Why do some organizations succeed and some fail? Given similar demographics and models in the
same market, why does one business thrive and one struggle? Any given community can support (given
available resources) only so many grocery stores, pizza parlors, and burger
joints. In the non-profit world,
competition, while not as visible as in the for-profit world, is still very
real. A leader’s ability to “lead for
excellence” will determine the success or failure of any given venture, whether
it is non-profit or for-profit, public or private. It is not enough that a leader is
charismatic, dynamic, or infact
“excellent.” That excellent leader must lead for excellence in his or her team
and organization. Excellence needs to be
the predominant culture and vision of the organization, from the CEO all the
way down to the janitor.
I have distilled the domains of excellence into four main
measurable areas: Selection & Training, Vision & Outlook, Attitude & Energy, and Strategy & Planning.
Where these four areas converge, we find excellence.
Selection
& Training
It all begins here:
First:
We must select, train, and sustain people to find meaning in
their work, and we must place people where they are most likely to find this
meaning. This will occur when a system
is designed to address finding meaning in all three areas mentioned (selection,
training, and sustaining). This must
start right from the start of the “front-end” hiring process. Once hiring is complete, we need to provide
training that helps team members find meaning in the work they were hired to
do. As leaders, we must continually seek
to sustain our employees’ feelings of fulfillment in the work that they
do.
Second:
As a lover of gardening, I have spent hours upon hours -
graph paper in hand - planning the layout of a vegetable garden. I take into consideration things like: sun
exposure, amount of shading of the plants growing next to them, harvest and
replanting schedules, fertilizer types, drainage and watering needs, pest
attraction, etc. I love this analogy in
relation to systems and leadership. The job of a leader, like the
gardener, is to ensure that each individual is, and feels like they are, an
integral part of a system rather than just a collection of parts. When we are part of something greater rather
than just a collection of parts, we can build a sense of fraternity in the
organization and will provide added strength and resiliency to our team and to
each individual. For this to be
accomplished, the leader must have a proficient understanding of group
dynamics. A leader must understand and
know his people in order to know where in the group dynamic the employee fits
the system. This is a function of a
great HR person who will work closely with executive staff.
Third (and leading to the next area – Vision &
Outlook):
All staff, not just identified leaders, need to be converted
to the service of organization’s mission and values. All roads – All programs – All activities
BOTH lead to AND emanate from Values and Mission. A leader exudes the mission and values of the
organization.
A leader who wants to “lead for excellence” must 1) be tuned
into the front end process of selection and training by helping meet their
employees personal needs, while at the same time 2) be tuned in with the group
dynamic and see where people fit to meet the needs of the system, all the while
they are getting their own needs met.
Then 3) while people are getting their own needs met and the system is
getting its needs met, leaders must see that both people and system are meeting
the needs of the mission and values of the organization, and that the mission
and values are conversely meeting the needs of the people and system.
Do you need support in evaluating your organization’s
selection and training efforts? Are you
looking to devise new ways to gauge the meaning your organization is
engendering in your employees? Contact
me for a 1:1 consultation, or workshops and in-service trainings on selecting
and training that helps employees find meaning are being scheduled now.
