ONE OF THE BIGGEST QUESTIONS I GET FROM BUSINESS LEADERS IS

“what the heck is organizational health and how can it help my company?”

Leaders from Business and non-profits, Executives, entrepreneurs, managers, and team members all ask me the same question.

The four disciplines of organizational health helps business leaders unlock the competitive advantage that is often trapped by dysfunctional team dynamics, too much confusion and a lack of focus.

An organization is healthy when it has a united and cohesive leadership team; where the people at the top work really well together. There is no interpersonal drama.

All team members, from top to bottom are clear and aligned about what their company is all about. Everyone is on the same page.

All team members are constantly reminded about the organization’s purpose, values, strategy, goals and role clarity. Everyone gets the message.

Finally, a healthy organization has just enough structure in place to reinforce all that without bureaucratizing it. Simple systems protect the culture.

BUILD A COHESIVE LEADERSHIP TEAM

What’s it worth to you?

Imagine two organizations.

The first one is led by a leadership team whose members are open with one another, passionately debate important issues, and commit to clear decisions even if they initially disagree. They call each other out when their behaviours or performance needs correction, and they focus their attention on the collective goals of the organization.

The second is led by a leadership team whose members are guarded and less than honest with one another. The hold back during difficult conversations, feign commitment, and hesitate to call one another on unproductive behaviours. Often they pursue their own agendas rather than those of the greater organization.

The Question

What kind of advantage would the first organization have over the second, and how much time and energy would it be worth investing to make this advantage a reality?

How do you measure up?

Members of a leadership team can be confident that they’ve mastered this discipline when they can affirm the following statements:

• The leadership team is small enough (three to ten people) to be effective.

• Members of the team trust one another and can be genuinely vulnerable with each other.

• Team members regularly engage in productive, unfiltered conflict around important issues.

• The team leaves meetings with clear-cut, active, and specific agreements around decisions.

• Team members hold one another accountable to commitments and behaviors.

• Members of the leadership team are focused on team number one. They put the collective priorities and needs of the larger organization ahead of their own departments.

*Source: The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business. Printed with permission from Pat Lencioni and The Table Group.

CREATE strategic and cultural CLARITY

What’s it worth to you?

Again, let’s imagine two different organizations.

The first is led by a team whose members share a common passion for what they do and are committed to abiding by the same set of values. They have a clear plan for success and know exactly how they differ from their competition. At any given moment, they can articulate their top, collective priority, and they understand how every member of the team contributes to achieving that priority.

The second is run by a group of well-intentioned executives who have a good understanding of the details of their business. But they don’t spend much time thinking or talking about why their organization exists or what values should drive their behaviours. Though they talk about being more strategic, they can’t really articulate a simple, clear strategy, and they don’t have a consistent method for evaluating decisions.

The leadership team is constantly managing against a long list eclectic goals, some of which may not be compatible and most of which pertain to only a few members of the team. Moreover, most team members have somewhat limited knowledge about and interest in the specific responsibilities of their peers.

Once we’ve established trust and spent time improving team dynamics, we answer the six simple but critical questions from Patrick Lencioni’s best-selling book The Advantage.

the Question

What kind of advantage would the first organization have over the second, and how much time and energy would it be worth investing to make this advantage a reality?

How do you measure up?

• Members of a leadership team can be confident that they’ve mastered this discipline when they can affirm the following statements:

• Members of the leadership team know, agree on, and are passionate about the reason that the organization exists.

• The leadership team has clarified and embraced a small, specific set of behavioral values,

• Leaders are clear and aligned around a strategy that helps them define success and differentiate from competitors,

• The leadership team has a clear, current goal around which they rally, They feel a collective sense of ownership for that goal,

• Members of the leadership team understand one another's roles and responsibilities, They are comfortable asking questions about one another's work.

The elements of the organization's clarity are concisely summarized and regularly referenced and reviewed by the leadership team.

*Source: The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business. Printed with permission from Pat Lencioni and The Table Group.

OVERCOMMUNICATE CLARITY

what’s it worth to you?

Back to those two organizations. 

The first is run by a leadership team whose members regularly remind employees about the company's reason for existence, its core values, its strategy, and its top priority. They leave meetings clear about what they've agreed to do and what they're going to go back and tell their employees. They also take steps to ensure that they know the concerns and ideas of the people in their organizations so that they can represent and consider them when making decisions.

