The Exec. Team is Healthy

Verne Harnish wrote a fantastic book titled, Scaling Up. In the book, he discusses the 10 Rockefeller Habits of Success. Though I have read the book several times, it really struck me this morning when I was reading that the first habit has to do with the executive team. Before any other habit of success is going to work, the executive team has to be healthy and aligned.

How often do we see the top leaders of an organization working together, focused on the same values, the same outcomes, and the same systems? Harnish goes on to describe that there are four key components of a healthy executive team.

1. They understand the differences of each person and have learned to capitalize on those differences. In my experience, this is done through the use of validated assessments, intentional time invested in each other, and the desire to see the good in the other person.
2. The team meets frequently (weekly is suggested) to think strategically. In my experience, having meetings that are focused on the short-term and how those daily and weekly activities tie into long-term success works the best.
3. The team participates in ongoing executive education (monthly). This is one of those areas I am truly passionate about. The moment a leader believes they know everything is the moment they lose their ability to move forward. We are never done learning.
4. The team is able to engage in constructive debates. If the team isn’t comfortable with disagreeing with one another and/or if they don’t have a framework for those disagreements, they will never achieve success. Positive conflict is a cornerstone for good decision-making.

Habit #1 is consistent with the findings of Patrick Lencioni (5 Dysfunctions of a Team), Bruce Tuckman (Team Development Theory), and a host of other researchers. Creating alignment at the top makes chasing the vision both possible and highly likely to be achieved. Take a look at your team and ask yourself if the team is aligned in the four areas above. If they aren’t, what can you do by next week to start creating that alignment? Your success depends on it!

You’ve got this!

Jody N Holland, M.S. Psychology