The new managing roles
I briefly outlined the following six new managing roles in my last blog and will provide more detail on Visionary in this blog:
- Visionary
- Enabler
- Coach
- Mentor
- Team champion
- Cheerleader
Although I have called them ‘new’ managing roles the reality is that they already exist and are practised in the more enlightened organisations. However, we need to be aware that sometimes the roles have been applied in ways that fail to deliver the positive outcomes that they are designed to achieve.
At all times it is important to remember that these managing roles are about creating a constructive environment that is designed to encourage and release team member talent. The aim is to enable every team member to empower themselves to use their capability to deliver whatever they are accountable for, to the desired quality and on time.
Understanding the context of managing behaviour
Before we explore the Visionary managing role in more detail it would be useful to explore the fact that although we are all different we share many behavioural characteristics. From the time of Aristotle it was recognised that in the population there tended to be FOUR distinct types of people who have been described in a multitude of ways since.
Centell Limited decided to use a colour metaphor to describe four types of behaviour as a means of providing a relatively easy way to understand differences and similarities. The diagram below illustrates the four colour types with a brief description of each in terms how you can observe their managing behaviour.
This should help you to appreciate that we all tend to approach the way we manage from quite different perspectives and by using different contexts. With regard to the Visionary managing role, if we are a person with
- a very strong Red managing orientation, our preferred approach (vision) will be to inspire others to achieve the big picture outcomes
- a very strong Green managing orientation, our preferred approach (vision) will be to achieve perfect, detailed outputs that can withstand scrutiny
- a very strong Blue managing orientation, our preferred approach (vision) will be to focus others on achieving the agreed results
- a very strong Yellow managing orientation, our preferred approach (vision) will be of achieving outcomes through collaboration
As you can see, there is a high probability that conflict could emerge when working with others of a different ‘colour’ orientation unless one or both of us understand the differences in our respective managing approaches.
The fact that we all see the world differently to varying degrees makes the process of managing a highly skilled activity. It requires us to suppress our ego in order to focus on understanding the needs of our individual team members and then to seek the most effective ways to meet them – believing that this enabling approach releases their capability. This is where the new managing roles are critical in achieving this outcome; however, let us now look at the Visionary role in a bit more detail.
Visionary
As mentioned in my last post one of the most important needs that a team member has is to be clear on the purpose and direction of their organisation.
This is to provide team members with an understandable framework on how their contribution enables the required outputs to be achieved in collaboration with other team members. Understanding our own colour preferences and the colour preference of our manager means that we should be able to appreciate how they arrived at the vision they communicate and how this relates to us
Irrespective of a managers colour preference they need to be able to take a “helicopter view” in ways that take them above the minutia of everyday activities in order to perceive where they should be going in the future. One of the main blockages to shaping a vision that is meaningful to all team members is that managers tend to arrive at a collective vision based on what the board has deemed to be the way forward. This is then expected to be cascaded through the organisation. The basic flaw is in the belief that the vision can be ‘cascaded’ in ways that make sense to the various listeners without their active participation in shaping it.
The power of dialogue
The proven fact is that in today’s fast moving world no single person has all the answers even if they hold the position of CE or Director. This makes it essential for the Visionary manager to engage with others within and outwith the organisation to gain their insights. Therefore, dialogue with a wide range of team members is essential for managers to really understand and differentiate what the key issues are that can propel the organisation forward from the issues that anchor it in the present or past. The different perspective and contexts can help manager to put shape to a pathway to the future that is both visionary and inclusive. Engaging both formal and informal leaders in the envisioning process can make the difference between success and failure.
The Visionary manager manages by keeping the team informed about the way forward with:
- Keeping in touch” interactive sessions that focus on ways to improve performance and productivity.
- Regular feedback on how well the team is tracking on achieving its desired outputs.
- Information on potential changes to the team or its outputs with the opportunity to discuss them.
- Helping the team to get on with their work by dealing with all the internal and external issues that could deflect them from what needs to be achieved.
- Active involvement in dialoguing ideas on what could be the most appropriate way of developing the team and its capability.
- Confronts the issues of non-performance and inappropriate behaviour in ways that make those involved recognise the consequences of their actions. Their aim is to give the team members the opportunity to make the necessary changes to enable them to effectively and appropriately contribute to the teams outputs.
- Seeks every opportunity to applaud the team’s success in overcoming difficulties including when it achieves the desired outcomes in a truly effective manner. This is about seeking to discover what the team is doing right and acknowledging it rather than looking for what it has done wrong and then attributing blame.
The Visionary manager manages by being constantly aware of the danger of being stuck in the past due to the pressure from others to take the safe and well trodden route. They are conscious of the desire for Red managers to take excessive risks and for the Blue managers to agree if it produces quick practical outcomes. They also know that Green managers are likely to cautious and more risk adverse in being less likely to support the Red managers ‘impulsive’ ideas. The Yellow manager will tend to support the Green managers caution particularly if what is proposed could have an adverse impact on the team or a team member. Being able to ‘read’ the perspective and context used by managers without trying to ‘pigeonhole’ them can be exceptionally valuable. Insights are gained by observing how each manager operates and building a framework that enables you to keep focused on the now whilst looking forward into the future.
Engaging team member talent
The challenge we read about constantly in the business press around the world is about how to improve employee productivity. To meet this challenge effectively will require a significant mind shift by top management to help them appreciate that their drive for command/control over work inputs/outputs methodology minimises productivity over any benefits achieved. If only they would realise the immense potential that could be gained by encouraging their managers to adopt and employ the managing roles that empower rather than disempower team members. To jog your memory, the disempowering practices that spring from command/control include:
- Ineffective managers (don’t know what they are doing)
- Bullying and other abusive behaviour by managers/team leaders
- Using ‘performance issue’ as cover for own bullying behaviour
- Poor relationships with colleagues fostered by management
- Inadequate resources and information
- Limited or no effective feedback
- Lack of fulfilling work
- Blame culture that creates fear through intimidation
- HR and management processes that ineffectively deal with team members who complain of abuse or disadvantage by their managers/team leaders/colleagues
To overcome these debilitating behaviours will not be easy as they are endemic in many organisations. With increasing online/offline networking by team members who share what is going on in their workplaces, change will become easier to implement. The first step by organisations and managers is to recognise and accept that some, or all, of the ineffective behaviour exist. This needs to be coupled with a genuine desire to change by introducing an effective enabling culture. This is where the new managing roles can play an important part.
Managing – using the six roles
I have focused on the Visionary role and introduced the ‘colours’ metaphor to describe one way of looking at the behavioural similarities and differences expressed by people in their everyday interactions. The more that we understand what influences our behaviour the better equipped we will be in dealing with others in a widening range of situations.
As effective performance is critical to achieving the desired outcomes I will deal with this when exploring some of the other managing roles in my next blog.
Tom
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