The second has a leadership team that limits its communication to a few events each year, and even then the focus is mainly on tactical goals and initiatives. Their messaging after meetings is often sparse and inconsistent, and they aren't particularly aware of the opinions of the employees deeper in their organizations.

The Question

What kind of advantage would the first organization have over the second, and how much time and energy would it be worth investing to make this advantage a reality?

how do you measure up?

• The leadership team has clearly communicated the six aspects of clarity to all employees.

• Team members regularly remind the people in their departments about those aspects of clarity.

• The team leaves meetings with clear and specific agreements about what to communicate to their employees, and they cascade those messages quickly after meetings.

• Employees are able to accurately articulate the organization's reason for existence, values, strategic anchors, and goals.

*Source: The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business. Printed with permission from Pat Lencioni and The Table Group.

reinforce clarity

WHAT'S IT WORTH TO YOU?

Those two organizations again.

The first has simple, practical processes for recruiting, hiring, and onboarding the right people based on its core values, for managing those people's performance around the organization's most important priorities, and for rewarding and training them based on the company's culture, strategy, and operations. Moreover, managers embrace those processes and find them to be helpful tools for succeeding in their jobs.

The second has plenty of processes and human systems, but most of those are generic and cumbersome and not customized to the unique culture and operations of the company. As a result, managers find them largely frustrating and irrelevant to their work.

The question

What kind of advantage would the first organization have over the second, and how much time and energy would it be worth investing to make this advantage a reality?

How Do You Measure Up?

• The organization has a simple way to ensure that new hires are carefully selected based on the company’s values.

• New people are brought into the organization by thoroughly teaching them about the six elements of clarity.

• Managers throughout the organization have a simple, consistent, and nonbureaucratic system for setting goals and reviewing progress with team members. The performance development system is customized around the six element of clarity.

• Team members who don’t fit the values are managed out of the organization. Poor performers who do fit the values are given coaching and assistance they need to succeed.

• Compensation and reward systems are built around the values and goals of the organization.

*Source: The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business. Printed with permission from Pat Lencioni and The Table Group.

Meetings

WHAT'S IT WORTH TO YOU?

Those two organizations one more time.

The first has created a simple system to separate their meetings into four distinct types. This structure not only saves time, it increases decision making and productivity.

The second has plenty of meetings, but most of those have no context and cover a litany of subjects that never get resolved. Meetings are boring, frustrating and unproductive. As a result, managers find them largely frustrating and a massive waste of time.

The question

What kind of advantage would the first organization have over the second, and how much time and energy would it be worth investing to make this advantage a reality?

How Do You Measure Up?

• Tactical and strategic discussions are addressed in separate meetings.

• During tactical staff meetings, agendas are set only after the team has reviewed its progress against goals. Noncritical administrative topics are easily discarded.

• During topical meetings, enough time is allocated to major issues to allow for clarification, debate, and resolution.

• The team meets quarterly away from the office to review what is happening in the industry, in the organization, and on the team.

*Source: The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business. Printed with permission from Pat Lencioni and The Table Group.

Healthy leadership

WHAT'S IT WORTH TO YOU?

Those two organizations one FINAL time.

The first company’s leadership team is focused on delivering remarkable, lasting results. Each leader’s motive is one of responsiblity toward the success of the organization. They are completely focused on what is going to benefit the company rather than what will benefit them personally.

The single biggest factor determining whether an organization is going to get healthier is the commitment and involvement of the person in charge of the organization. The leader is the driving force behind the implementation of the four disciplines of organizational health. The buck stops with them.

The second company’s leadership team is focused on individual results and what gives them the most satisfaction in the moment. They tackle projects that interest them rather than what is of most importance to the organization. They have bright shiny object syndrome.

The question

What kind of advantage would the first organization have over the second, and how much time and energy would it be worth investing to make this advantage a reality?

How Do You Measure Up?

• Developing Your Team: Invest time in cultivating interpersonal dynamics, fostering trust, and promoting healthy conflict within your team.

• Managing Your Team (and making sure they manage theirs): Guide your team towards success by setting clear expectations, providing support, and coaching them to reach their full potential.

• Having Difficult Conversations: Embrace uncomfortable discussions to address behavioral issues, and promote accountability.

• Running Great Team Meetings: Transform boring meetings into fast-paced sessions that drive engagement, facilitate decision-making, and encourage diverse perspectives.

• Communicating Constantly and Repetitively: Reinforce your organization's mission, values, and goals through consistent communication, ensuring alignment and clarity across all levels.