What to do with self-sabotaging people – part 2

What to do with self-sabotaging people? How do you coach/deal with them? In my previous post (here) I explained that self-sabotaging people are basically stuck and not moving forward. They seem incapable of doing what needs to be done.  Can you coach/manage someone like this? The answer is yes, if they are willing and, specially, if you are willing to put the effort required to unstuck them.

One thing first, if you can avoid the relationship altogether is a better course of action. Wasting time on somebody who is doing their earnest to destroy their lives is a bad bet.  Remember that these people are masters are sucking up time and energy, so be wary of their games. But in the case that you won’t or can’t avoid it, then this are the actions that may help you:

• Determine what you want to accomplish: are you there to save a career, save a buddy or just make someone more productive?  Your efforts should focus on that and not on solving everything.
• Recognize that you cannot change anything yourself, they need to do their own work.
• Be very clear about the boundaries in the relationship – define what you will do, what you won’t do and what you expect them to do, and even how to do it – did I mentioned that this requires a lot of time?
• Set clear goals, but focus on the short term. Giving them too many long term goals will cause them to procrastinate. Don’t give them that chance – keep it short and sweet.
• Set meeting guidelines. Your door should be open but be wary of too many unscheduled meetings or emergencies. Keep track of the time you are spending.
• Make sure they are doing their work and making their own choices. It is too easy to fall into the “I-can-solve-anything” mode. You are there to guide and mentor, not do their job.

One last thing, even if you do all of the above perfectly, there is a big chance that they will not respond or, despite what they say, perform what was agreed. So, be ready to drop them if that happens.

Triggering a full reorganization

How often do you stir things up in your company? I was turn to this topic by a conversation I had about operational efficiency. I was thinking about how often you should look at what you are doing and look for ways to improve it. If you go by the Kaizen methodology, then you are doing this constantly... this works great for small changes but not for big ones. Full-on reorganizations can be triggered by traumatic events but the price you pay in organizational stress is great.
I recommend you are always on Kaizen mode; it is a great way to do business and life in general. But, how do you decide is the right time to do a full-on reorganization? The conditions I think could trigger a full reorganization are:

• Financial results are not there for 3 quarters or more. You are underperforming and it is not the result of a disaster, and the recovery trend is not there.
• You tried incremental enhancements and they are not having enough impact.
• Your key decision processes are convoluted or ineffective.
• Key players leave or arrive into your organization (for example, after a merger or acquisition).
• Your market conditions have changed dramatically (new and strong competitors; new business models)

These are a few of the conditions; your individual reasons may vary and add to this list. If you decide that a reorganization is in order, just be careful to fix the issues with a holistic approach.

Why not a short term strategy?

If you, as management, are not clear on the strategy and do not communicate it; How can your employees deliver? I am surprised how many companies ask their employees to read management's mind, find the right intentions in there and execute to specifications. It makes no sense. Is like having a neurotic spouse with the power to fire you. You want to succeed in business? You have to be clear as to your objectives. If those are not clear, nothing will please you and your company will sink (unless you are really lucky).

It is OK to have temporary strategies. We have them for emergencies, why not for times when life is not clear (is it ever?). Why do we feel that is not OK to have shorter looking strategies? Square was in the brink of collapse with their games. They set out to build their last game (after that they were expecting to close). They put all their effort into the game but with a pessimistic feeling, they called it: Final Fantasy. They wanted to bow out with a last great hurray. Guess what? The game was a huge success. As well as FF2, 3, 4,... They are now one of the most powerful and well recognized game development companies in the world (it is now called Square-Enix) and they are working among other things in: Final Fantasy XIV.  What worked? Having a finite narrow strategy: Make their last game great!

In the middle of a M&A or bankruptcy debacle? Come up with a short term strategy and communicate it to all employees. They'll appreciate the honesty and the direction. They may very well build you a Final Fantasy.

Expecting too much too soon

I had a client who asked me to implement new key performance indicators in a month (they had nothing at the time) - yes, zero to implementation in a month. The KPIs he was asking for were very deep and complex, they didn't have the necessary systems in place, and the alternative was to capture the basic data manually (not really an option in most cases). Because of my objections as to the impossibility of the request, he gave the project to somebody who didn't say no. Six months later, no indicators. They restarted the process 4 more times with the same results.

For all of their effort, they seemed unwilling to grasp how their choices of process and conditions were making it impossible to obtain meaningful information. Even if all went well, the first few data collections are plagued with errors, personnel aren't clear what you are asking of them or are afraid to give it to you. As for interpretation: You don't have a baseline to compare them to (is that 7 in indicador 3 good or bad?) and you don't have a tendency (is it improving or getting worse, is more better or worse?).

How do you know if your expectations are too much? Read their body language! If you see:

1. Uncomfortable smiles
2. Weight shifting
3. Darting eyes - nobody looks at you in the eyes but look at each other worriedly
   

That usually means you are off base in your request. You have to realize that if nobody believes it can be done, then it probably wont get done. Trust your team advisers - otherwise, why have them? On a side note, if your team doesn't' give you straight or honest answers, you better rethink your communications and leadership skills.

The point here is that you have to be realistic on your expectations - if you ask for the impossible again and again you will lose credibility - the result is that nobody takes him seriously anymore and the work they do produce is more made up than a ride at Disney.

Dream teams

We all desire to have dream teams in our organizations. A dream team is one that is high achievement, high performance and where everybody gives their personal best. Dream teams are those that achieve excellent results consistently. Sometimes dream teams form as a result of a deadline, a company event or a special project. The camaraderie, support and understanding amongst the members create the environment necessary for high performance. The manager roles in this case are to get out of the way and keep the team focused. If you are lucky to have a dream team keep it going as long as possible.

There are some special circumstances that may prove fatal to your team:

• 11th hour stress – The team may be great but unnecessarily taxing them will only frustrate the members. If the project has some unrealistic expectations, such as impossible requirements or too short datelines, the stress may get to the team. While some stress is unavoidable, try to set reasonable deadlines, or move the emergency period up front so as to flatten the final spike as much as possible. If the project becomes a death march, the first casualty may be your dream team. Think about project management and executive expectation management.

• Company instability, like reorganizations – Even when the reorganization (use appropriate euphemism here) will not affect the team directly, it is sure to distract them. Try to contain office gossip as much as you can, and keep reaffirming them that their positions are safe (as much as it is true). If their positions are not safe, then give them as much information as possible and help them prepare. They will remember if you work them to the bone before firing them.

• Uneven recognition or compensation – If you are giving out bonuses or awards, make sure the whole team is included – not just the leader or your protégé. Identify their individual contributions to let them know that you were watching. If resentment builds in your dream team, their days are numbered.

All teams have a life cycle and eventually all teams must dissolve. Know when to let go. If the team has grown beyond their assigned task, or the members are getting bored by the assignments, or they want to grow their careers in a different direction, you let them. Help them reach their objectives. A dream team may be short lived, but the repercussions to your career and theirs may be long lived. Who doesn’t remember that team where everything just clicked?