Seeing the Forest for the Trees

Though we’d like to believe that things will become simpler over time, they don’t.  Complexity and detail grow.  There is zero risk of either of them subsiding any time soon.

 

The amount of information we must deal with to make decisions grows annually; it doesn’t shrink.  As the body of knowledge in every field grows, mastery becomes difficult.  As a result, the jobs we perform become more specialized.  We use technology not to rid ourselves of complexity, but to make complexity more manageable. 

 

It is harder to see the big picture, how the pieces all come together, and where where our particular piece fits.  All is not lost, though.

 

Managers can deal with increasing complexity and detail by envisioning what they do in a larger context, and using simple frameworks to make decisions.

 

Context = ecosystem.  It’s our surroundings - particularly those which directly affect outcomes, and over which they have little influence.  Economic,  technological, social, regulatory and geophysical factors shape the market’s operating environment.

 

Framework = systematic approach.  Frameworks build on well-known and accepted principles, rules and relationships that generally characterize how things work together.  They are the basis by which decisions can be tested against well-understood models of how things behave.

 

Looked at another way:

 

Context =  a radar screen for things that matter in the environment

Framework = viewing actions as variables that determine how things work

 

Jack Welch, GE’s past CEO, was fond of saying that superstars could “see around corners.”  In other words, they developed effective radar screens for picking up on the things that mattered most to their undertakings.  He also emphasized that Execution, the ability to wrap it altogether to get measurable results, was the key skill of effective business leaders.  It was his way of saying that leaders possessed uncanny skill at seeing the system of how things work together, and then focusing on those variables that made all the difference.

 

Learning to think, decide and act in terms context and frameworks makes for great managers and leaders.

When to Take Action

Things aren’t working out the way you hoped with the online advertising campaign (or new hire, new product introduction, etc.)  Should you be stoically patient and stay the course, or immediately take action to set things right?

 

Good leaders seem to instinctively know what to do.  But it’s less a matter of instinct, and more a result of practice.  Such leaders are neither impulsive, nor are they fence-sitters.

 

They develop the skill of mentally testing and visualizing how a plan can unfold, and what could cause it to unravel.  They rapidly run through what if options in their heads, learning to recognize critical milestones and markers, and etching these into their mental plans.  The acquire such skill consciously and deliberately at first, and then unconsciously with practice as their confidence builds.

 

If key milestones and progress markers are being met the leader is patient, no matter how anxious others may be.  Yet, when a critical marker is missed, even if it’s not obvious to others, the leader acts decisively, knowing exactly what to focus on.

 

What appears instinctive is more often the result of methodical practice.

Delegation

On a radio interview I heard, a management writer defined delegation as getting other people to do what you don’t want to do.  Though tongue-in-cheek, he made his point.  

 

Some managers regard delegation as a means of disposal, retaining the things they covet while distributing the leftovers to their subordinates.  When workloads mount, they must assign some of the things they enjoy doing, often fiercely micromanaging those who have been given responsibility for them.

 

It’s a dismal proposition for the staff: either be assigned something that doesn’t matter to the boss and be left alone, or be given responsibility for something of value knowing that the boss will hover over you.  No wonder morale under such managers runs low.

 

Leaders, however, see every task as an intrinsic component of a larger value proposition, no matter how trivial it may seem.  They match the skills of subordinates to the organization’s activities to maximize the overall value that can be harvested by it.  They are conductors of an orchestra, directors of a play.  Their gift lies in the realization that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts, and their attention must then focus on developing high-performing teams.

 

Their staffs are energized, eager, and focused on contributing.  They are keenly aware that mastering abilities will create opportunities to expand their skills and take responsibility for ever-higher components of the organization’s value delivery.

 

All managers delegate.  Leaders delegate masterfully.