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Sticking the head in the sand only brings disadvantages

Leaders, who are in charge formally or informally, shape large groups. The role model of leaders determines the behavior of the members on all levels. Good, but unfortunately also bad habits are transmitted and reused thoughtlessly. The decisiveness, the readiness for risk and openness are just some positive characteristics that make the enterprise fit for unexpected events. In times when accuracy is more important than decided action, the employees develop passive approaches that help to avoid being noticed due to too many breakdowns. In addition to sitting out issues, beating around the bushes and the noncritical fulfillment of tasks, the ‘sticking the head in the sand’ seems to promise a way out. Nevertheless, it only provides disadvantages.

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After the slogan ‘No one sees, what I do not see’ the decision makers save themselves quickly into their own mindscape, without paying attention to the signs coming from the context. The better approach is the attentive observation of the environment with the following measures.

  • Benefit from the contributions of superiors, colleagues, employees and others!
    The proposals that are provided by the environment, offer frequently solutions for most of the difficulties. In order to lift these treasures of proposals, it needs nothing else than the ability to listen. Formally, idea forums or suggestion systems can be installed and evaluated with little expenditure on the web.
  • Detect weaknesses and risks!
    As soon as the employees assume that the quest for possible complications eventually creates the inconvenience, preliminary avoidance of trouble is no longer possible. Tools, such as SWOT, the view of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and risks, provide good results, in order to step out of the way of obstacles.
  • Use opportunities!
    The well-known coin that lies on the street, of course, must be seen, in order to pick it up. In a similar way, it is important to keep the eyes open for opportunities, which create one or the other way around problems. With the appropriate plan radar, opportunities can be identified at an early stage.
  • Cultivate long-range views!
    The future cannot be seen until it becomes present. However, since it is mostly build on existing aspects, you can develop scenarios that can be derived from the available insights. The consequences that will be discovered from these perspectives, improve in any case your ability to react appropriately to the future. The joint development and the spreading of the scenarios empower cooperation.
  • Foster decisions!
    As long as mistakes are not considered valuable experiences, it is difficult to get long-term agility based on decisive employees. In centralized companies, like for example those in the Middle East, the boss signs personally even the smallest procedure. It is surely better to use the current hierarchies in such a way that the responsible level makes the decisions. In the event of a fault, nobody should be afraid that apart from the actual difficulties, additional punishments could take place.

Bottom line: Sticking the head in the sand creates only disadvantages – for the enterprise. Therefore, an environment that tolerates mistakes and provides elbow freedom for the entrepreneurial spirit of the employees is needed. Difficult decisions in the interest of the company should be taken quickly and decisively. One, who closes the eyes to the reality, is disturbing sand in the gear.

Penniless managers are worth nothing

After the ghost of planned economy collapsed, large-scale enterprises evolve to huge centralistic administrative bodies. After years of lean management, culture, hierarchies rigidify, which undermine their intended claim for a flat structure with the subordination of equal levels. The return to functional organizations covers the inability to base the organization on processes. The cross charging of deliverables create an internal market in which specific amounts are negotiated and paid with the transfer of budgets – wooden nickels from the left to the right pocket. The degree of bureaucratization can be seen via the necessary reports and guidelines. More and more employees serve an overhead of project, planning and budget reports. At the same time, the guidelines evolve to one entanglement of regulations that cannot be conveyed or obeyed anymore. The crucial error is however the new approach to realize savings, namely to decide right at the top any outward cash flow. Yet it is forgotten that leaders are worth nothing without financial means.

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What do doers need in order to fulfill their tasks?

  • Apart from the personal characteristics that constitute leaders, like integrity, decisiveness and customer focus, the following tasks should be fulfilled: Self-management, conception, coordination, communication and cooperation.
  • The tasks, authority and responsibility specify the scope of action. The tasks describe the activities that are to be mastered. The authority determines the decision, directive and action powers. The responsibility obligates the superior on the decided approach and the goals. On this basis the personal evaluation and remuneration are done.
  • The allocation of a cost center and the equipment with sufficient budget is an important part of the authority. Like the fuel tank of a car, the available funds limit the scope that a decision maker can cover. Penniless leaders have actually no chance to contribute value-adding results.
  • Bosses as entrepreneurs in the enterprise need a comprehensible business model. Within the business idea, the target audiences, the deliverable portfolio and the clearly outlined scopes are specified.
  • An important function of the executive is the indication towards a positive future and the measures for reaching it. The strategy should provide the employees a seizable framework for the realization.

As soon as these components are missing, the leaders are worth nothing and it remains noting else than eliminating these positions.

Bottom line: The leadership tasks require a large spectrum of abilities, in order to be able to perform a task meaningfully. However, as soon as the leader is guided on a short leash, without budget, even the best characteristics go pop, because penniless managers are worth anything.