By Virgil R. Carter
With the emerging indications of economic strengthening, it may be time for CEOs, staff and volunteer leaders to do a quick check on the strength of their organizations. Is your organization economically strong? Do you have the protection and advantage of economic diversification?
A recent Strategy+Business article, “A Continuous Quest for Economic Balance”, by Richard Shediac, Chadi N. Moujaes and Mazen Ramsay Najjar, focuses on the important economic diversification of countries. Much of what they write has equal application to the strength and well-being of many of our non-profit organizations.
For example, the authors write “Countries can be over-concentrated in any number of ways—for example, relying too heavily on large companies, exports, or foreign investment—and even countries that appear extremely diversified may still be vulnerable to unexpected events.” How applicable is this to your organization?
A quick check of your annual budget will reveal the sources of your revenues. If your major source of revenue accounts for more than about 35% of total revenues, you may question whether or not there is sufficient diversification (and protection) for your organization’s well-being. If a single source of revenue counts for the majority of your revenue flow (over 50%) your organization may be at severe risk in the event of some disruption to the source of revenue. Risk may be reduced and economic strength will be gained through economic diversification.
How to achieve strength through improved economic balance? Certainly, continuing to support the elements that are at the center of an organization’s financial strength is obvious. The answer for successful diversification is not simple. And it is not achieved in a single step. Diversification is a continuous, never-ending journey. Perhaps the most successful journey is one that looks to increase the return of other key existing revenue sources, while also looking for new opportunities that are consistent with the mission of the organization. Innovation and entrepreneurial efforts are a key in this regard.
For many non-profit organizations, economic strength through diversification is not easy. No organization can be successful, however, without economic strength. And if a conscious effort for needed diversification isn’t made, economic strength will never be achieved. Is your economic balance where you’d like it to be?
For the full Strategy+Business article: http://www.strategy-business.com/article/00064?pg=0
Monday, April 25, 2011
Monday, April 18, 2011
Make Your Organization’s Culture Work for You
by Virgil R. Carter
There’s a saying in non-profit organizational leadership that says “culture eats strategy for lunch”! Experienced volunteer and staff leaders of non-profit organizations quickly learn that their organization’s culture is a formidable force. It is so powerful that it can stop logical and needed improvements in their tracks. Culture can perpetuate outmoded and ineffective programs for years. How does a leader deal with organizational culture?
Organizational culture can be defined as those mind-sets, beliefs, values and behaviors that determine “how we see things around here”. Organizational culture is an unspoken, but shared, understanding of the way the organization functions, how individuals fit into the organization, the characteristics of their organizational roles, and how their roles are valued. Culture is a major determinant of roles and performance—individual and organizational.
In an article, “Stop Blaming Your Culture”, in Strategy + Business, authors Jon Katzenbach and Ashley Harshak write, “When a new leader’s strategy puts the culture of a company at risk, the culture will trump the strategy, almost every time”. They point out that when your strategy and culture clash visibly, more likely than not, the culture is trying to tell you something about your own leadership philosophy.
What to do? The authors suggest that there is an effective way to face cultural challenges. Instead of blaming one’s culture, it can be used positively. “View culture as an asset: a source of energy, pride and motivation…Figure out which of the old behaviors embedded in your culture can be applied to accelerate the needed changes”. Look for ways to counterbalance and diminish other elements of the culture that hinder change. Using culture as a positive force will help “initiate, accelerate and sustain truly beneficial change”, with much less conflict, and with positive results, than one might expect.
For the entire S+A article, see http://www.strategy-business.com/article/11108?pg=all
There’s a saying in non-profit organizational leadership that says “culture eats strategy for lunch”! Experienced volunteer and staff leaders of non-profit organizations quickly learn that their organization’s culture is a formidable force. It is so powerful that it can stop logical and needed improvements in their tracks. Culture can perpetuate outmoded and ineffective programs for years. How does a leader deal with organizational culture?
Organizational culture can be defined as those mind-sets, beliefs, values and behaviors that determine “how we see things around here”. Organizational culture is an unspoken, but shared, understanding of the way the organization functions, how individuals fit into the organization, the characteristics of their organizational roles, and how their roles are valued. Culture is a major determinant of roles and performance—individual and organizational.
In an article, “Stop Blaming Your Culture”, in Strategy + Business, authors Jon Katzenbach and Ashley Harshak write, “When a new leader’s strategy puts the culture of a company at risk, the culture will trump the strategy, almost every time”. They point out that when your strategy and culture clash visibly, more likely than not, the culture is trying to tell you something about your own leadership philosophy.
