Dear Business Leader...
4.4.2011
The pianist, Bill Evans, made a famous solo album entitled 'Conversations with Myself'. He was able to do this by recording multiple tracks in a studio and then, with the expertise of the production team, skilfully mix them into a coherent whole.
As organisation development people, we help you conduct a conversation with yourselves as you contemplate the future, engage with constant 'changing' and evolve responsive execution. The OD consultant can bring an independent perspective to your thinking and your implementation. So we try to help you make sense of the variety of tracks, including the sound of silos, from which your business, your department, your institution is making its streams of 'music'.
Sometimes the music can be very discordant. Leaders are naturally concerned about the deadening impact of dysfunctional conflict on their teams. Complex strategies need to be exposed to constructive, if contentious, debate and collaborative effort. We have developed a distinctive approach as organisational mediators that enables us to project conflict resolution towards longer term co-operation. We also offer to build up skills in negotiation, influence and collaboration through our studio events.
Our approach is essentially facilitative, and one that we hope establishes rapport and builds trust. We still gather some data, analyse and prioritise the findings, and play them back to you in suitable forums. These range from one to one sessions to team meetings, workshops and 'town meetings'. You emerge with a prioritised action plan, some tools and a strong sense of organisational renewal.
If your organisation is large it must seem as if you're conducting a symphony orchestra. But many of you are leading 'chamber groups' - running small businesses, professional firms, charities, schools and ngos, or operating as independent experts. The leader's role may be even more lonely, so a working relationship with an experienced, independent person can help in making the right call.
Today's multitrack organisations are no longer traditional top-down command structures. Leadership is more distributed and boundaries are in a state of flux. Some of the challenges are global and cultural - both organisational and ethnic. Partnerships and alliances play a huge part in getting things done. Some of you are leader/managers. Knowing when and how to lead and how much to get involved in micro-management requires much judgement and skill. We hope we can help you make seems of the noise and have your organisation and people dancing to the right tune.
