Surviving the Fire ~ 5 Things I need From You

I think we know by now that leadership does not always involve building something up.  Sometimes, it’s about dismantling something to make room for something else or reducing something rather than growing it. These are hard times involving difficult conversations, conversations that affect the lives of others…and not in a good way.

I’ve been thinking about the times when I’ve had such conversations with people, when change was afoot and jobs were diminishing or disappearing altogether.  And I’ve been thinking too about how the sting of losing a job can be slightly eased, or made infinitely worse, by the person delivering the news.

So, if you are such a person, let’s pretend that you are my boss and you have to tell me that I no longer have a job.  I’m fired. It’s a nerve-wracking proposition, I know, and one that you’d probably give anything to be able to delegate.  But you can’t.  So it’s you and me kid.  And, when the time comes, here’s what I’m going to need from you:

The straight goods:

Beating about the bush might make you feel better but it won’t help me.  Come to the point right away.  Do not launch into a soliloquy about the company’s challenges, concerns or plans before letting me have it.  After all, I’m not going to be part of your future.  And really, at this point, I’m not likely to care am I?

Simply tell me you have bad news and then tell me what it is.  If I want an explanation after that, (and I most likely will) I’ll ask for it.

Some direction:

Before we sit down together, please be prepared to tell me what is to happen immediately after our interview and in the ensuing period.  You may appreciate that I will feel a little stunned and disoriented.  If you anticipate this and make sure that all the information and documentation I need to begin the process of moving on is promptly available to me, it will help me feel just a little safer.

Some Support:

I may not need or want you to “hold my hand”, but it’s possible that I will need you to listen to me.  This may take time.  Please allow me this.  If I am emotional give me a tissue, and the benefit of your quiet presence.  If I am angry allow me to vent just a little.  I may say things I don’t mean.  To use the vernacular, suck it up.  It’s not really about you.

Your professionalism

I know delivering this kind of news is terribly hard. For this reason you might be tempted to say things that will sound, well, kind of empty and insincere.  I need you to practice what you are going to say to me so that when the time comes, you will deliver your message with clarity, empathy and without apology.  There’s a difference between feeling sorry and apologizing.  Don’t get the two mixed up.

My dignity intact:

Please allow me to make a dignified exit from the workplace. I am not a criminal.  My job may be redundant but I’m not. Please do not frog march me out of the premises with my potted plant and my personal items in a box or demand my keys and passwords in front of my peers. The truth is, I’m more likely to speak well of you and the company if you treat me with respect.

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Here’s my bottom line on this.  Terminating someone’s employment is one of the most difficult things a leader must do.  It is important to remember though that it is infinitely more difficult for the person on the receiving end.  Doing all we can to help that person make a dignified and minimally painful transition to his or her next step is simply the right thing to do.

That’s what I think anyway. What do you think?

Taking Inventory & A Model For Making It Meaningful

Labour Day weekend always feels to me like a harbinger of renewal.  The children are off to school again equipped with new school supplies and shining faces.  College students are settling in to a new semester. And, everyone else is pretty much back to work after the summer holidays.

Time to turn over a new page, I think, and take some inventory.  It’s a good thing to take inventory from time to time, if only to assure ourselves that we are going in the right direction and toward the right goal.

Years ago, a very smart man, Hubert Saint-Onge, created and presented this simple model that has remained with me ever since.  It is a model that illustrates what must be present for us to effect change or ensure the achievement of our goals.  I think it is a perfect tool to use when taking organizational, or personal, inventory.

Three elements comprise this model.  They are Focus, Commitment and Capability.

Focus is about having a clear sense of destination…  what you want to achieve and why. As well as who will be involved or impacted and where you want to go with it all.

Commitment is about the attitudes, emotions, will, and the degree to which there is a sense of ownership among people.  In short, this is about what is now more popularly referred to as employee engagement, or just simply engagement.

Capability is about the degree to which skills, knowledge, processes and resources are present.

Take a look at the model here.

It shows that:

• If you have focus and commitment, but no capability, the goal becomes something you would do if you could or had the resources you needed to get it done.

• If you have commitment and capability, but no focus, the goal becomes something you may do if you were to get clear on what it is and why you want to go there.

• And, if you have capability and focus, but no commitment the goal becomes something you could do but only if you wanted to.

I like this model because, to me, it clearly illustrates the necessity for all three of these elements to converge before an environment of positive, purposeful action can be created.

So, when taking inventory, or preparing to make a change, perhaps it would help to give consideration to these three elements and ask yourself some questions like:

Focus: Since first establishing our goals, what, if anything, has changed?  Do these goals continue to fit our view of the future for ourselves? for our company? for our current environment? Why are these goals important? How might we achieve greater clarity? What might we be missing?

Commitment: How engaged are those who follow? Are they clear about why the organization is in business and what it strives to achieve? Do they see themselves in the picture?  If we don’t know, how will we find out?  If we do know, what do we need to do to keep, or earn, their loyalty and optimal contribution?

Capability: Do we have the skills we need?  If not, what training do we need and in what format? Do we hire expertise or develop it? Do we have the equipment and resources we need?  If so, do we know how to make optimal use of them? What are the things that will likely get in our way?  How good are we at addressing these things?

There are of course a myriad of possible questions that I have not come up with here.  How we each take inventory can be a very personal thing but the three elements of focus, commitment and capability seem like a good place to start.

What do you think?  What would you add? How useful might this tool be for you? for your business?