Organizational Performance Meeting the Challenges Of the New

Organizational Performance Meeting the Challenges Of the New Business Environment Dr. Karl Albrecht Chairman Karl Albrecht International © 2011

The pursuit of mediocrity is always successful. Karl Albrecht

The Current Business Environment • Severe recession / survival thinking • Business is not fun any more • The Internet is creating and destroying opportunities • The electronic culture is invading business culture • Short attention spans and cycles • Relentless atomization and acceleration • Depersonalized: customer “moat” • Depersonalized: management by email • Executives in quandary • “Fad fatigue” – death of “excellence”

IBM Global CEO Study, 2010 • 1500+ CEOs, 60 countries, 33 industries • CEOs concerned about massive, rapid change • Global economic shifts • Disruptive impacts of technology • 80% expect it to get worse • > 50% say their organizations not prepared to cope • Biggest needs they identified: “creativity” “closeness to customers” “organizational dexterity”

“The usual stuff’s not working…”

Leadership and Organizational Performance “Organizational performance cannot be divorced from executive leadership. The executives must learn, grow, and co-develop with the organization. ” - Dr. Karl Albrecht Author of: Service America: Doing Business in the New Economy The Power of Minds at Work: Organizational Intelligence in Action Social Intelligence: the New Science of Success Practical Intelligence: the Art & Science of Common Sense

Are Executives Equipped for the Challenges? “We found that adaptive capacity was the single most important attribute for success, whatever the field. ” “We discovered that all of the leaders had undergone a crucible, a transformative experience that had prepared them to lead. ” Prof. Warren Bennis, USC “… a leader’s life is the summation of the leader’s judgment calls. Making judgment calls, we concluded, is the primary job of a leader, the DNA of leadership. With good judgment, little else matters. Without it, nothing else matters. ” From Still Surprised: a Memoir of a Life in Leadership Adaptive Capacity = Intelligence

Re-thinking Organizational Performance: the extent to which an organization achieves a set of pre-defined targets that are unique to its mission. These targets will include both objective (numerical) and subjective (judgmental) indicators. Performance Drivers: key dimensions of an organization’s functioning that are critical to its capacity to perform. Also called domains of excellence (DOE).

Domains of Excellence are key performance drivers - dimensions of organizational capacity that enable the enterprise to succeed. They are the universal “management dashboard. ” Seven Domains of Excellence: 1. Strategic Focus 2. Customer Value 3. Leadership & Team Performance 4. Culture, Values, & Ethics 5. Process Excellence 6. Talent Management 7. Knowledge Management “Take care of the means, and the end will take care of itself. ” - Gandhi

Performance: Means and Ends Executive Leadership Performance Drivers (DOE) Performance Outcomes

DOE 1: Strategic Focus • An ongoing “strategic conversation” • Continuous environmental scanning • Clear purpose: the “story” • Clear driving values, priorities • Linked to financial / economic results

DOE 2: Customer Value • Key cultural & operational focus • Continuing research & feedback • Value proposition clearly understood • Synergy between “tech” & “touch” • Masterful delivery

DOE 3: Leadership & Team Performance • High standards for leader-managers • Executives who lead and model • Effective leader selection • Effective leader training / dev. • Regular assessment / feedback

DOE 4: Culture, Values, & Ethics • A strong sense of community • Executives who model core values • High quality of work life (QWL) • Morale, esprit de corps, shared fate • Social / ecological responsibility

DOE 5: Process Excellence • Appropriate organization structure • Processes are aligned w/ mission • Processes are friendly to customers • Processes empower performance • Processes are always improving

DOE 6: Talent Management • A culture w/ attracts talented people • Competitive compensation • Management of “fit” and fitness • Developmental opportunities • Systems w/ support career success

DOE 7: Knowledge Management • A culture w/ values knowledge • A culture of collaboration & creativity • Effective use of IT capability • Infrastructure for social networking • Development of thought leaders

We Need a New View of the Business The “Wall Street” Model The Emerging Model A business is just a collection of assets. A business is a living enterprise. It can be bought, sold, subdivided. It’s more than the sum of its parts. There’s one “real” bottom line. There are multiple bottom lines (3 P’s). Success is defined financially. Success is multi-dimensional. Customers are sources of revenue. Customers are solution seekers. Employees are interchangeable “resources. ” Employees are agents / performers. Org’n is an apparatus; a set of processes. Org’n is a complex, adaptive system. It’s “owned” by management. It has multiple stakeholders. Performance is caused by management. Performance is caused by synergy.

We Need a New View of Customers “Wall Street” Model Emerging Model Customers as standard economic units Customers as unique, solution seekers Mostly disposable / interchangeable Can be “appreciating assets” We push products / services to them We focus on delivering value They adapt to our “system” Our systems reflect their worlds

We Need a New View of Employees “Wall Street” Model Emerging Model Interchangeable Work Units Unique Performers Human “resources” Complex motivations Transient, disposable High expectations

We Need a New View of the Executive as “Leader of the Band” Leadership as unique and contextual Leader as learner: growing to meet the challenge Leader as serial problem solver

The Effective Executive Bland Leader? Or Band Leader? Occupies a pre-defined role Deploys his / her unique intelligences Captive of the organization “Owns” the organization Presides / manages Has a “theory” / “story” Sorts problems into “bins” Engages, inspires, and energizes others

The Leader is the “Main Brain” The “thinking style” (preferred information processing pattern) of the leader shapes everything he or she thinks, says, and does. The leader’s thinking style (a. k. a. cognitive style) also influences the collective thinking processes of everyone in the organization under his or her leadership. Thinking styles have been mostly ignored in leadership models.

The Polyintelligent Leader “Multiple Intelligence” Concept: • Robert Sternberg (Yale): the “IQ” concept is obsolete • Howard Gardner (Harvard): 7 – 8 “intelligences” Adapted Model: Karl Albrecht (in his book Social Intelligence) A = Abstract Intelligence S = Social Intelligence P = Practical Intelligence E = Emotional Intelligence A = Aesthetic Intelligence K = Kinesthetic Intelligence The “Triune” Intelligence model for business

What are the Steps in an Organizational Performance Initiative? 1. Evaluation / Assessment: a rigorous, evidence-based process of determining what aspects of the organization deserve to be improved; owned and led by management; may be supported by specialized experts or external practitioners. 2. Planning: a carefully considered process of defining the outcomes desired, deciding what methods and resources to employ, and assigning responsibilities for project leadership (e. g. project team or task force). 3. Implementation: a disciplined process of executing the development plan, with support, participation, and guidance by the appropriate levels of management. 4. Continuity: evaluating the success of the project; celebrating success; formalizing the new way of doing things. The “E. P. I. C. ” Cycle

What are the Critical Success Factors for an Organizational Performance Initiative? Seven Critical Success Factors: 1. Management Ownership 2. Employee Engagement 3. Solutions Unique to the Enterprise 4. Access to Appropriate Expertise 5. Disciplined Analysis & Planning 6. Creative Solutions & Best Practices 7. Flexible Management of the Process

Do We Need Outside Consultants? specialists? big firm? guru? Consultants can sometimes: Consultants vary in their focus: • Educate you about concepts / models • Generalists – assessment / strategy • Advise & guide your efforts • Domain specialists – methodology • Provide specialized expertise / tools • Subject matter experts • Carry out specific outsourced tasks • Others

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