Staying on Top
Wallace Immen penned an article in the Globe and Mail in which he positioned the recent dismissal of Ottawa Senators General Manager John Muckler by team owner Eugene Melnyk as an example of the importance of leaders staying in the loop. Immen points to the importance of the leader ensuring that they understand and deliver on the priorities of the higher ups; whether that be an owner (as in Melnyk’s case) or a board of directors.
Immen shared a list of tips that experts say will ‘keep you at the top of your game’:
Get clear on expectations.
Defend talent.
Groom a successor.
Seek regular feedback.
Confront issues.
Listen to everyone.
Nurture relationships.
Celebrate your successes.
Defuse tension.
Don't get sidetracked.
Don't take it personally.
The situation with Muckler was relatively clear. Muckler was reveling in a successful 2006/07 NHL campaign and was, at the time of his dismissal, looking forward to carrying on as the Senator’s GM. Muckler either down played the management conflicts that he was having with the teams head coach over player decisions or (and this has been the failing of many leaders) he felt so secure in his position that he could afford to ignore the issues.
Melnyk was looking to Muckler to identify a successor in order to ensure that the team could continue to enjoy success and quickly attain the holy grail of hockey, Lord Stanley’s Cup. So where was Muckler on this issue? He missed this important piece (Get Clear on Expectations) and carried forward with his own agenda. Sources close to the issue suggest that the relationship between Muckler and Melnyk was strained. As a leader you can never afford to ignore the importance of nurturing the relationships that you have with key decision makers in your organization. If you fail to feed those relationships in a meaningful and consistent fashion then you risk the appearance of being aloof and disconnected from the priorities of the organization. This was clearly the case for Muckler. The message is clear understand AND execute on the priorities and maintain communication and relationships.
My experience suggests that leaders should consider one further tip. EXECUTE! It is critical to be doing the important things rather than the appearance of keeping in the loop. My list would have execution as the top priority!
Coaching Supports Change
The June 23, 2007 Calgary Herald featured an article by Derek Sankey profiling the coaching initiatives being undertaken by Encana Corp. and the importance the company places on coaching. Corporate coaching is indeed becoming well entrenched in the resource sector. Coaching demonstrates to staffers that the organization is committed to their development and that they have a future opportunity within the corporate leadership plan. Implementing a coaching program requires real commitment. The challenge is that there is often less than a clearly tangible return on investment that the typical senior manager uses to assess the relative success of an initiative. There really is only one question that a key decision maker needs to ask themselves when assessing the importance of championing a coaching initiative within their organization and that is ‘Will my company/organization be more successful with a group of new leaders that have been coached and developed with the input of professional coaches and senior decision makers or by a cadre that were elevated without the benefit of this support?’
Encana have embraced coaching and this can be seen at all levels of the organization. The company received a Prism Award by the local chapter of the International Coach Federation for achieving excellence in performance and leadership through coaching. Clearly, Encana gets the importance of a commitment to coaching to foster development of future leaders and meet the needs of a strategic succession plan. Vicki Reid, corporate human resources leader for Encana indicates that the company utilizes coaching in tandem with custom training programs to address several challenges that Encana was facing in the tight labour market. Well done!
The importance of screening coaches was mentioned a couple of times. Qualified coaches with relevant experience are critical. So is the screening and selection of staffers that are being identified for development. Companies must get the identification process right if they are to be successful in the future. Getting the right people to the leadership development circle is more important than the potential impact of a coaching program. Get that wrong and what are you left with?
Invest in an objective process to gauge the appropriateness of an individual to assume a greater level of responsibility. This process should include:
1. Current position profiles
2. Benchmarks (if it is important to the organization then measure it. Are you looking to attract high performers… benchmark to assure job fit!)
3. Assessment tools to assess thinking style, behavioural traits and interests
4. 360 degree evaluations of performance
5. Performance planning and measurement
Start by developing an inventory of benchmarks for each of your key positions. Utilize the current high performers in those positions to establish a representative benchmark of the kind of performers that you are looking for in your organization. An excellent tool for achieving this is the Profiles XT from Profiles International, Inc. the recognized world leader in employment evaluation and human resource management assessment tools.
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