Roberto Why Great Leaders Don't Take Yes for an Answer Managing for Conflict and Consensus

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.In thesesituations, leaders can become uncomfortable, or they can bringCHAPTER 8 " REACHING CLOSURE 213deliberations to a close in a way that diminishes satisfaction with thedecision process and buy-in for the final choice.Some leaders mayeven experience anticipatory regret i.e., strong nagging doubts thatpreclude them from making a tough call and result in delays thatprove costly in the competitive marketplace.Leaders may take three steps to make a smoother final transitionfrom deliberation to decision.First, leaders can develop a clear set ofexpectations regarding how the final decision will be made, so thatthere are no misunderstandings within the management team.Second, they can develop a language system that helps them commu-nicate how their role in a decision process will change at a criticaljuncture in order to achieve timely closure.Finally, leaders can builda relationship with a confidant who can not only offer sound advice,but also bolster the leader s confidence when they become tepidand overly risk averse in the face of high levels of environmentalturbulence.Leaders need to develop clear expectations about their role in thedecision process if they hope to achieve sustainable closure.Supposethat team members believe that a leader will strive for unanimousagreement first, and then make the final call only if such congruencecannot be achieved.They will be surprised, and perhaps rather angry,if they find that the leader simply solicits advice in a series of one-on-one meetings and then announces a final decision, without ever con-vening a meeting at which all parties can exchange their views.Thatdisappointment and anger may cause individuals to resist a speedydecision that the leader has made.In such circumstances, an appar-ent instance of timely closure can unravel rather quickly during theearly stages of implementation.Leaders need to state clearly andplainly how they intend to garner input and then use that advice anddata to make a decision.When they speak about teamwork, theyneed to be clear that they do not mean democracy, nor do they meanautocratic rule.They also need to forewarn their staff members if, forgood reason, they intend to make a particular decision largely withoutinput from others.214 WHY GREAT LEADERS DON T TAKE YES FOR AN ANSWEROrganizations often find it helpful if a leader has a language sys-tem for communicating how his role can and must change when thetime comes for debates to end and final decisions to be made.JamieHoughton, long-time CEO of Corning Incorporated, developed asimple way of talking openly about how he intended to participate insenior management team deliberations, and ultimately, bring them toa close.David Nadler, a consultant for many executive teams,explains Houghton s language system:He talked about wearing two hats. In his terms, therewere times when he wanted to be a member of theteam, to argue, to test ideas, to have people push him,to get into the rough and tumble of the team s work.Inthose cases, he saw himself as one of the boys, and hetalked about wearing a cowboy hat. At other times,he was in the position of CEO, making a decision.In those cases, he was not looking for testing, pushback, or argument.Instead, he would be wearing the bowler. 33The metaphor may sound a bit odd, but it proved helpful becauseit made a clear distinction between his role and the team membersroles in the decision-making process.The two hats helped Houghtonand his direct reports talk candidly about the stage of the decisionprocess at which they stood.Nadler reports that team members oftenreferred to the two types of hats during meetings, seeking to clarifywhether the debate could continue or whether the time had come forHoughton to make the final decision.Houghton also could signal tothe team that the bowler was coming soon if they could not reachagreement on a controversial issue.One could imagine that teammembers in a protracted disagreement might seek rapid opportuni-ties to find common ground, if they knew that the bowler was com-ing in the near future.CHAPTER 8 " REACHING CLOSURE 215On some occasions, leaders experience moments of indecisionwhen faced with a complex issue, ambiguous data, and environmentalinstability.The team members know that the leader will make thecall, and they clearly understand their roles, yet the leader himselfcannot make the final leap.Stanford scholar Kathleen Eisenhardtargues that, in those instances, leaders may find it helpful to have ahighly experienced confidant who can act as a sounding board.Bywalking through the analysis and conclusions one final time with thattrusted adviser, the leader can become more comfortable with thedecision that he is about to make.As Eisenhardt explains, a trustedcounselor can impart confidence and a sense of stability in uncer-tain times, and enable leaders to overcome the anticipatory regretthat often causes costly delay and indecision.34Sustaining ClosureAfter a decision has been made, leaders need to make sure that theyadopt a disciplined approach so as to sustain closure.Individuals whodisagree with a decision often would like to re-open the deliberations.If leaders have directed a fair and legitimate process, they should notallow others to revisit a decision that has already been made.Theyneed to affirm that the case is closed.Paul Levy adopted such a disci-plined approach at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center inBoston.Doctors and administrators at the hospital had becomeaccustomed to revisiting decisions about which they disagreed when-ever they felt it was to their benefit.Prior management had allowedsuch dysfunctional behavior to persist for years.Levy intervenedwhen such detrimental conduct surfaced during his time as the chiefexecutive, making sure that everyone understood that they could notrevisit past decisions so long as they had been given a fair opportunityto voice their opinions earlier.In World War II, Eisenhower tooneeded to maintain discipline when powerful field commanders tried216 WHY GREAT LEADERS DON T TAKE YES FOR AN ANSWERto continue debates that had long been brought to a close.Atthose times, Eisenhower often stressed the importance of unity incommand.Leaders should not, however, remain stubbornly attached to acourse of action, no matter what transpires after a decision has beenmade [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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