8 Imperatives for every COO

Early in my career, I was determined to pick up skills to help me be an effective and impactful leader. In 2020, after more than 15 years of skill accumulation in different departments as COO or similar roles. I had the honor and privilege to work in high-performance teams being responsible for global operations with many thousands of employees and 3 digit millions in turnover. In all functions, I only had a limited idea of what I was involved in. I began spending my free time trying to read as many books and articles as well as attending conferences and exchanges within my network trying to understand what a COO does and whether I would be any good at it.

I have now served as COO for different organizations and leaders and have found that there are certain inherent traits that every COO possesses, and certain imperatives that will maximize their impact. As “Second in Command” it’s essential that the COO wholeheartedly believe in the CEO’s strategic leadership to accomplish mission-critical goals. Chief operating officers, by virtue of their inherent talents and their organizational position, are highly visible and powerful. If the COO is not aligned with the CEO’s vision, or not convinced that the CEO can find the best path forward, then that lieutenant is capable of real mischief.

On the other side, a COO′s effectiveness is correlated with his ability to structure business problems, developing problem-solving strategies, bringing in the right people into play, and to build high-performance teams. Success as a COO requires natural inclination for solving complex business problems, implementing sustainable solutions, and driving cultural change and transformation – no matter how big the obstacles might seem. Good communication and collaboration skills are essential to driving change within the organization also depending on the support of other leaders and the CEO.

Although for sure that list is not complete there are some guidelines and imperatives that guided me through tough times:

Lead in Excellence

Operational excellence is the alignment of the company and the overall strategy by controlling and continuously monitoring all processes and value chains from an efficiency and effectiveness point of view. As a COO the customer′s need is a key focus and solving the right problem instead of remedying symptoms. Avoiding inefficiencies should be the focus. Excellence is the guarantee of success. It is based solely on numbers, dates, and factual decisions. The company is viewed as a whole. Operational excellence is always an investment in employees and sustainability. All processes, systems, and structures are examined for their value add. Operational excellence is not a method or philosophy that can just be introduced. This requires long-term and permanent efforts. It's about doing your own homework to keep getting better. The discipline and accuracy of the introduction and implementation are crucial. A COO who wants to successfully establish the company on the market in the long term can avoid operational excellence. The method (Lean Management, Six Sigma, etc.) offers enormous and mostly previously unimaginable improvement potential. When properly implemented, it triggers a motivation boost for employees because nodes are loosened within the organization. This means that the innovation potential of a company can only really unfold. Encrusted processes and structures are dissolved and a dynamic process of continuous improvement starts.

Lead in Pragmatism

Pragmatism is defined as an approach to things that focus on a practical or logical response. Addressing problems logically is an example of pragmatism. The world that we know through our experience is a world without absolute fixity and permanence. Not only our personal experience but the external world is a world whose regularities and stabilities exist in a framework of change, much of which is not noticed. Action, survival, and the satisfaction of our needs are thus more basic than the notions of truth and knowledge. This suggests the primacy of life over truth. The successful conduct of business performance does not require perfect knowledge or proven truths but simply good beliefs to guide our action; that is one reason why I believe it is an important imperative for any COO.

Lead in Innovation

Trends such as digitization require the development of different types of innovations. For example, process innovations, product development, and the introduction of service innovations. Traditional business models must be developed into digital ones. The implementation of disruptive innovations is also one of the core tasks of a COO. Leadership culture, creative techniques, open innovation, and the search for accompanying service innovations - the selection of possible measures to increase innovative capacity in a company is essential for long term success. A long-sighted COO will enable innovation as transformation into solutions that are successful on the market. This results in sales, profits, or savings, and competitive advantages.

Lead in Execution

Leadership is regularly cited as a root cause of execution failure. There might be numerous reasons why, but most often leaders tend to delegate execution, thinking of it as a series of metrics on a dashboard. This is an incredibly damaged mindset and a key obstacle for leaders to overcome. If they want their organization to reach their full potential, leaders need to be the utmost influential executor in their organization. There is no magic pill or secret sauce to successfully execute a strategy. Understanding what execution really is, preparing for obstacles, and challenges to come and build execution capabilities into the organization are key success factors. However, leaders who are engaged in the process, do not delegate it out to others, anticipate potential problems, and recognize that execution skills can be cultivated, are in a much stronger position to succeed. All organizations have plans. They may be formal strategic documents over 100 pages long or simply ideas sketched out on a napkin. Either way, the leader’s job does not end just because the strategy is formulated. Execution is everything.

Lead in Discipline

“positive discipline does not replace reason but applies reason to the achievement of a common objective” William R. Spriegel. The word discipline reinstates a well-defined code of conduct, the difference between ethical and unethical standards. The literal meaning of discipline is the mode of life in accordance with prescribed rules, regulations, procedures, or other modes of behavior. Discipline plays a vital role in the proper and efficient functioning of any organization. As COO there is the need to implement both positive and negative discipline, but negative discipline should be only used exceptionally. Any organization will be productive if there is proper management of discipline.

Lead in Courage

I tell colleagues who complain about a lack of courage: “Only the tough get into the garden”. But then, when it comes down to it, the CEO, a colleague or competitor is in front of them. With a hurtful accusation, a brazen request, a cheeky threat ... And what happens? Nothing. Everything stays the same. Still suffering from the status quo belongs to many people - including many managers - to act less than heard. Too powerful are the self-doubts, the fear of being touched, the urge to avoid conflicts. The fear of fear is too terrible. In most cases, people suffer, people who experience themselves as despondent. Firstly, because they see nothing and continue to work with them, with whom they are not satisfied. On the other hand - and maybe even more - because it depresses, paralyzes, and demotivates the feeling of betraying yourself. Because: self-confidence led to courage.

Lead in Collaboration

The key to successful teams is a trustful and open interaction with one another. In order for teams to perform cooperation on an eye-level is required and no empty phrases. The best ideas don't help if they are sabotaged in everyday work. With the right framework, companies can behave in a positive manner, but ultimately everyone is responsible for making their contribution to good cooperation. Everyone has proven themselves for the overall success of the team and tried to lose the rest of the others. This includes, for example, heard tasks, making a to-do list from a to-do list. Instead of lone warfare, right-wing affiliation has been drawn.

Lead in Focus

The starting point is always the same: in many situations, the COO is confronted with many ideas on how goals can be achieved. Various measures, initiatives, programs, and projects are getting initiated, but the effects of these actions come out usually smaller than expected. Established control and performance systems result in conflicts and increase this problem. The COO more often will need to extinguish the fire again and again and balance the goals. Focusing is, therefore, a key imperative. However, focusing does not only mean to evaluate priorities but also to decide what will not be continued – what activities will be stopped.

In summary, a good COO should fill in leadership gaps, fix big issues, and execute core strategy in alignment with senior leadership. Most importantly, a COO needs to be an effective communicator and collaborator with whom people want to work. Lastly, he is dependent on a strong team that supports him on his way.