Is the path to improving your organization seen beneficial by everyone?
Last week I asked whether you were on the right path in your organization, and I wanted to add to that conversation. I got to thinking about that path and is it one person’s path or the organization’s path? Are ideas being imposed on the organization and its people or are they a reflection of everyone’s ideas? One person I worked with once said that you cannot run a school by committee. As I reflect on this I can agree and disagree to some extent. I believe it is important that the people in an organization feel they have a say on how things are decided. I also see the struggle when decisions are made that half the organization’s people dislike. Knowing what is best for an organization is a difficult task for any leader.
Recently I finished John C. Maxwell’s book, The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth. The eleventh law called The Law of Trade-offs is what got me thinking of this week’s post. Leaders must do what best for their organization, that is their job, period. All leaders should be making decisions that will benefit the organization long after they are gone. Leader should be creating the capacity for the organization’s growth and the formation of new leaders. The difficulty we sometime experience is the decisions made look as if they are simply the leader’s plan and no one else. The Trade-off law Maxwell discusses fits with this scenario because the leader needs to know when we should make trade-offs that benefit the whole organization. Any decision process will impact the entire group of people who work there. Those impacts will be appreciated by some and disliked by others. Impacts will be felt at different times in an organization. Either way, we all experience these trade-offs. We sometimes refer to these as the pros and cons to our decisions.
Gathering viewpoints and having discussions with the stakeholders of your organization as decisions are made is very helpful. These conversations occur in many ways, from scheduled meetings to impromptu conversations in passing. When the need come to make specific decisions, we often employ surveys to gather feedback quickly. The mistake often made is not communicating this feedback or deciphering it. When using surveys, you must own the data and base your decisions using this information to grow your organization. These decisions may or may not be the views of the leader or even the people of the organization. These decisions should be steps to improve the whole organization. We should ask how this decision will help the organization and even look at ways we could improve the ideas.
What are you will to give up for your organization to improve?
Is everyone aware of the impacts our decisions make?
How is your organization gathering other viewpoints?
How are these viewpoints communicated through the decision-making process?
This week, I thought it would be helpful to share my insights on growing an organization and the decision process that may occur. I hope you all have a great week, and as always, I appreciate you feedback on my site. Please comment below and continue the conversation. Make the decisions necessary for your organization to grow, even if you are not leading the charge.
Steven C. Bucks-Leading Conversations
Resource: Maxwell, John C. The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth. New York, Hachette Book Group, 2012
