospects ability to achieve desired results.

• Engenders follow up – Lots of it.  For example, to check out the uncertainty, address the doubt, and take care of the fear.  The idea is to prolong and expand dialogue.  Well-phrased questions open a line of additional questions.

• Differentiates questioner’s strengths relative to others.

• Provides a forum for a relationship to develop.

• Edifies, while exposing points of pain points. Does not slam or offend in any way.

OBJECTIVES WHEN ASKING QUESTIONS OF CUSTOMERS or PROSPECTS

• Learn what is “Hot” for every person involved in any way.

• Drive toward a clear and unambiguous articulation of the business objectives which underlie and make the case for value to be delivered.

• Identify and begin to develop relationships with the key influencers, decision-makers, and visionaries.

• Gauge and positively influence the commitment of stakeholders to implement the change required by what is to be delivered.

• Uncover inconsistent goals, objectives, and priorities.

• Establish and enhance credibility.

• Compile a database of responses for further analysis and follow up.

• Start with open-ended questions and follow up with more focused questions to get at specifics points of interest or concern.

Clarity and Alignment

• What is [organization] trying to do?  How is it going? How do you know? In the context just outlined, what is it that you personally are trying to do?  And how is that going?  How do you know?

• Who at [organization] is driving this initiative?  Is s/he empowered by the organization to make decisions, set direction, align and allocate resources, and motivate action?  What does s/he stand to gain or lose from the intiative?  If this person were your best friend, what is the best advice you could give him/her regarding this initiative (assure that the answer is given in confidence)?

• Who in the organization seems resistant to this initiative?  What do you think are their concerns?  What approach might help get them get on board?

• What role do you see yourself playing in this initiative?  How committed do you personally feel to its success?  What will it take from you to ensure success?

• How do you believe this initiative might impact [organization]?  Which areas will be most affected?  Will yours?  Do you see possible organization changes resulting from a success?  What might the new organization look like?  What benefits might accrue from these changes?

• In terms of day-to-day operations, are there particular areas or tasks which you recommend the team focus on?  Which do you think will provide the most benefits?

• What is hard or difficult about this initiative?  How do you think these challenges could be overcome or mitigated?

• What are the risks, as you see them, of this initiative?  What are the downside magnitudes?  Which of these are you most concerned about and why?

• What are the top three things you are trying to accomplish over the next performance period? Among the differing demands on your time, how do you view the relative importance of this initiative?  Why?

• What are the overwhelming business reasons for engaging in this effort?  Which are most important to you?  What, given this, is its business value to [Organization] and to your area?

• What other alternatives to this initiative were evaluated?  What were some of the reasons, pro and con, for considering these?  Which elements of these other alternatives do you believe we need to preserve?

Growth

• How do you define success for your efforts in three-to-five years?  In your opinion, how can our initiative help you achieve that success?  What will you be able to do differently from today?  Why is that important?  What will it be worth?

• For [Organization Name] to succeed, what must this initiative accomplish?  Are there other ongoing initiatives to which this one is related and critically dependent upon?  How do you suggest that we work together?

• Are there different visions of the future held by others in the organization?  How would you describe these?  Are there components of these that you believe play a role in your vision?  Which ones?

• What do you see as the role of technology in the future of your job?

Thoughtful planning, scripting, and practice with questions that follow these guidelines will payoff handsomely to those who invest their time and energy.  Get to the point where you can smoothly, calmly, and causally slip into the most productive line of questioning when the opportunity presents itself. Then go out of your way to create such opportunities and take full advantage when they come about.

Engage everyone you can at the customer and prospect site to learn where they stand and to cultivate and expand their thinking about what is possible and how you  and your organization can best help them achieve the biggest possible lift in performance as soon as possible.

When conversation ends, immediately find a quiet place to make notes about what was learned, what worked well, what you would do differently next time, and what you will do next.  Follow up and share what was learned with management and teammates.