- September 18, 2013
- Communication, Leadership, Team Building
In my last post I talked about the Open Door Policy as a way to create more availability and connection. I suggested that the “drop- in” meeting might not be the best way to foster the connection that creates high performance and leadership.
Today I would like to talk about meetings that are regular and scheduled. In order to achieve success I think the mindset surrounding meetings will need to change.
The word “meeting” has from time to time been thought of with distaste, irritation and sometimes dread.
One of the results of lack of communication and connection, especially at the top leadership level, is that the top leadership peer group, in many organizations, knows less about each other than they know about their direct reports. Communication is at a premium and generally does not openly take place in executive meetings. Often those meetings do not even take place on a regular basis.
Instead meetings are called when there is a decision that needs to be made or announced. The best thinking and evaluating cannot take place because the basic interactive patterns have not been set. This can lead to a lack of honesty and the inability to use collaborative processes; so that meetings are seen as a waste of time.
In some situations I have attended executive team meetings where most of the talking was done by the leader where answers from the team were short and safe. Often there was little communication between the team members within the team meetings especially in terms of honestly discussing a problem or a new initiative.
Typically, after the leadership meeting is complete, the executives go off in groups of two or three to discuss their real feelings with each other. Unfortunately the top executive does not hear these discussions and only a few of the members of the team hear each discussion. Much value is lost for implementation and for full team engagement which is essential to achieving strategic goals.
The CEO or other senior leader can often feel frustrated because the real opinions of their division heads are not expressed until a later discussion is held because of difficulties in strategic implementation.
Fear of risk is one of the reasons that collaboration does not take place successfully. There are steps that can to be taken to create an environment where the personal risk of having a bad idea or being wrong is seen as essential to the creative thinking that brings about innovation and growth.
If any of these situations come up in your leadership team or meetings, it is possible to develop a meeting model. In this model attention and focus are given to the communication process of the meeting. Some of this is discussed in our four meeting model, which is a beginning organizational step for more collaboration and engagement
Creative thinking, disagreement and innovation are all processes to be included in the team and culture of collaboration. These necessarily take place with intentional time devoted to bringing forth innovative ideas, and a process that allows for safety in expression of ideas, even if they are not understood or seen as viable.
A beginning organizational concept for this team approach is outlined below in the six important aspects of a well- functioning team.
- Trust
- A safe environment for expression of ideas
- Willingness to conflict, and a format for hearing and discussing to conclusion
- Commitment to the team and to team goals
- Holding each other accountable, and a process of partnership
- Focus on results
The communication practice, and the ability to make connection a priority, enhance these aspects, and give a pathway to the power of engagement.
I’ll continue to discuss this in my next post.
In the meantime, do you have any questions, challenges, or successes you would like to share? Please be sure to leave a comment. I would enjoy hearing from you! – Patricia
