I'm saying "go", but my team's so slow - and why it's your fault

“I just need them to work smarter”. 

If you’ve ever uttered those words as a leader, you need a mirror (and to strike that phrase from your lexicon). One of the most common things I hear when working with organizations is a concern around timely decision making and sustainable progress towards objectives.

What you have to swallow is that it isn’t the team that needs to work smarter - it is you.

We’ve all heard the Frank Sonnenberg quote about hiring great people and getting out of their way. The inspiration in that quote is, well, inspirational. Non-managers love the message too. The autonomy, the freedom, the fun! But your job as a leader isn’t to just hire and inspire. Your job is to also set the inspirational north star and the guiding guard rails. Your job is to enable and solidify the expectations of the “how”. Your job is to provide feedback. And your job is to do that repeatably and consistently. Smart people will deliver amazing outcomes - when they have a clear understanding of the “what” the “why”.

Ask most executives if the “what” and “why” is clear and they will confidently say “yes”. “We talk about it at every company meeting”, “we set OKRs against them”, “we base our bonuses on them”. The talk-track is there. They pat themselves on the back and then wonder why things aren’t getting done.

The answer - unintentional mixed messages.  

When you talk to the smart people expected to deliver, they are often muddy on the “what” and “why”. Yes, they hear the messages at the town halls and the OKR updates. But...they also hear and see things that you likely don’t even realize you’re doing. They get confused. They lose direction and momentum. And then you’re left wondering why objectives aren’t being met.

When the words and actions don't match, people will always default to the actions.

What are you doing to send these mixed messages? Here are some possibilities.

“Yes, but maybe”

You’ve come to the conclusion that your current product just can’t do what you need it to do for that next big leap. You’ve done the research and investigation and need to rally around a new platform. You explain the “what” and “why” to the organization and form an amazing team to deliver against the business objectives. Yes, the message is clear. But maybe we can sneak just a bit more out of the current solution and hit an earlier date. You don’t want that investigation to distract the push for the next generation so you spin up a stealth team on the side to do just one more investigation. What could possibly go wrong?

I’m not saying that you shouldn’t a contingency plan. Even if you’re confident that your chosen path will be successful, there is nothing wrong with investing in other options when the risk profile dictates it. A contingency plan is not the problem. How you’ve communicated it to the organization is.

You’ve told this amazing team of people that the next generation is the top priority and the selected path forward. What happens when they get wind that there is this covert investigation still going on? It not only unintentionally signals a lack of confidence in the “new” team but it also causes real strife between the two teams.

The solution? Be very clear on the “why”. Again, it is okay to have both streams going but don’t hide it. Be clear that the next generation is required for all future growth but that the current platform can’t be ignored. Be clear in the objectives of each team. And if it is a race to see which team solves the problem first, make that clear too.

One and Done

You’ve just stood up in front of the entire company and delivered an inspirational and detailed presentation on the expectations of the next 6 months. This is a fail-proof plan. The outcomes are clear, the “why” is powerful, and the goals are achievable. You’re proud of yourself and you get out of the way. It is time for that amazing team to execute.

6 months later? Nothing is done. Surprised? You shouldn’t be. With no reinforcement or interim measurements, the team is guaranteed to stray. You can’t just deliver the message once and back off. That unintentionally signals to the team that you don’t really care about it. You have to continue to amplify the goals and measure the progress. You have to celebrate the successes and assess the learnings. The pride shouldn’t be in the kick-off. The pride comes from successful outcomes.

The solution? Repetition. The cadence is variable depending on the team and solution, but you have to continually reinforce the message. This intentionally shows your passion and support and continues to reinforce the success criteria. There are lots of tools to help understand progress and demonstrate progress but without your buy-in and active involvement, your team quickly loses the belief that this is important to you and the organization.

You Sure do Talk a Good Game

“A prime focus for this year is professional development. We’re enabling a budget for each and every team member to pursue their continued education. This is a top priority for us.” Sounds great and your team is excited. But when you roll out the official policy on this, you specify that the learning must occur on the employee’s own time or by using vacation time. While that may make sense from a productivity point of view, it sends an unintentional message that this isn’t really a top priority. If it was, there wouldn’t be a constraint on the time of day or forcing people to decide between a vacation with their family or taking a class.

When you’re setting priorities or rolling out policies, make sure you assess them from both sides of the relationship. It is okay to use focus groups or obtain feedback before communicating and changes. You’re a leader, not a machine. You won’t get everything right so use the people and tools around you. Think through the messaging and communication plans. Create the FAQ documentation prior to communicating. Make sure the message is clear with open and confident communication including the areas that are either contentious or still in progress.  

Do as I say, not as I do

“Our sales have flattened because of the current economic landscape. We’re going to be slowing some of our spending for the next quarter. This includes our IT budget and we’ll be holding off replacing laptops right now if your laptop is still in working condition. Thanks for your understanding”. Makes sense. Clear and concise and people understand that money "in" dictates money "out".

Two weeks later, you’re in a company meeting and you’re having trouble getting a presentation going. You blurt out, “I haven’t learned the shortcuts on this new laptop yet”. Not good.

Yes, you may have needed a new laptop. And yes, your time is very valuable to the company so the economics were likely there to justify the spend. But, you just unintentionally told the company that the rules don’t apply to you. They understand the basics of money in and money out but this will feel unfair to your employees and they lose the intended message. It now gets hard to tighten the budgets or ask employees to make concessions when you’re not. And it makes them hard to know what the right decisions even are.

The solution? The rules have to apply to all. Maybe you did need a new laptop but why not give the brand new one to the individual contributor most in need and take theirs for now. Or be very clear on the “why” if the rules have to be broken. You employ very smart adults, so be honest and open with them. That’s what they need.

The Strong, Silent Type

“My team has worked long enough with me to know what I expect” or “the goals of the company haven’t changed so everyone already knows them”. Are these things you’re thinking right now? 

We already know repetition is a key to understanding but we also have to consider that companies evolve rapidly. New people, new customers, new competitors. If you aren’t constantly assessing and communicating to your teams how these do or don’t influence the “what” and “why”, you’re failing.  

Never assume your team knows what you do. Without constant and clear communication, your team will start to assume that the status quo is acceptable and actually avoid making decisions that move your company forward on other, more correct paths. Validate that the message frequency and understanding are reaching the intended audience.

Like everything else that’s unintentional, you’ll have to work to identify when and where you’re missing the mark and correct them. Your actions truly do speak louder than your words. 

Your actions always speak louder than your words.

Hire that amazing team, motivate them, and get out of their way - by ensuring the messages are clear and consistent and removing mixed messaging.