What to do? The authors suggest that there is an effective way to face cultural challenges. Instead of blaming one’s culture, it can be used positively. “View culture as an asset: a source of energy, pride and motivation…Figure out which of the old behaviors embedded in your culture can be applied to accelerate the needed changes”. Look for ways to counterbalance and diminish other elements of the culture that hinder change. Using culture as a positive force will help “initiate, accelerate and sustain truly beneficial change”, with much less conflict, and with positive results, than one might expect.
For the entire S+A article, see http://www.strategy-business.com/article/11108?pg=all
Monday, April 11, 2011
Creating and Utilizing Effective Senior Management Teams
by Steven H. Davis, CAE, Society of Exploration Geophysicists
Evolving a group of predominantly Type-A personalities into a fully effective team can be a challenging proposition. Through the years, I have garnered my own sense of how that can best be achieved …which I have labeled (for myself) three-part harmony.
Part one is understanding the players. To be sure, the playing field that is the Senior Management Team’s meeting room presents a great opportunity to assess individual team members and group dynamics in general. Then, the chief staff executive needs to proactively act on those assessments.
And when interventions of the mentoring and arbitrational sort prove ineffective, changes in the composition of the Senior Management Team should be considered. The alternative is to sacrifice group synergy and creativity for the sake of maintaining a superior talent who cannot play the team game. That said, my step one in evolving an outstanding Senior Management Team is composing it of the right people.
Part two is putting adequate resources (time and potentially money) into place to grow the group as a team. I have never witnessed a perfect team in action, nor will I ever. Teamwork comes naturally for some, but not for all; this kind of synergy only comes from a constant effort to experience it and replicate it. And, I am convinced, this only happens when the learning process is embraced as an ongoing and forever pursuit.
Carving out time in Senior Management Team meeting agendas to discuss “How Can we be More Effective?” can help. Hiring a consultant to periodically facilitate a team retreat for the purpose of working together and getting everyone on the same strategic page can help. Scheduling team-building programs and activities can help. The key for me has always been to maintain this focus continuously …toward finding new and effective ways in which to strengthen the sense of team. Investing in the team will yield a better team.
Part three is utilizing the Senior Management Team effectively. Meeting weekly for the purpose of getting updates from everyone is certainly helpful, but it is not at all strategic. Using this weekly meeting to get issues and opportunities on the table and explored can be very strategic. And, this level of participating in routine puzzle-solving discussions can be a stimulating and gratifying experience …of the sort that opens creative doors and therefore allows creative needs to be met. This is when teams grow together, and this is when their impact reaches next levels …when they know they can make a greater difference together.
So, my formula for growing a better Senior Management Team is to ensure the right people are on the bus, continually investing in team growth, and utilizing that team effectively.
Evolving a group of predominantly Type-A personalities into a fully effective team can be a challenging proposition. Through the years, I have garnered my own sense of how that can best be achieved …which I have labeled (for myself) three-part harmony.
Part one is understanding the players. To be sure, the playing field that is the Senior Management Team’s meeting room presents a great opportunity to assess individual team members and group dynamics in general. Then, the chief staff executive needs to proactively act on those assessments.
And when interventions of the mentoring and arbitrational sort prove ineffective, changes in the composition of the Senior Management Team should be considered. The alternative is to sacrifice group synergy and creativity for the sake of maintaining a superior talent who cannot play the team game. That said, my step one in evolving an outstanding Senior Management Team is composing it of the right people.
Part two is putting adequate resources (time and potentially money) into place to grow the group as a team. I have never witnessed a perfect team in action, nor will I ever. Teamwork comes naturally for some, but not for all; this kind of synergy only comes from a constant effort to experience it and replicate it. And, I am convinced, this only happens when the learning process is embraced as an ongoing and forever pursuit.
Carving out time in Senior Management Team meeting agendas to discuss “How Can we be More Effective?” can help. Hiring a consultant to periodically facilitate a team retreat for the purpose of working together and getting everyone on the same strategic page can help. Scheduling team-building programs and activities can help. The key for me has always been to maintain this focus continuously …toward finding new and effective ways in which to strengthen the sense of team. Investing in the team will yield a better team.
Part three is utilizing the Senior Management Team effectively. Meeting weekly for the purpose of getting updates from everyone is certainly helpful, but it is not at all strategic. Using this weekly meeting to get issues and opportunities on the table and explored can be very strategic. And, this level of participating in routine puzzle-solving discussions can be a stimulating and gratifying experience …of the sort that opens creative doors and therefore allows creative needs to be met. This is when teams grow together, and this is when their impact reaches next levels …when they know they can make a greater difference together.
