02_WB_SIRXMGT003_V1.a.22.pdf

02_WB_SIRXMGT003_V1.a.22.pdf

SIRXMGT003

PROVIDE LEADERSHIP TO OTHERS

WORKBOOK

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CONTENTS

05 INTRODUCTION Deliver the vision 06

Share organisational vision and relevant plans with team members

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Facilitate individual and team input into achieve- ment of organisational vision and relevant plans

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Establish key performance indicators to measure success against organisational vision and plans

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Guide and coach team on delivering organisational vision and plans

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Demonstrate leadership

Select and demonstrate leadership styles appro- priate to team and organisational needs

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Act as a positive role model ensuring personal performance reflects organisational values and integrity

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Foster a high performance culture that supports innovation and active participation

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CONTENTS

36 Act on difficult issues

Consult with team and individual team members on difficult issues and reach a timely solution

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Demonstrate willingness to confront difficult situa - tions and problems

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Deal with difficult situations fairly and promptly ac - cording to organisational policies and procedures

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Communicate openly and honestly with individu- als and team members on difficult issues demon - strating sensitivity

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INTRODUCTION

This unit describes the performance outcomes, skills and knowledge required to lead others to deliver the organisa- tional vision through the development of performance plans and demonstration of leadership behaviours. This unit applies to senior personnel working in a diverse range of sectors and business contexts. They operate inde- pendently and are responsible for making a range of opera- tional business decisions and the management of others. No occupational licensing, certification or specific legislative requirements apply to this unit at the time.

Elements 1. Deliver the vision 2. Demonstrate leadership 3. Act on difficult issues

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ELEMENT 01 Deliver the vision

Performance Criteria

1. Share organisational vision and relevant plans with team members 2. Facilitate individual and team input into achievement of organisational vision and relevant plans 3. Establish key performance indicators to measure success against organi sational vision and plans 4. Guide and coach team on delivering organisational vision and plans

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Criteria 1.1 Share organisational vision and relevant plans with team members

By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to: » Talk to the team about organisational vision and plans » Explore how the vision and plans inform and direct the team’s work » Ensure that appropriate opportunities are made to share the vision (e.g. team meetings and briefings; at training sessions; etc.) Organisational Vision All organisations should have a vision. That is, a statement which sets out what the organ- isation is aiming to achieve in the future. Examples of Organisational Visions: Oxfam: Our vision is a just world without poverty. Ikea: At Ikea, our vision is to create a better everyday life for the many people. American E xpress: At American Express, we have a mission to be the world’s best ser- vice brand. Effective org anisational visions are short, inspirational statements which capture a sense of the organisation’s values and its overall purpose. Sharing the Vision with Team Members It is important to share the vision with team members for the following reasons: » It enables team members to all work towards the same end goals » It enables team members to understand the role that they play in achieving the organisation’s vision » It can lead to a sense of satisfaction and fulfilment in people’s job roles » It can inspire team members to deliver their best performance at work » It encourages commitment and motivation amongst team members » It demonstrates that the organisation values its personnel by sharing this infor- mation with them There are several opportunities for sharing the organisation’s vision and plans with team members.

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These opportunities may include: » At a formal launch of the organisation’s vision and/or business plan » At a team meeting to introduce the vision and plans » During or following training activities with team members which relate to the organisation’s vision or delivering the plan » In one on one discussions about team members’ performance, relating this to overall plans » In performance review meetings » In meetings and discussions to plan how to respond to a problem or crisis » In recruitment and training processes

Communicating Plans to Team Members

The key factors to consider when planning to communicate the vision and plans to team members are:

» What is the message? » Who needs to know? » How will I communicate this? » When should this communication take place?

What is the Message? It is important to be clear about what you are communicating and why. If you are simply advising team members about information which they need to simply be aware of, but not act upon, then the message may take one form (e.g. a mention in a briefing; an email; a noticeboard items, etc.). However, if you are communicating something more complex (such as the organisation’s vision and plans) with the expectation that team members will act on the message, then this will take a different form as you need to be more persuasive perhaps and ensure that they understand the message and the implications for them. Team members will want to know: » What is the message? » Why is it important? » What does it mean for me?

