Superstars Will Only Get You So Far…
Transformation, although a shiny, glittering word often associated with warm and fuzzy images such as the butterfly emerging from the cocoon, can be rather painful in practice. I have never personally embarked on a transformative journey that didn’t require hard work, stretching myself beyond my limits, and moments of wondering “can I really do this?”
Quite simply, transformation is hard. If individual transformation is difficult - imagine this process magnified on a much larger scale. Whether it is team transformation, business unit transformation, or transformation across the organization-challenges are bound to arise.
HCI’s Chief Learning Officer Dave Foreman spoke this morning about an interesting sports statistic: Fewer than 20% of MVPs across all major league sports come from all-star teams. So, what does that mean, exactly, and what does it imply about the leaders of these superstars? According to a recent CEB study, to maintain its current state, the global economy requires a 20-25% increase in the performance of global organizations to keep up with the pace of business. It would seem that the time for transformative leadership is upon us.
So how do we go about this uncomfortable journey in order to elevate ourselves, our teams, and our organizations? Today’s sessions at HCI’s annual Learning & Leadership Development Conference gave me a few important suggestions.
Think Big. As Suzanne Martin, Head of Sales and People Development at Google, shared, it’s important to have a ‘healthy disregard for the impossible.’ This type of thinking may seem natural at young, innovative, and non-traditional organizations such as Google. However, it’s important to not overlook how this can be applied in different ways to any culture, and understand how significant the impact can be. The environment in which we work matters and changes (even small ones) can inspire creativity and cause us to look at situations differently. Spark the transformation in your organization by actively participating in ‘big’ thinking.
Keep yourself in check. Francesca Gino, Behavioral Scientist from Harvard Business School, shared some compelling results from research she has conducted on why, despite our best intentions, our decisions often get derailed. One reason is a natural tendency for humans to think of ourselves as superior, or as not culpable for, the problems we are experiencing. Inflated beliefs about ourselves and our abilities (or lack thereof) often leads to problems down the line, so attentiveness is key. Spark the transformation in yourself by first being self-aware.
Encourage productive conflict. “Productive conflict” is a phrase that Dr. Liane Davey, VP of Leadership Solutions at Knightsbridge, introduced today while debuting their recent research on teams, conducted in partnership with HCI. Dr. Davey highlighted the fact that at an executive level she is brought in more often than not to spur ‘productive conflict’ rather than to shut-down too much conflict. Productive conflict is conflict that doesn’t involve passive-aggressive responses, back-stabbing, or a ‘wounded’ mentality. Productive conflict is open, honest, healthy, and necessary for effective decision making across any organization and within any team of people. Spark the transformation in your team by encouraging productive conflict.