Organizational Change: Who do you think you are? Who are you, really?

Who do you think you are? Who are you, really?

Considering the difference between a leader and a manager at all organizational levels is essential. Both roles are critical to the organization's success, requiring different skills and abilities.

Managers are responsible for planning, organizing, and controlling resources, processes, and people to achieve specific goals within the organization. They focus on efficiency, structure, and execution of plans. On the other hand, leaders are responsible for inspiring, motivating, and guiding individuals and groups toward a shared vision or goal. They focus on innovation, creativity, and creating a sense of purpose.

When organizations only focus on management and neglect leadership, they may become stagnant and fail to adapt to changing environments or opportunities. Conversely, when organizations only focus on leadership and neglect management, they may need more structure and resources to achieve their goals.

While there is some overlap between the two roles, the main difference is that managers are focused on maintaining the status quo and ensuring that processes run smoothly. In contrast, leaders are focused on driving change and innovation. Effective organizations need managers and leaders to succeed.

Most try it this way:

Do you believe that being an excellent subordinate is essential for organizational change?

Being an excellent, proactive subordinate who takes the initiative and demonstrates a strong work ethic can contribute to positive organizational changes. However, effective organizational change requires a comprehensive and collaborative approach considering multiple perspectives and factors. Being an excellent subordinate is one small piece of the puzzle that can help drive meaningful organizational change.

However, Bolman and Deal would also caution that change is a complex process that requires a multifaceted approach. In addition to individual contributions, organizational change requires a supportive culture, effective leadership, and a clear vision for the future. These elements are necessary for even the best efforts of subordinates to be enough to drive meaningful change.

Being an excellent subordinate may be one piece of this puzzle, but more is needed.

Based on this, energy should not be expended in this area for Organizational Change. Subordinates’ morale and actions could be measured as a trailing indicator and derivative response to requirements set upon them by their superiors and their relative position within the organization.

But (actually) this is a better way…

Be yourself on purpose.

The Sage. The Artist. The Engineer. The Athlete. Why must all these archetypes be present for organizational change?

Each archetype represents a different personality type and skill set that can bring a unique perspective and abilities to an organization during times of change.

If all these archetypes are present, organizations can tap into diverse skills, perspectives, and abilities necessary for effective organizational change. This can help organizations build a solid and adaptable foundation to navigate change in a dynamic and rapidly evolving environment.

Sage - The sage archetype represents the wise, reflective, and thoughtful individual who can provide valuable insights and guidance during change. Sages can help organizations reflect on their past experiences, learn from mistakes, and identify opportunities for growth and development.

Artist - The artist archetype represents the creative and innovative individual who can help organizations develop new ideas, products, and services for adapting to changing circumstances. Artists can bring fresh perspectives, challenge conventional thinking, and inspire others to think outside the box.

Engineer - The engineer archetype represents the analytical and systematic individual who can help organizations develop and implement effective processes and systems for managing change. Engineers can identify problems, design solutions, and ensure that change initiatives are well-planned and executed.

Athlete - The athlete archetype represents the energetic and motivated individual who can help organizations overcome obstacles and persevere through challenging times. Athletes can bring a sense of drive, determination, and resilience necessary to succeed in adversity.

How do we properly “align?”

Spirit, Mind, and Body map to Task, Purpose, and Mission. Leaders are appointed and have delegated authority. Managers are hired and have delegated responsibility. Leaders own purpose and ideas, while managers own mission and resources.

Building alignment within subordinates is crucial to ensure their efforts align with an organization's mission and goals. To achieve this, leaders must take a comprehensive approach that addresses organizational structural, human resource, political, and symbolic dimensions. By clarifying roles and responsibilities, developing skills and capabilities, building relationships and coalitions, and communicating vision and values, leaders can create a cohesive and aligned organization to achieve its goals.

Bolman and Deal may interpret their four-frame approach for aligning subordinates with an organization's mission and goals like this:

The Structural Frame suggests clarifying roles and responsibilities to align subordinates with the organization's mission, involving clear job descriptions, metrics, and feedback.

The Human Resource Frame suggests developing subordinates' skills and capabilities, including training, coaching, mentoring, and creating a positive learning environment to align their efforts with the organization's mission and goals.

The Political Frame suggests building relationships and coalitions among subordinates to align their efforts with the organization's mission and goals. This involves developing a network of allies, building trust, and collaborating effectively.

The Symbolic Frame suggests that subordinates align their efforts with the mission and goals by understanding and embracing the organization's vision and values. This involves clearly and consistently communicating vision and values, modeling desired behaviors, and creating a culture that reinforces them.

Action Steps

1.????Identify individuals with leadership and management skills at all levels of the organization to ensure that it can achieve its goals effectively and efficiently while remaining adaptable and innovative.

2.????Ensure that the organization has a diverse range of personality types and skill sets, as illustrated by Degraff's archetypes of the sage, artist, engineer, and athlete, to navigate the complexities of organizational change and build a solid and adaptable foundation. Be intentionally Diverse.

Summary and Call to Action

Effective organizational success requires organizations to start with why they exist, move on to how they do what they do, and end with what they do. Both leadership and management skills are critical in driving organizational success by answering these three questions.

Leaders inspire, motivate, and guide individuals and groups towards a shared vision or goal, which answers the "why" question. On the other hand, managers focus on planning, organizing, and controlling resources, processes, and people to achieve specific goals, which answers the "how" question.

Effective organizations need a variance of archetypes, managers, and leaders to succeed because each brings unique skills and strengths, aligning with the "what" question. In driving change, organizations must take a comprehensive and collaborative approach considering multiple perspectives and factors, aligning with the "why" question.

Further, by acknowledging Degraffs's Archetypes, organizations can tap into diverse skills, perspectives, and abilities necessary for effective change, aligning with the "why" question. Therefore, organizations should strive to have the right people in the correct positions and provide appropriate training and development opportunities to cultivate leadership and management skills, aligning with the "how" and "what" questions.

Broken organizations are only underdeveloped, do not fear! Mature organizations have an understood structure, defined leader-and-manager pairs throughout the organizational vertical, a variance of trusted archetypes, and an aligned, well-defined mission.

References

Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2021). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership (7th ed.). Jossey-Bass.

Cameron, K. S., Quinn, R. E., DeGraff, J., & Thakor, A. V. (2022). Competing Values Leadership. Edward Elgar Publishing.

Chaffey, D. (2022, October 25). Golden Circle model: Sinek’s theory value proposition: start with why. Smart Insights. https://www.smartinsights.com/digital-marketing-strategy/online-value-proposition/start-with-why-creating-a-value-proposition-with-the-golden-circle-model/

Sean O'Brien is a first-year resident in the Doctor of Strategic Leadership at Oral Roberts University.