Where To Go From Here?

Situation Analysis:

You are the leader of an organization (or a major area within an organization). You’re a few years into your role. You came into the role with a vision of leading (or creating) a well-functioning organization!

Everywhere you look things are just average, or even below average. And you are a few years into it!

This is not what you envisioned when you took on this leadership role.

You thought that the organization was higher functioning or at least that you’d be able to instill significant improvements (and approaches) by now!

So, now what?

Where do you go from here?

For those of you reading this and thinking that I am writing about your exact situation, know that this is an all-too-common situation that many leaders face. And while I am likely thinking about you as I write this, I am not only thinking about you and your situation.

I offer some guidance in the form of questions and prompts…

Consider where you are stuck. It may point to which part(s) of your organizational “system” most needs attention.

What do the numbers say? And, do you even have in the place the metrics that you need to lead and manage the organization?

Are your key metrics beginning to move in the right direction? Or are they declining? Or just flat-lining?

Which of these are most critical? Which are you most concerned about? What about your Board?

Are the concerns in all aspects of organizational performance or just in particular realms like quality of services, financial viability, or the workforce?

Does this signal that your organization does not yet have the capability to improve? Perhaps this is what most needs attention next.

As you consider the above, are all of those things described above in place? …with repeatable and repeated approaches?

Perhaps, then you are not crystal clear on where you and your senior team are taking the organization. Have you articulated that? Is it written down, perhaps in the vision and goals? Did you use a well-honed strategic approach, coupled with an understanding of the internal and external environment, to inform it?

Is your senior leadership team aligned on where the organization is headed?

Are you seeking transformational change or simply needing incremental improvements?

If you have set a clear and compelling strategic direction…

Then are you and your team not prioritizing which actions to focus on in this next window of time? Or are you prioritizing well (e.g. to an annual or quarterly strategic action plan), but not accomplishing it?

Is your senior team hampered by dysfunctions as a team?

As you reflect on the above, has one or more of these prompts highlighted for you where you might focus next to move the organization forward?

When you take a systems perspective in looking at the organization and its approaches, where are the weak links or ill-defined methods?

Being a new leader (even a few years in) can bring to light that what you have built, implemented, refined has not yet fully taken hold. Perhaps you were hoping for results sooner than is likely. Perhaps you are so close to the trees that you have lost sight of the forest you are responsible for.

I find that many new leaders hope that improvement, even transformational improvement, would come about more easily and quickly. Yet they have not defined the systematic approaches that will get them to high levels of organizational performance and improvement.

Remember, that as an organizational leader, you are turning a sea-going vessel. One that was on a course before you arrived. There are many on the ship that were comfortable with the direction things were going in before your arrival. As you are turning the organization in a new direction, recognize that, like a ship, it has a long turning radius.

It takes time, patience, perseverance, and a steady hand to create systematic and lasting change.

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Kathy Letendre, President and Founder of Letendre & Associates, advises organizations and leaders to create their excellence advantage.
Contact Kathy by phone or text at 802-779-4315 or via email.