New productivity and change adaptation requirements are currently forcing organizations to deeply review their ways of working, their leadership patters (if and where they have already been set in place), their focus (on people, on productivity, on the market itself, etc.).
The need to stay competitive and survive the wave of change has pushed some of them to consider a major paradigm shift from the pyramid structure to the flat organizational model, from focus on control & micro-management to building trust & nurturing autonomy and responsibility.
Not easy to achieve, considering that it involves not only the process & purely technical aspects of the status quo, but the mindset and people personalities as well, this being nearly impossible to model into something new, should the individuals not decide to have a fresh approach to change (noticing a very strong resistance to change in most cases).
Some companies are currently approaching the so-called fast-track changes which entail the use of already available tools and resources in a condensed & adapted way in order to get quick wins in a short time frame. For some, the results are there, for some others, it backfires as they are too eager to have quick results and they tend to overlook the more challenging aspects of the change, such as the mindset shift. Speed does not enable quality.
A few of them, though, are currently working on a massive and disruptive transformation, down to the core, using existing tools & resources and building new ones so that whatever they obtain, is actually bringing something completely redefined to the table. The market is massively shifting so should the processes and mindsets if we want to actually get relevant results.
What should organizations approaching this major shift be on the lookout?
In my view, checking how agile leadership model is set in place (or upgraded) can be done on 2 major levels:
1. Individual agile leadership:
- Continuously grow & evolve: always hungry for new, continuously learning from experience, building own knowledge base and using it to reach success;
- Have the courage to speak up: bring all matters to the table, regardless the impact, be transparent and open, have the courage to approach the lessons learned from past mistakes and see them in a constructive light, use them to improve and grow, not judge;
- Build trust: it’s a give-and-take journey, so ensure your behavior & inputs inspire others to trust your judgment & continue the transformational path with you, while doing & giving the same back to you;
- Be You: nothing is more valuable and more important than sharing part of your inner light with the others, your authenticity, your value, and your unique vibe.
2. Team agile leadership:
- Share the spark: inspire, support and lead by example, leave your mark and help the others do their own magic too;
- Focus on team spirit: encourage cohesion, build trust and enable support to nurture drive for success and focus on common goals;
- People are everything: once you understand that any organization is driven solely by its people & their dedication, you see the true value, understand the purpose and push things in a totally different way;
- Be pragmatic: focus on what is truly important and & a must-have, push for a clean and agile process and encourage rationalization of every effort;
- Allow creativity to work its magic: use processes and streamline actions, but encourage free-flow and creative spark as they are the fuel of new ideas and they alone sustain true evolution.
Critical to being ready for change, is to understand that this is a journey, a transformational process, with lots of setbacks, show-stoppers and lessons learned, yet even more victories, fresh starts and outstanding results, so take your time, take it in, let it change you from within and support you in developing a new mindset, new ways of working, new relationships, new destinations. Let that inner light guide you and support you and your company through this wonderful growth journey.
Be open-minded, be truthful, be optimistic, be there in the moment, be YOU!
How agile are you?