So, my formula for growing a better Senior Management Team is to ensure the right people are on the bus, continually investing in team growth, and utilizing that team effectively.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Three Processes to Align Mission & Money
by Virgil R. Carter
Does your organization have an annual process to align mission and money? There are at least three interlinked processes that are required. Here’s a brief look at each.
1. Innovation: An annual innovation program, with staff and budget, is a good approach for encouraging and rewarding ideas for new programs, products and services. One approach is to organize the process as an on-going annual grants program, where written proposals are reviewed and approved, if deemed worthy. Care must be taken to carefully spell out program objectives so that it’s clear the program is for new ideas, and not to perpetuate the status quo. Review of proposals must also be carefully based on the program objectives, so as not to simply fund continuation of existing activities.
2. Existing Program Annual Review: Most non-profit organizations allocate all of their available resources (financial and human) in support of annual operations. Thus, without the reduction and/or “sunset” of some annual programs, products and services, there is no capability to add new activities through innovation or any other means. One approach for annual program review is to implement a customer satisfaction review process, using the “voice of the customer” as a basis for gathering and evaluating data as to which programs, products and services are valued by your customers. Goods and services not valued by customers each year are prime candidates for reduction and /or replacement.
3. Annual Program Planning/Budgeting: Finally, with information from the previous two activities, an organization may conduct a rational annual process for the planning and budgeting of activities for the following 1, 2 or 3 year periods. Instead of the annual budgeting cycle leading the process, it logically is the final phase of review and planning for the future. This also helps to reduce status-quo program competition for a larger and larger share of the financial pie every year.
Aligning mission and money is important for a number of reasons. Here are two:
- Non-profit organizations need to keep pace with their critical changing markets;
- In most cases, there are never enough resources for everything, and thus some priorities have to be established.
Thus the old adage is true for many non-profits, “If something new is to be added to the wagon, then something old must be removed.” Are your mission and money aligned?
Does your organization have an annual process to align mission and money? There are at least three interlinked processes that are required. Here’s a brief look at each.
1. Innovation: An annual innovation program, with staff and budget, is a good approach for encouraging and rewarding ideas for new programs, products and services. One approach is to organize the process as an on-going annual grants program, where written proposals are reviewed and approved, if deemed worthy. Care must be taken to carefully spell out program objectives so that it’s clear the program is for new ideas, and not to perpetuate the status quo. Review of proposals must also be carefully based on the program objectives, so as not to simply fund continuation of existing activities.
2. Existing Program Annual Review: Most non-profit organizations allocate all of their available resources (financial and human) in support of annual operations. Thus, without the reduction and/or “sunset” of some annual programs, products and services, there is no capability to add new activities through innovation or any other means. One approach for annual program review is to implement a customer satisfaction review process, using the “voice of the customer” as a basis for gathering and evaluating data as to which programs, products and services are valued by your customers. Goods and services not valued by customers each year are prime candidates for reduction and /or replacement.
3. Annual Program Planning/Budgeting: Finally, with information from the previous two activities, an organization may conduct a rational annual process for the planning and budgeting of activities for the following 1, 2 or 3 year periods. Instead of the annual budgeting cycle leading the process, it logically is the final phase of review and planning for the future. This also helps to reduce status-quo program competition for a larger and larger share of the financial pie every year.
Aligning mission and money is important for a number of reasons. Here are two:
- Non-profit organizations need to keep pace with their critical changing markets;
- In most cases, there are never enough resources for everything, and thus some priorities have to be established.
Thus the old adage is true for many non-profits, “If something new is to be added to the wagon, then something old must be removed.” Are your mission and money aligned?
Monday, March 28, 2011
How to define success?
By Virgil R. Carter
How does your association define success? Success comes in many flavors. Perhaps the important thing is to identify and implement what works for you. Thereafter communicate, communicate, and communicate.
So, what does your association value most? Is it performance? How about relationships? Perhaps its competencies or credentialing. Each organization is different when it comes to what matters most, not to mention why it matters to us. So, to define success, there has to be agreement on what matters most. The situation, which may change over time, has a lot to do with defining success. For example, an association in a protracted, downward financial spiral, for example, may define success very differently than an association whose growth has been 30% per year for the past five years.
Here are some important success categories, with suggestions how they might be used.
1. Strategy--Does our association have a sustained record of performance to plan over time (successful strategy is not measured in 12-month cycles and someone’s pet agenda for the year)?
