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Leaders working together
“No matter how brilliant your mind or strategy, if you’re playing a solo game, you’ll always lose out to a team.” – Reid Hoffman
Have you noticed that a 4-year-old will be candid, forthcoming, and comment without filters or concern about your reaction to his/her comments? There is something both unsettling and joyful about a young child’s insights. The good/bad news is that you will hear honesty from them.
What does a 4-year-old’s candid comments have to do with Looking in the Mirror? Over the last several months, we have suggested effective methods to “look in the mirror” by identifying what is going well, learning from your past, and asking your Customers.
Now it is time to obtain input from your Leadership Team. There are advantages (and disadvantages) from asking your Team. They present a perspective that you may have been missing and they have a vested interest in ensuring future successes. And, ideally, they will be as forthcoming and candid as a 4-year-old. The goal is to learn from the Leadership’s perspective and insights.
One obstacle to asking Leadership for their opinions is they may be uncomfortable providing their perspective and/or provide honest, forthright responses. It is recommended that a safe, confidential, and objective method be used to allow for the responses desired. There are a multitude of methods to do this, including:
- Engage an external Resource (like Aldridge Kerr) to obtain the input
- Utilize a software Tool (like Survey Monkey or Aldridge Kerr’s proprietary software)
Regardless of the Resource or Tool used, the desired result is that the Leadership Team be able to provide candid, honest, and useful input.
The questions asked of Leadership should be designed to provide further insights from the information identified from learning from your past and asking your Customers. Leadership’s input can empower your organization to excel. Ken Blanchard’s comment: “None of us is as smart as all of us” effectively summarizes why asking your Leaders for input is so valuable. Aldridge Kerr can help your organization design meaningful questions to ask your Leadership and assist in obtaining objective and confidential information.