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Investment in Leadership - the key to survival in turbulent times?:
The media tell us that recession is looming and turmoil awaits, but some management specialists have an interesting take on how developing good leadership can help organizations survive a recession.
In his recent blog ‘Are you ready for global turmoil?’ on the Harvard Business Publishing web site Paul Schoemaker suggested that fostering leadership at all levels is a key ingredient in building a resilient and agile organisation.
So when recent headlin...
Dan Shiels - 23.05.2008
See full commentInvestment in Leadership - the key to survival in turbulent times?:
The media tell us that recession is looming and turmoil awaits, but some management specialists have an interesting take on how developing good leadership can help organizations survive a recession.
In his recent blog ‘Are you ready for global turmoil?’ on the Harvard Business Publishing web site Paul Schoemaker suggested that fostering leadership at all levels is a key ingredient in building a resilient and agile organisation.
So when recent headlines suggest turbulent times ahead for many organizations why should we put time in to developing leadership capability; especially when more immediate concerns prevail? Mr Schoemaker suggests the answer is relatively straightforward, you invest in leadership because strong leadership makes an organization more able to deal with crises and other unexpected circumstances.
Tamara Erikson, an award winning business author, goes even further. She suggests that leaders, rather than preparing for recession in the traditional way through caution and control should instead concentrate on enabling their teams to improvise better. She suggests four things that will help your organization become spontaneous, innovative and reflexive.
1) Increase your firm’s “collaborative capacity” through relationships, trust, and knowledge exchange. Don’t cut out meetings, intensify the competition among internal teams, or reduce investments in learning.
(2) Articulate a compelling “innovation intent” -- something that, in the language of complexity theory, will serve as a “strange attractor” to rally your team around goals that are intriguing, complex and important. Don’t narrow the focus to the mundane or over-specify the way teams should approach their challenges. Keep them engaged.
(3) Ensure that your team has regular on-going exposure to disruptive insights through diversity and external forays. Don’t cut travel or fall back on the old “tried and true” team. Bring in new people and new ideas and take them seriously. Get outside your business sphere.
(4) Provide everyone in your organization with some specific tools to help with innovative thought processes -- teach people how to brainstorm, use scenario analysis, or create ideas through attribute reduction. Don’t cut training -- invest in your people. Teach your employees how to be a business innovator so they can improvise in motion.
And, occasionally, take some risk.
Take a look at the Harvard Business Publishing website. They are running a terrific page called Downturn 2008 - a mangers survival guide.
In his recent blog ‘Are you ready for global turmoil?’ on the Harvard Business Publishing web site Paul Schoemaker suggested that fostering leadership at all levels is a key ingredient in building a resilient and agile organisation.
So when recent headlines suggest turbulent times ahead for many organizations why should we put time in to developing leadership capability; especially when more immediate concerns prevail? Mr Schoemaker suggests the answer is relatively straightforward, you invest in leadership because strong leadership makes an organization more able to deal with crises and other unexpected circumstances.
Tamara Erikson, an award winning business author, goes even further. She suggests that leaders, rather than preparing for recession in the traditional way through caution and control should instead concentrate on enabling their teams to improvise better. She suggests four things that will help your organization become spontaneous, innovative and reflexive.
1) Increase your firm’s “collaborative capacity” through relationships, trust, and knowledge exchange. Don’t cut out meetings, intensify the competition among internal teams, or reduce investments in learning.
(2) Articulate a compelling “innovation intent” -- something that, in the language of complexity theory, will serve as a “strange attractor” to rally your team around goals that are intriguing, complex and important. Don’t narrow the focus to the mundane or over-specify the way teams should approach their challenges. Keep them engaged.
(3) Ensure that your team has regular on-going exposure to disruptive insights through diversity and external forays. Don’t cut travel or fall back on the old “tried and true” team. Bring in new people and new ideas and take them seriously. Get outside your business sphere.
(4) Provide everyone in your organization with some specific tools to help with innovative thought processes -- teach people how to brainstorm, use scenario analysis, or create ideas through attribute reduction. Don’t cut training -- invest in your people. Teach your employees how to be a business innovator so they can improvise in motion.
And, occasionally, take some risk.
Take a look at the Harvard Business Publishing website. They are running a terrific page called Downturn 2008 - a mangers survival guide.
Dan Shiels - 23.05.2008