2. Voice of the customer—Who are our (right) customers and how do you know if they are satisfied (yes, there may be “wrong” customers)?
3. Financial—Do we have sustained performance over time meeting budget or ending each year with positive variances (no margin, no mission)?
4. Business operations—What is the record of new program development and existing program retirement over the past 5 years (are you still doing what you did 5 years ago)?
5. Learning & growth—What investment do we make on a consistent annual basis for volunteer’s & staff’s learning and growth in their association roles (no investment, no dividends)?
When you have figured out what matters most to your association and how you will measure success, it’s time to think about annual communications planning and the year’s key audiences and messages. Key messages are important for association leaders—volunteers and staff—to focus on, repeat and reinforce. The messages help everyone to understand and stay on the same page.
There are many useful ways to define organizational success. And to communicate effectively about it. When there is consensus about success, your volunteers, staff and external relationships will thank you, knowing what to expect and how to help. How do you measure organizational success?
How does your association define success? Success comes in many flavors. Perhaps the important thing is to identify and implement what works for you. Thereafter communicate, communicate, and communicate.
So, what does your association value most? Is it performance? How about relationships? Perhaps its competencies or credentialing. Each organization is different when it comes to what matters most, not to mention why it matters to us. So, to define success, there has to be agreement on what matters most. The situation, which may change over time, has a lot to do with defining success. For example, an association in a protracted, downward financial spiral, for example, may define success very differently than an association whose growth has been 30% per year for the past five years.
Here are some important success categories, with suggestions how they might be used.
1. Strategy--Does our association have a sustained record of performance to plan over time (successful strategy is not measured in 12-month cycles and someone’s pet agenda for the year)?
2. Voice of the customer—Who are our (right) customers and how do you know if they are satisfied (yes, there may be “wrong” customers)?
3. Financial—Do we have sustained performance over time meeting budget or ending each year with positive variances (no margin, no mission)?
4. Business operations—What is the record of new program development and existing program retirement over the past 5 years (are you still doing what you did 5 years ago)?
5. Learning & growth—What investment do we make on a consistent annual basis for volunteer’s & staff’s learning and growth in their association roles (no investment, no dividends)?
When you have figured out what matters most to your association and how you will measure success, it’s time to think about annual communications planning and the year’s key audiences and messages. Key messages are important for association leaders—volunteers and staff—to focus on, repeat and reinforce. The messages help everyone to understand and stay on the same page.
There are many useful ways to define organizational success. And to communicate effectively about it. When there is consensus about success, your volunteers, staff and external relationships will thank you, knowing what to expect and how to help. How do you measure organizational success?
Monday, March 21, 2011
Crucial Conversations
By Virgil R. Carter
How are you at crucial conversations? Crucial conversations are those situations in which you are involved with others, in which the outcomes and the relationships are at stake.
Just about every non-profit CEO has been in crucial conversations. I remember one where 16 volunteer and staff leaders came from various parts of the U.S. in an attempt to settle and dispose of disputes between the parent organization and two of the subsidiary component organizations. You know the situation—it’s common in national and global associations. The meeting was important. The situation needed resolution, and all affected parts of the organization needed to move on to other, positive activities.
Fortunately, and due entirely to the positive and constructive leadership of all 16 participants, we succeeded. It wasn’t easy, but it was important and we reached unanimous agreement on all major points. That evening we had a “victory reception and dinner”, complete with a signing of a Proclamation of Achievement and Appreciation by all participants. They say all’s well that ends well, and we made sure we ended very well, indeed.
There’s a great book that helps address crucial conversations. Coincidentally, it’s titled Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking when Stakes are High. Authors are Patterson, Grenny, McMillan and Switzler, published in 2002 by McGraw Hill, and subsequently a New York Times bestseller.
Building from their research on the subject, the authors define these crucial conversations as those that “occur when there is a lot at stake, when emotions are strong, and when opinions differ”. The authors suggest the importance in such situations of having a clear sense of desired results (outcomes) as well as a clear sense of the desired relationships when the crucial conversations are concluded. This is not a situation in which one may want to do ones thinking out loud!
You can Goggle the book notes or buy the book (or both). You may be better prepared for your next crucial conversation. Good luck!
How are you at crucial conversations? Crucial conversations are those situations in which you are involved with others, in which the outcomes and the relationships are at stake.
Just about every non-profit CEO has been in crucial conversations. I remember one where 16 volunteer and staff leaders came from various parts of the U.S. in an attempt to settle and dispose of disputes between the parent organization and two of the subsidiary component organizations. You know the situation—it’s common in national and global associations. The meeting was important. The situation needed resolution, and all affected parts of the organization needed to move on to other, positive activities.