» What are the implications for me/my job? » What do I need to do differently, if anything? » What happens next?

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Who Needs to Know? It is important to consider all the people who need to be involved in a communication ex- ercise and to be careful not to omit anyone, however unintentional this might be. Different groups of people will need different levels of information. The senior leadership team may only be interested in headlines and key points, for example, whereas the team members who will be implementing the organisation’s vision will want more detail. Think about any occasional or part-time workers who may miss the key meetings or events when briefings take place – how can you ensure that they aren’t missed? When thinking about the audience, it’s useful to consider what questions or concerns people may have and to build your response to those in the actual communication that you deliver. This shows that you have considered the matter from other people’s points of view, and it limits the scope for questions/concerns arising from the communication. Finally, whilst the core message about the organisation’s vision and plans will remain constant for all audiences, the level of detail that they will want will vary so it’s a good idea to have a detailed communication which covers all angles and then tailor this to suit the different audiences that will receive it. How will I Communicate This? The method of communication used is very important and should be determined by the seriousness and complexity of the issue and the audience involved. Announcing the or- ganisation’s vision by an email to all team members, for example, is a missed opportunity and the method of communication is not fitting for a communication this important. It may be followed up with an email as a reminder, but it should not be the primary method of communication. If we remember that one of the purposes of the vision statement is to inspire team mem- bers, then it is difficult to achieve this with a one-dimensional method of communication. Reflect on the opportunities for sharing the vision outlined above and identify a range of approaches which are suitable in your context. Organis ations which are very effective at communicating their vision use a number of dif - ferent methods at different times with different people. What works best is a combination of methods – a one-off communication exercise may work well as a launch activity, but it must be sustained and kept alive through other methods. If this doesn’t happen, the mes- sage can become lost, consigned to the filing cabinet until the next ‘Vision Launch’. Consider the range of communication methods that you have in place in your organisation and choose the right one to suit the circumstances, bearing in mind that using a blend of a few different methods might be beneficial. When Should the Communication Take Place? The timing of the communication is important. Too early, and you may not have the nec- essary details to be able to answer any questions or concerns fully. Too late, and you may have to deal with unhelpful rumours and associated resistance which makes the job of communicating a great deal harder. A useful guide is simply to tell team members what’s happening as soon as you can.

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Criteria 1.2 Facilitate individual and team input into achievement of organisational vision and relevant plans By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to: » Encourage the team to have an input to planning the team’s work » Give the team permission to have an input » Show the team the value of their input » Set the tone of discussions with the team so that their input is encouraged » Ensure that all team members have the same opportunity to have an input

Facilitating Team and Individual Input

An organisation’s vision has a much better chance of being successfully implemented if teams and individuals have an input into how it is to be achieved in their specific part of the organisation. The vision and the business plan are overarching statements of what the organisation is aiming to achieve, and each team or department will have a different part to play in that. A research and development team will have a very different role to play from a finance team, or an operations team, for example. The common thread, however, is that the different teams should all be pulling in the same direction, guided by the same common purpose and objectives. Within your own team, it is important to facilitate team and individual input to achieving the overall vision and plans. This can be achieved by a range of methods including: » Have team and individual discussions to review the implications of the vision and plan for your team » Invite team members to make suggestions for objectives and actions that the team could work towards to achieve the vision and plans » Agree on team and individual objectives and formally record these » Use opportunities to remind team members of the vision and plans » Plan training and other support to give team members the information and skills that they need to deliver the vision and plans

