Jim Clemmer's Leader Letter

One organizational problem that keeps repeating itself is the high failure rate for implementing new organizational improvement efforts like increasing customer service levels, re-structuring, mergers/acquisitions, introducing new technologies, performance management systems, leadership training, and the like. I recently wrote an article on this recurring problem for a new column I am writing for HR Professional magazine. Here’s a link to a version of the article aimed at managers. It features a chart at the heart of the problem; bolt-on programs versus built-in culture change.

“In the last few decades much research has proven the superiority of group decision making over that of even the brightest individual in the group. There is one exception to this rule. If the group lacks harmony or the ability to cooperate, decision-making quality and speed suffer. Research at Cambridge University found that even groups comprising brilliant individuals will make bad decisions if the group disintegrates into bickering, interpersonal rivalry, or power plays… A leader skilled in collaboration can keep resonance high and thus ensure that the group's decisions will be worth the effort of meeting.”
- Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis & Annie McKee, Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence

“The leader who understands how process unfolds uses as little force as possible and runs the group without pressuring people. When force is used, conflict and argument follow. The group field degenerates. The climate is hostile, neither open nor nourishing. The wise leader runs the group without fighting to have things a certain way. The leader's touch is light. The leader neither defends nor attacks. Remember that consciousness, not selfishness, is both the means of teaching and the teaching itself. Group members will challenge the ego of one who leads egocentrically. But one who leads selflessly and harmoniously will grow and endure.”
- John Heider, The Tao of Leadership: Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching Adapted for a New Age

“I have noticed that the people who are late are often so much jollier than the people who have to wait for them.”
- E.V. Lucas, British author

“The Ken Blanchard Companies recently conducted a survey of more than 900 corporate executives. Results show that while employees perceive that their job success depends increasingly on their effectiveness as team members and team leaders, very few have actually received training on how to create, lead, or participate in teams. In fact, many of them feel that the time spent on teams is not necessarily productive or effective. Ineffective use of meeting time was cited as the highest frustration about being part of a team; followed by ineffective communication among team members (50%); and lack of accountability (47%). Other common complaints include: lack of process for structuring a team and its work; lack of clear purpose; and lack of trust among team members.”
www.hr.com, August 14, 2006

“In her study of group work in school classrooms, the late Stanford sociologist Elizabeth Cohen found that if kids are simply put into teams and told to solve a problem, the typical result is one kid dominating and others looking totally disengaged.

But if teachers take the time to establish norms - roles, goals, etc. – ‘not only will [the children] behave according to the new norms, but they will enforce rules on other group members.’"
- Jerry Useem, "What's that spell? TEAMWORK!" Fortune

Our local daily newspaper runs a feature in their book section each Saturday asking local personalities and community leaders what they’re reading. Here’s what ran in The Record on the same day as the world famous Elmira Maple Syrup Festival (the little town of Elmira, ON swells in size by ten times for this event each year)!

WHAT THEY'RE READING
(Mar 31, 2007)

Jim Clemmer of Kitchener heads The Clemmer Group, which offers management leadership training. He is currently reading:
BUILT TO CHANGE: HOW TO ACHIEVE ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS
by Edward Lawler III and Christopher Worley (Wiley, 352 pages, $38.99 hardcover)

"Both authors research and teach at the University of Southern California's Centre for Effective Organizations. This excellent book pulls together best practices and research on how highly effective organizations stay that way by fostering continuous change. It's not enough to "manage change" (which I believe is an oxymoron). Strong leaders build organizational cultures of continuous improvement, growth, and development.

I am always looking for material like this to further illustrate and reinforce my practical leadership keynote presentations, workshops, and ongoing consulting work with organizations here in North America and abroad.

My favourite lounging around the house sweatshirt reads 'So many books and so little time.' That expresses my feelings about both reading all the books I'd like to read and writing all the books I still want to write.

I am currently writing my sixth book. With a working title of Moose-on-the-Table: Courageous Conversations in the Workplace, this is my first ‘business fable’ using a fictional story to address the widespread problem of people avoiding or dancing around important workplace issues that everyone knows exist, but no one is talking about."

Each year I run a public Leading @ the Speed of Change workshop here in my hometown of Kitchener, Ontario (just forty-five minutes from the Toronto airport). Since my keynotes and workshops are always private sessions tailored specifically to the organization or association I'm working for, this is one of the few opportunities most people ever get to work with me at a public event.

Each year's session is different as I incorporate new learnings and introduce various materials. This year I'm adding additional videos, exercises, examples, research, and applications to the mix. I am excited about the revitalized material that's emerged from so much of this year's client work. I look forward to sharing it with a diverse audience joining us from across Canada, the U.S., and New Zealand (he’ll get the prize for furthest trip).

One of the unique things about this particular version of my most popular workshop and keynote topic area is that I blend topics such as personal or self-leadership with leading others. In past sessions, this has been a key learning for many participants. We can’t lead others to a place we haven’t been – or aren’t headed toward. I especially recall one manager last year who attended the session to “learn how to change the people in his organization.” During the two days, he realized that changing them starts with changing me.

There are still a few seats left. For more information to go http://www.clemmer.net/events/lsc.aspx. There are special discounts for bringing colleagues along so you can learn and apply these principles together.

Improvement Points is a free service providing a key thought or quotation from one of my articles, provided three times per week, directly to your e-mail inbox. Each complimentary Improvement Point links directly into the full article on our web site that spawned it. If you'd like to read more about that day's Improvement Point, you can choose to click through to the short article for a quick five-minute read. This is your opportunity for a short pause that refreshes, is an inspirational vitamin, or a quick performance boost. You can circulate especially relevant or timely articles or Improvement Points to your team, Clients, or colleagues for further discussion or action.

Here are my personal three choices of the Improvement Points we sent out in April:

"Energizing leaders employ a multitude of creative ways to foster appreciation and recognition, giving among all team and organization members. They also find numerous ways to hike energy and enjoyment levels by marking and celebrating milestones along the way."
- from Jim Clemmer's article, "Celebration is the Pause that Refreshes"
Read the full article now!
http://www.clemmer.net/articles/article_164.aspx

"The team management choices can be plotted on a three-point continuum:
*Management commands and controls the work group, with some consultation and involvement (this is not a team).
*Management roles and responsibilities (such as scheduling, planning, meeting facilitation, and establishing measures) are shared between team members and the team leader.
*The team is autonomous and manages itself."
- from Jim Clemmer's article, "Matching Team Types and Focus"
Read the full article now!
http://www.clemmer.net/articles/article_270.aspx

"We all make occasional trips to "Pity City" or have our "doubt days." But highly effective people — leaders — have a passion for life and deep commitment to their work or cause (often the same thing)."
- from Jim Clemmer's article, "Beyond “Near-Life Experiences”"
Read the full article now!
http://www.clemmer.net/articles/article_342.aspx