Fortunately, and due entirely to the positive and constructive leadership of all 16 participants, we succeeded. It wasn’t easy, but it was important and we reached unanimous agreement on all major points. That evening we had a “victory reception and dinner”, complete with a signing of a Proclamation of Achievement and Appreciation by all participants. They say all’s well that ends well, and we made sure we ended very well, indeed.
There’s a great book that helps address crucial conversations. Coincidentally, it’s titled Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking when Stakes are High. Authors are Patterson, Grenny, McMillan and Switzler, published in 2002 by McGraw Hill, and subsequently a New York Times bestseller.
Building from their research on the subject, the authors define these crucial conversations as those that “occur when there is a lot at stake, when emotions are strong, and when opinions differ”. The authors suggest the importance in such situations of having a clear sense of desired results (outcomes) as well as a clear sense of the desired relationships when the crucial conversations are concluded. This is not a situation in which one may want to do ones thinking out loud!
You can Goggle the book notes or buy the book (or both). You may be better prepared for your next crucial conversation. Good luck!
Monday, March 14, 2011
Wrestling with Burnout
By Virgil R. Carter
As a CEO, and the top leadership interface between your organization’s members, customers and staff, have you experienced burnout? Do you know CEOs who have gone through burnout? It’s no surprise that leaders, with the challenge of being responsible for planning and performance of their organizations, can become victims of burnout. The continuous, never-ending burden of top leadership can wear anyone down.
Are there some ways to reduce or avoid burnout?
A recent Internet article from LeaderPoint notes that while the weight of being in charge can overcome the most successful leaders, burnout is often a function of not delegating and working through others effectively. Harvard Business Review blogger John Baldoni is quoted as stating that the “best way to overcome the drive than made (CEOs) successful in the first place—the relentless pursuit of perfection—is to shift focus from one’s own success to the success of the executive team.”
Here are some suggestions from the article to help avoid burnout:
- Lead through others: Being a CEO widens the scope and increases the magnitude of the results to be achieved. Assign others the significant outcomes so that the CEO is not the bottleneck, consumed with personal problem-solving.
- Knowing everything: No CEO can do everything well. Accepting that no one can possibly know everything allows one to ask more questions, learn more and allows the work to remain with those show should be doing it.
- Enabling others: Motivating others is a challenge. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. Instead, focus on the work to be done, the desired outcome and assign these to key staff. Big jobs with significant outcomes tend to motivate people.
The bottom line is about getting results, consistently over time. It’s hard to do that without the support and assistance from others. One of the best ways for CEOs to achieve success is to drop their invincibility posture. Successful leadership and successful organizations are not a solo act.
To read the article “Avoid Burnout by Focusing on Your Team”, by John Baldoni, go here:
http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2010/11/avoid_burnout_by_focusing_on_y.html#
As a CEO, and the top leadership interface between your organization’s members, customers and staff, have you experienced burnout? Do you know CEOs who have gone through burnout? It’s no surprise that leaders, with the challenge of being responsible for planning and performance of their organizations, can become victims of burnout. The continuous, never-ending burden of top leadership can wear anyone down.
Are there some ways to reduce or avoid burnout?
A recent Internet article from LeaderPoint notes that while the weight of being in charge can overcome the most successful leaders, burnout is often a function of not delegating and working through others effectively. Harvard Business Review blogger John Baldoni is quoted as stating that the “best way to overcome the drive than made (CEOs) successful in the first place—the relentless pursuit of perfection—is to shift focus from one’s own success to the success of the executive team.”
Here are some suggestions from the article to help avoid burnout:
- Lead through others: Being a CEO widens the scope and increases the magnitude of the results to be achieved. Assign others the significant outcomes so that the CEO is not the bottleneck, consumed with personal problem-solving.
- Knowing everything: No CEO can do everything well. Accepting that no one can possibly know everything allows one to ask more questions, learn more and allows the work to remain with those show should be doing it.
- Enabling others: Motivating others is a challenge. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. Instead, focus on the work to be done, the desired outcome and assign these to key staff. Big jobs with significant outcomes tend to motivate people.
The bottom line is about getting results, consistently over time. It’s hard to do that without the support and assistance from others. One of the best ways for CEOs to achieve success is to drop their invincibility posture. Successful leadership and successful organizations are not a solo act.
To read the article “Avoid Burnout by Focusing on Your Team”, by John Baldoni, go here:
http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2010/11/avoid_burnout_by_focusing_on_y.html#
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