Top Five Mistakes Leaders Make in These Troubled Times
Alternative actions to the top five mistakes leaders made during difficult times..
Even Joe the Pipefitter must look askance at some of
the moves made in corporate America when faced with a string of bad news.
(Sorry... I just can't use "Joe the Plumber", a guy who didn't pay his
taxes, isn't certified as a plumber, and has tried to cash in on his 15
seconds of fame which - amazingly McGraw Hill has turned into a book while
making great authors wait for a contract.)
Mistake #1: Become reactive and reactionary.
There is truth in the old saying "Respond in haste. Regret in sorrow." This
is also known as the "ready, fire, aim" approach of leadership. When leaders
fail to gather the information and critically assess the long-term impact of
decisions, severe errors are made. Consider the Big Three auto executives
who knee-jerked their way on private planes to ask for a handout
without ever having a plan. Now that's a bonehead mistake.
First, stop any action and breathe. Think long-term strategy. Be cautious.
Be proactive. Test out the decisions by saying, "If this... then this..." so
you can try it on for size.
Mistake #2: Huddle with only the corporate folks.
First, answers are often found at the floor level, not at the ceiling.
Involve everyone in the search for efficiencies and innovations. Engage
everyone in a common vision and mission. Besides, if managers tell employees
what to do, you've taken away all sense of responsibility and ownership. How
refreshing to have the Obama team now posting discussions on the internet
and seeking input from a variety of people with differing viewpoints.
Building transparency goes a long way for building trust and making us all
feel we are part of the solution.
Mistake #3: Cut. Cut. Cut.
No one EVER downsized their way to greatness. Wholesale termination of
employees without thinking about the cost of underserved customers and too
much work done by too few people or canceling the meeting without realizing
that this is the time TO GATHER and candidly talk are just two examples of
cuts that could have been done with a scalpel instead of a hacksaw.
Substitute Jello for Jamoca Fudge and Two Buck Chuck for Dom Perignon but
bring people together.
As for layoffs, if your organization or department can handle this-bring
everyone together and spread out the facts. One very smart leader found that
employees were willing to reduce work schedules, work half-time, and job
share rather than have members of their team terminated. For more ideas,
read Responsible Restructuring: Creative and Profitable Alternatives
to Layoffs by Wayne Cascio, professor of management at the University of
Colorado-Denver Business School.
Mistake #4: Go after new clients and customers.
Unless your current customers have vanished because of poor quality or
service, these can be your best source of new revenue. Ask how you can turn
them into champions of what you provide. Make them feel special and
valuable. I've noticed that my bank is now making every effort to thank me
for my business, to call me by name, to answer any request with a "no
problem" attitude. Sure, they should have been doing that all along
but-better late than never. Besides, they've already got all my money in the
safe. I think they'd like to keep it.
Mistake #5: Do more with less.
We've been hearing this for years. In my consulting practice, I have often
found that much of the "more" is work that provides no value at the end of
the day. Scrutinize every process; get rid of the sacred cows and the egos.
Translate every action into a dollar value. In one organization, we found
that senior executives were tripping over each other to put their two cents
into every PowerPoint presentation that was made. It was a waste of
executive talent, made each project longer than necessary, disempowered the
employee creating the presentation, and actually used up some $15,000 worth
of senior management time!
BONUS Mistake: Buy into pessimism.
It's a huge mistake we all make when we let the news of the day finds us
hiding under the covers, chopping up the furniture for kindling and
searching for recipes made with bread and water. What we have here is an
opportunity to really consider what is most important, to spend time at work
that is meaningful, and to nurture relationships that matter. We have an
opportunity to reclaim our reputation, our integrity, and our future. Not to
do this would be our biggest mistake.
To condense the wisdom of a Hopi Elder, "This is the Eleventh Hour - and we
are the ones we've been waiting for."