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Slide Notes

• The pace of change in business has accelerated.
Old ways of command and control leadership will not work in the new environment.
• Additionally, all stakeholders - customers, employees, shareholders, communities - are demanding greater accountability and have more power than ever at their fingertips.
• These new requirements are changing what is needed in corporate leadership and where success comes from: engaged employees, evolution with technology, and customer empowerment and advocacy.


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LEADING ON THE DIAGONAL

Published on Nov 25, 2015

A corporate leadership approach for the new era.

PRESENTATION OUTLINE

LEADING ON THE DIAGONAL

Be 'in control' without being 'controlling'
• The pace of change in business has accelerated.
Old ways of command and control leadership will not work in the new environment.
• Additionally, all stakeholders - customers, employees, shareholders, communities - are demanding greater accountability and have more power than ever at their fingertips.
• These new requirements are changing what is needed in corporate leadership and where success comes from: engaged employees, evolution with technology, and customer empowerment and advocacy.


Photo by i k o

HEIRARCHY

IS USEFUL AND NECESSARY
• Traditionally, companies organize vertically out of necessity – vertical silos are useful and needed to conduct business.

People generally know how to get things done within a silo.
• However, this works when the organization and business are static. When the business needs to evolve and change, leaders spend the rest of their time trying to knock down silos and share information horizontally.
.
Photo by Drift Words

INFORMAL NETWORKS

LEAD TO MOST STRATEGIC CHANGE
• In my experience, most innovative change results from informal networks inside a company -- all too often it is not fully intentional.

LEAD

HORIZONTALLY AND VERTICALLY
• One of the biggest mistakes corporate leaders make is they believe they can do it all and focus in their vertical silo
• We quickly learn that we must build peer networks and work horizontally.

Photo by ndanger

ON THE DIAGONAL

However, we need to work horizontally and vertically at all level - on the diagonal. This sounds like a recipe for chaos no matter the size of the company. How do you do this while maintaining your standard organizational structure?

CREATE

CROSS FUNCTIONAL WORKING GROUPS FOR......
Create cross functional, diagonal teams within and outside the company, at all levels of seniority and functionality, to collaborate on specific issues.

CHOOSE

The right people
Limit the number of diagonal teams that you have operating at any one point in time.

Always anchor diagonal teams to the senior most committee in your company - the ExCo.

Choose a senior leader from ExCo that is already effective at leading across, up, and down.

Ensure that a true mix of superstars and subject matter experts are present and engaged from all levels of the organization.

• To succeed, leaders must create a culture of collaboration and partnership, seamlessly within, focusing on external needs rather than internal politics.
o Provide ‘real’ authority from all members -- a ‘get to’ vs. ‘have to’ mentality.
Photo by Grant Wickes

CLEAN UP

YOUR CURRENT MEETING STRUCTURE
Take an inventory of all the meetings that take place.

Clean up the meeting structure by pruning back on the things no longer required.

Look at the length and focus of meetings. Are they informational or are decisions being made?

FREE UP THE SCHEDULE

TO ALLOW DIAGONAL GROUPS TO FLOURISH
With a disciplined meeting structure, you will free up time for your diagonal groups to meet.

Don't simply layer another meeting on your high performers.

Give them real authority and don't second guess their decisions

Give them big problems to solve.

Be 'in control' without being controlling.

authentic Communication is Required

Everything else is lip service
Foster true information sharing and transparency

In the old world, information was power; in the new world, information shared is power.

Without question, deliver consistent communication up, down, and across the diagonal. This open flow can make a leader feel uncomfortable

Authenticity means being willing to make yourself vulnerable and acting, responding to issues surfaced by diagonal groups.
Photo by rdes

STAKEHOLERS

INCLUDE EXTERNAL GROUPS
• Diagonal leadership should also be implemented externally – creating a mentality that includes, not excludes external key stakeholders. Depending on the organizations these could include:
o Regulators and unions
o Customers and communities
o Other companies – such as vendors and innovative start ups.




Photo by NRCgov

CUstomer communities?

Definitely
Authentic co-development with a robust feedback mechanisms through a customer community ?

Definitely. This applies to all industries now - not just software.

STRATEGY Pivots

Use diagonal groups for:

Strategy Pivots
Photo by karenblakeman

INNOVATION

Innovation.
Photo by gazzat

REgulatory Change

Photo by joiseyshowaa

Join the conversation

@cameoworks