Leadership effectiveness…

Presence, Engagement, Alignment and Knowledge

PEAK Performance Indicator (PPI): A Personal Leadership Challenge

 During challenging times, we are reminded of the need for leaders to clearly distinguish between facts and opinions. At times, because it may be more comfortable to favor one over the other, it can be emotionally difficult to intellectually differentiate between the two. However, while both can be important, we should respectfully recognize that one is fundamentally more valuable than the other.

My attention to this matter has been piqued by the constant barrage of competing information from bi-partisan public debates, regarding complex issues, such as federal versus states’ rights, orders versus laws, old versus young, and yes, even black/brown versus white. While it is a challenge to rationally filter out some of the fantasies, fiction, and fake news, I have nonetheless tried to decipher the facts and opinions.

These recent discussions have further piqued my on-going interest regarding the value and acceptance of facts and opinions in organization discourse. I am thinking of two critical areas of concern. They are strategic planning and leadership development.

A peek inside of organization conference rooms, based on my personal observations, surveys, and firsthand experiences, suggests that leaders are challenged to act decisively on these two issues. Frequently the facts are evident, and the opinions are plentiful. Both are valuable, but again, it is important to know the difference. The Peak Performance Indicator will assist in addressing both challenges. It was developed to help easily and effectively integrate facts and opinions through Constructive Analytical Introspection™.

To perform effectively, in general, organizations must include most effective performing leaders. While this may seem rather basic, it should not be assumed that all leaders are always effective.

Not all leaders are the same. Some have more relevant skills and experiences than others. Further, some have more time, interest, and flexibility.

While all leaders most likely bring value to their organizations, understandably, some are more valuable than others.

PEAK Performance Indicator (PPI)

(Presence/engagement)/(alignment/knowledge)

A leader can achieve a prominent level of effectiveness by accentuating the presence, engagement, alignment, and knowledge of its leaders. PPI can help the organization improve its overall success by governing the leader’s individual and aggregate levels of performance.

The organization should expect each leader to meet a minimum level of performance consistently always in all four areas. Even more, each leader should be encouraged to excel in some areas at some time and inspired to always excel in each area.

PRESENCE: Leaders can be present in meetings and conferences (telephonic, video, or in person) without being engaged...but leaders cannot be engaged without attending meetings and conferences.

In the context of PEAK performance, Leader Presence is much more than merely being present at a meeting or conference. While all leaders need to attend meetings and conferences, the effective ones do much more.

There are several reasons why some leaders do not maximize their presence. For example, some leaders may have conflicts with client/customer meetings. In some situations, a leader may arrive late or miss entire meetings because of personal plans or obligations.

Others may be present, but because of their uninterested demeanor, lack of constructive action or uninformed input may just as well be absent. Leader presence, which is influenced by meeting agendas, length, frequency, environment, location, and open dialog establishes the foundation for a leader’s full participation. Although emergencies or unavoidable conflicts may arise occasionally, effective leaders are committed to attending 100% of their organization’s expected meetings. They also remain at the meetings and participate constructively throughout the duration. They do so out of respect for their colleagues and believe if a topic is important enough to warrant inclusion on the agenda, it is important enough to warrant their full attention.

Presence is the basis for engagement.

ENGAGEMENT: Being “busy” or “active” during meetings is not synonymous with being engaged. Any issue that is worth including in the meeting agenda is important enough to discuss thoroughly.

In the context of PEAK performance, Leader Engagement is much more than merely asking tough questions during meetings. While leaders should ask tough questions, they should be constructive and appropriately challenging. Again, effective leaders do much more.

Organizations that build a culture that thrives on full participation and constructive discourse are likely to have a more engaged group of leaders. The leaders are less likely to shortchange meaningful dialogue simply because the meeting is running behind schedule. They may be encouraged to be constructively disruptive when deemed necessary to ensure issues are thoroughly discussed.

An organization’s engagement leadership level should be open to postponing important decisions and avoid rushing into decisions before they have been fully explored. Similarly, even if most of the participants agree on an issue, they should resist the need to move on to the next item before all perspectives have been fully vetted. Going against the organization’s momentum may be uncomfortable, but effective leaders will insist on an opportunity to fully understand and discuss all critical issues, as well as express their views. This is not disrespectful, nor will it damage camaraderie if done positively.

Engaged leaders are inspired by the encouragement and respect earned from the CEO, management, and other members of the organization. They have a desire to make meaningful contributions to the success of the organization by supporting management’s efforts to build long-term shareholder and stakeholder value.

Engagement is the basis for alignment.

ALIGNMENT: Leaders can be knowledgeable without being aligned...but leaders should not be aligned without being knowledgeable.

In the context of PEAK performance, Leader Alignment is much more than simply agreeing with management and other members of the organization. While leaders need to be aligned, it must be achieved via a constructive process.

When contemporary issues are first introduced, leaders may often hold different points of view from their colleagues. This can be influenced by the diversity of professional backgrounds, experiences and sometimes tenure. Nonetheless, through a healthy iterative process, leaders must strive to reach alignment through the Alignment Phenomenon.

Effective leaders share a common alignment on fundamental things such as values of respect for each other, suppliers, customers, and employees.

This establishes a baseline to achieve alignment on issues at hand through dialogue and thorough understanding of the facts and informed opinions.

Effective leaders also carefully avoid too much immediate alignment with their colleagues. Constant alignment often indicates that everyone shares very similar opinions, which can lead to complacency, a lack of discussion, and insufficient understanding of the issues. Ideally, effective leaders will be aligned on some topics and not on others at any one time and ultimately gravitate towards alignment as they learn more and gain insight from their colleagues’ perspectives. Alignment based on knowledge.

 KNOWLEDGE: Knowledge is the basis for effective leader contribution. Enlightened leaders recognize that thorough preparation is the key to success. They know that without preparation there will be no knowledge and without knowledge they will not be able to contribute.

Some leaders will have more relevant insight and understanding, or familiarity gained from their experiences or associations than others. This could be related to a specific discipline or industry. One leader could simply have obtained or has access to information not known or available to others.

Even the most knowledgeable leaders should earn the support of their peers and management to share it with others. In many organizations, management may not care how much a leader knows, until they know how much a leader cares.

In the context of PEAK performance, Leader Knowledge is much more than knowing more than everyone else participating in meetings or conferences. Knowing three times as much as others does not necessarily suggest that one speaks twice as much as everyone else. While Directors need to be knowledgeable, they are expected to contribute much more.

 Enlightened leaders recognize knowledge as a basis for gaining a thorough understanding of the meeting materials provided by management. They also understand that asymmetric information provided by management is insufficient for complete preparation for meaningful discussions and subsequent decisions.

In addition to information provided by management via the classical “power point,” or other materials, highly effective leaders regularly search for supplemental supportive and relevant facts. Whether knowledge is garnered from information found in the management provided materials or not, Enlightened leaders seek opportunities which allow them to bring broader perspectives to the organization.

Every seat at the table should be filled with qualified leaders, who regularly contribute something of value to the meeting. However, not all leaders contribute to the organization at the same level, or in the same way.

The value of an individual leader’s contributions to meeting deliberations will depend on his or her knowledge level and expertise, as well as the competencies represented by other members. For greater effectiveness, leaders should strive to add incremental or differentiating value beyond the aggregate expertise of other participants. Knowledge bridges engagement and alignment.

In summary, when leaders understand and value their PEAK Performance Indicator, they are likely to improve their overall effectiveness and accelerate their progress toward building long term success.