Leadership
The greatest untapped resource in many organisations is not another technology investment or management initiative. It is the unused intelligence of the people already inside the organisation. Business excellence requires good systems and processes. It requires effective strategy and disciplined execution. It requires measurement, continuous improvement and strong leadership. However, all of these become more powerful when people are trusted and enabled to contribute their best.
Leadership
Kola Olutimehin
What 30 + Years Of Business Excellence Taught Me About People
Introduction
After more than 30 years working with numerous organisations across the world, Kola Olutimehin shares what business excellence has taught him about people, leadership and employee engagement.
Preamble
There is a mindset I have encountered repeatedly in organisations: the boss is supposed to be the brainiest person in the room. Sometimes, this is not merely an assumption made by employees. Some leaders themselves may reinforce it. The result can be surprisingly damaging!
People who were recruited because of their education, experience, intelligence, creativity and potential can gradually learn that their principal responsibility is not necessarily to think, but to do what the boss says.
Over time, a strange organisational narrative develops:‘ If you believe I am a fool, then perhaps I am better off staying a fool. Tell me exactly what you want me to do. I will do it. And if I don ' t do it exactly the way you wanted, you can tell me off.’
It sounds absurd when stated so plainly. Yet recognise versions of it. And it has made me question something fundamental about the way many organisations pursue business excellence: Why do we hire people for the qualifications, experience and capabilities demonstrated on their CVs, only to put those capabilities aside once they join us because they must now simply do our bidding?
The Brains Within The Organization Are Not Restricted To The Boardroom
One of the most important lessons I have learned over more than three decades of working with organisations is that the collective knowledge, experience and intelligence of an organisation is far greater than what can possibly be represented around the executive table.
No matter how capable an executive team may be, its members cannot know everything happening across every function, process, customer interaction and operational environment. The people doing the work every day often see things that those further removed from the process cannot. They know where customers experience frustration, which processes create delays, where duplication occurs and which procedures create problems in practice.
The greatest untapped resource in many organisations is not another technology investment or management initiative. It is the unused intelligence of the people already inside the organisation. Business excellence requires good systems and processes. It requires effective strategy and disciplined execution. It requires measurement, continuous improvement and strong leadership. However, all of these become more powerful when people are trusted and enabled to contribute their best.
The question is whether the organisation creates an environment in which they can say it. That is where leadership becomes critical!
From Compliance To Ownership
There is a profound difference between an employee who complies with instructions and one who takes ownership. A compliant employee may ask,‘ What exactly do you want me to do?’ An employee who has developed ownership is more likely to ask,‘ What are we trying to achieve, and how can I help us achieve it better?’ The first can give you obedience. The second can give you innovation, improvement and performance.
Of course, organisations need direction. Leaders have responsibilities, and people need clarity about what is expected of them, but direction should not become intellectual suffocation.
If people feel that their views are neither valued nor respected, many will eventually stop offering them. They may continue to perform their tasks, but stop bringing their full selves to work. The organisation still has their labour, but no longer their full intellectual contribution. That is an expensive loss!
Leadership Determines What People Bring To The Table
I have learned that people will often respond to the way they are treated by their leader. If what the leader desires is personal ego, people will often provide it. They may agree in the meeting, tell the boss what they think the boss wants to hear and then say something different behind the boss’ s back.
However, if the leader wants the multiplier effect that comes from having many brains working at their respective best, something different happens. People begin to contribute. They challenge ideas, identify problems, suggest alternatives, take responsibility and become more willing to experiment. They develop ownership.
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