Change. Are you tired of that word? By now, we have realized that it is just another word for life. Another expectation of leadership. Things donotstay the same. While some changes may actually be welcomed, most are usually not. A change is typically one more thing that you have to understand, grapple with, fit in with your already tight schedule and hope to get right even if you haven’t done it before. Now for me, each new client is always a welcome change. I love learning a new business, getting to know new people, and figuring out how this team will bring inspired change that will win big in the market. It is what I do, and I still get a thrill from it. On the other hand, the kind of change I don’t like is typically having to learn new technology or systems. This may be a shock, but patience and systems operation learning are not my strengths! Changing my phone, re-learning how to use Quick Books every time it changes functionality or mastering a new CRM for our non-profit Alison’s Angels, are not my favorite things to do. That being said, I can’t function without dealing with those changes.
When we face uncertainty, a guarantee of change ahead, a future that looks different from the past, we may want to cling to what we know. According to a recent HRB article, “Now is the Time for Courage” by Ranay Gulati, some of us freeze because we are overwhelmed, others hunker down hoping to wait out chaos, while others retrench trying to protect an uncertain future. However, those are rarely effective strategies for leadership. They don’t yield growth and high performance.“Fortune favors the brave, not the cautious.”
Bravery is a choice according to the author, Gulati. It doesn’t mean running headfirst into opposing forces, but it does mean accepting challenges, particularly those presented by the market, and being open to new ideas and solutions. As written by Professor Kathleen Reardon, courageous action is really an intelligent gamble, based on careful deliberation and preparation that includes weighing risks and benefit. Change just requires us to consider paths that may carry new risks and then mitigate them through careful and thoughtful study, choices, and action. Should we make that investment? Add that customer segment? Switch to bundled products from a line item catalog? Sell more online? All are decisions that carry risk. But what is the risk of inaction?
When I undertake an engagement with a client, we start by studying the marketplace. What is changing? How is it different than it was when the last strategy/culture/go-to-market approach was developed? We call it “outside-in” thinking. What is on the hearts and minds of our customers now? How does that show up in what people are buying or not buying, how they are buying it and who they are buying it from? Is what we offer still relevant or is it slipping, and why? Facing those questions require bravery. You may not like the answers. But success lays on the other side of the answers to those questions. It is my experience that having real data about the market provides the courage, or as we call it in GrowthDNA™, the confidence to make bolder decisions, to challenge the status quo and to move forward with greater expectations of performance potential.
Next comes determining the future potential of an organization by putting the pieces of discovery together in new ways. Where is the thread of strength on which the future can be built? What needs to be eliminated as cumbersome or adding little value anymore, no matter how ingrained in the process or culture? The clarity that comes from redefining true north, or a strategic direction, can be liberating…if people believe in it. While the data unearthed in “outside-in” thinking helps build that commitment, the other side of the equation, is belief in leadership and the team. Can WE get there? Do WE understand what it takes? What do WE need to change or do differently—in how we work, how we think and how we interact? Documenting the culture needed for success is just as important as adopting a path of future growth. It won’t happen on its own. It needs champions, team players, and rock stars. Does your culture expect that? Do your people believe they are capable of providing that? If not, what needs to change in the workplace? Culture? Performance Management? Hiring?
Once you have a strategic direction and a culture of growth mindedness, one of the best ways is to start down new strategic paths by taking small steps. Establish some quick wins that support the overall direction and encourage everyone to not only get on board but believe that the overall outcome is doable. Not easy, not without hard work, but possible. Celebrate the positives. Notice I didn’t say celebrate the wins. Not everything has a traditionally defined win, but most things undertaken as an investment in the future have a positive—even if it is learning what doesn’t work.
How courageous do you feel? How brave is your leadership team? Do you regularly embrace tough questions in the plight for great performance? This is one of those times that change really isn’t an option. Need help navigating through it? Give me a call or send me a message. Happy to help. It is one of the “changes” I truly enjoy, and it would be an honor to help your team do the same!
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