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Involving Team Members Involving team members in the delivery of the organisation’s vision and plans is a powerful way of motivating and empowering individuals to give their best performance, take the ini- tiative and make good quality decisions. When team members are involved in the process, they feel important, trusted and that their opinions matter. Let’s l ook at a simple process involving the refurbishment of an office suite. In Organisation A, the following process is used: » Everyone on the team is invited to put forward suggestions » The suggestions are summarised and distributed to everyone for comment (or for people to vote on their favourite suggestions) » A draft plan is displ ayed for a period of time, showing the proposed office layout and colour scheme, etc. » People are invited t o make comments about the plan and make any final re - quests or suggestions » The plans a re finalised and communicated to the team » The team are informed when the refurbishment is to take place and what they need to do (e.g. Pack away materials and equipment; move to a temporary area) » The r efurbishment is completed, and the team move back into the office » The team has a few teething problems at first, but these are quickly identified and resolved » After a week or so, the team is asked for their views of the refurbished office – their points are either acted on if they have identified faults/errors or they are noted for future reference In Organisation B however, a very different process is used to plan the office refur - bishment: » T he office manager draws up a plan and arranges for the refurbishment to take place » When a date is confirmed, the manager tells the team that the office is being refurbished and they should pack away their equipment and materials » The team is told little or nothing about what the refurbished office will be like » The team vacates the office and moves to a temporary area » The team moves back into the refurbished office » Tea m members are disgruntled about the location of their desks; the lack of rub - bish bins; the location of the stationery cupboard; their access to telephones; the lack of personal storage space; etc. » Some team members argue over how the limited storage space should be used, etc.

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Organisation A has undoubtedly invested more time in planning, involving the team and listening to their views. In Organisation B, the office move was imposed on the team with no thought given to their views or inviting their input. These different approaches represent opposite ends of a spectrum, but they both contain elements of the sorts of things that happen in real life organisations when trying to implement their vision and business plans. The manager in Organisation A is perhaps consulting a little too much for what should be a straightforward project. However, the team seems to be reasonably happy with the out- come in comparison to the team in Organisation B where people were given little informa- tion and had absolutely no input to the process. The biggest mistake that the manager in Organisation B made was to assume that they knew best how the office should be refurbished. This is a common trait amongst manag - ers who fail to listen to or value their team’s input. By cutting out the team’s input, there is a risk that the outcome is not the best that it could have been. Those working in the office are the best people to say what storage is required, what the office layout should look like for ease of workflow, etc. By failing to involve them, the manager is storing up resentment and conflict which will take far more time and energy to unravel than a few minutes here and there in the planning stage, listening to people’s views. Tips for Facilitating Team Discussions Team meetings and briefing or training sessions provide an ideal opportunity for inviting team and individual input to discuss how to achieve the organisation’s vision and plans. When conducting these sessions, it is useful to forewarn attendees of the purpose and format of the meeting. Many people find it difficult to generate ideas on the spur of the moment and so it is useful to give them some information beforehand so they attend the session already having thought about the matter in hand. Another tip is to make sure that everyone gets the chance to contribute. In group discus- sions, there can be a tendency for one or two dominant individuals to do all the talking and the others either say nothing or simply agree with what’s being said. This defeats the purpose of the exercise as only a few voices are being heard. This can be avoided by following some good practice tips. Good practice in facilitating team discussions includes: » Warm the group u p – have a short activity at the beginning to break the ice and ensure that people are introduced to everyone else in the group, if necessary » Have clear ground rules at the outset that everyone has a useful contribution to make and is expected to contribute » Emphasise that there will be no interruptions while others are talking » Invite those who are not contributing to do so in smaller group situations » Be flexible – if it’s clear that the group has run out of steam on one topic, move on to the next » Use visual s such as a flipchart to record people’s contributions so that they re - main on display

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» Design the session with participation in mind – use tools which encourage ev - eryone to be involved » Keep a close watch on time so that all the key parts of the session receive an appropriate amount of attention » Use summaries to keep the group on track » Use relia ble methods to capture the group’s findings (e.g. bullet points on flip - chart; using a note-taker; audio-recording discussions; etc.) » Tell the group what will happen to their contributions and when » Tell the group what happens next regarding working towards achieving the or- ganisation’s vision and business plan

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Criteria 1.3 Establish key performance indicators to measure success against organisa- tional vision and plans By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to: » Review existing KPIs » Revise KPIs to ensure their relevance to the team’s work » E nsure the KPIs are written in SMART terms, with specific wording and clearly defined measures » Be clear about the >Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50

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