How to lead when it all goes horribly wrong

Last week I looked at early-stage setbacks transformation which tend to centre on failure to engage buy-in – and cash – from the Executive.

Mid-stage setbacks tend to centre on lots-of-little-things-not-working – and plain old fatigue. You know how it is, when everything you thought was going to work… just doesn’t. I’d say this is when the Transformation Lead needs positive resilience the most; along with the ability to front-up to disasters and setbacks. Kipling and all that (Rudyard, I mean: I’m not advising getting a lot of cakes in).

You will need to develop a three-way personality split: the ability to move between three different leadership styles. You’ll need to assume the right personality for the task in hand throughout the programme – depending on what type of thing has gone wrong.

First up is:

The relationship manager

This is the approach you’ll need to use with the project sponsor, usually the Board and/or the senior management team.   It’s a tricky one to get right because, in a crisis, the sponsor needs to be told at once that there is a crisis. And that sponsor sure ain’t gonna like it. So in relationship-manager mode, it’s your job to make sure the sponsor first really understands the problem. What precisely is wrong, and what are the implications of that? Then, once everyone has stopped running around the room screaming, you need to make sure the senior team members all believe that the problem can be solved.   As the shouting stops, and the emotional temperature begins to steady, you then need to get their permission to solve the problem; and to give reassurance that this can be made to happen. That’s quite a journey to take people on: only relationship-managing gets a result with the sponsor, I’ve found.

Then:

 Command-and-control

On the walk back down the stairs from the top floor to the Transformation Team office, you’ll need to morph into command-and-control mode. This does not mean you need to take a deep breath, ready to start shouting. It means you need to accept and own the problem. And want to direct the solution. And develop a coherent plan to fix it.

I believe that a crisis is not a problem that you should swiftly and neatly give away to a giant multinational provider, assuring everyone that it’s best if the Big Boys come in with all their bells and whistles.   For me, you need to keep ownership in-house, with the solution being developed where you can keep an eye on it, under your control. That said, this is not a time to save a few quid, either.

If your crisis is large, you need to throw your best resources at it. That means hand-picking the most able, innovative and collaborative team you can get your paws on (and by the way, that usually includes the best lawyers).   And you’ll need decent capacity levels, too. By being decisive and confident at this stage, everyone around you will feel reassured we’ve got this.

Once you’ve got the team lined up, swap back into relationship-manager gear. Your role is now to make this team believe the problem can be solved; and that they can solve it. You’ll need to create a positive atmosphere; you know, the one which has been slipping away from the team in the last few weeks of increasing gloom or frustration. You need them enthusiastic and energised if you want them to be creative and innovative. These people need to know that they can do the impossible. By next Tuesday.

Then, you will then need a final quick-change into a third type of leader:

The trendy Richard Branson-ish one

This is the “empowerer”: the one that devolves decision-making and accountability. Yes, sure, you OWN the problem, but David Brent-style my-way-or-the-highway is no way to get the best out of talented team members. So tell everyone they can make any decisions that fit with their remit and their recognised skill and judgement. Encourage solutions that don’t follow well-trodden paths, if these will fix the job. And give credit for those lightbulb ideas that really move the project on. The team members will all then do their bit to solve the problem for you…

This is based on an extract from Mark Aikman’s book Uncommon Sense: Alternative Thinking on Digital Transformation

Amazon location: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Uncommon-Sense-Alternative-Thinking-Transformation-ebook/dp/B08KSG513Q  

Apple location: https://books.apple.com/gb/book/uncommon-sense/id1536877985