Leading Despite Chaos

During the 9/11 crisis, the world witnessed tremendous courage and collaboration as the United States struggled to remain calm and collected despite the chaos, fear and resulting change. Leaders emerged from all walks of life.

The current global recession has brought about chaos in organizations, and organizations can learn from the way the government has handled crisis situations.

Today, many employees are unhappy at work, and job satisfaction has been on the decline. A recent Gallup report showed that more than 70 percent of employees are actively disengaged. Organizations are struggling to maneuver profitably amid economic uncertainty, and they're trying to find opportunity, retain customers and manage constant change.

According to chaos theory, chaos causes systems and people to function in ways that are often unpredictable and sometimes counter intuitive.

In order to be effective during times of crisis or chaos, leaders must maintain perspective and exercise good judgment. They must be actively committed to optimism and focus on the future.

In organizations, adapting to change during crisis and chaos requires a new kind of leadership that drives a culture of collaboration to understand difficult challenges and discover how to resolve them.

Crisis, Chaos and Change

During times of crisis or chaos, leaders have many choices and opportunities. They can remain frozen in a state of denial, or they can become proactive in their leadership. Although such situations are often painful, proactive leaders see these times as opportunities to make changes that can result in positive outcomes. These leaders guide others with the kind of courage and confidence that inspires them to press on.

Good Judgment and Communication

In their book Judgment, authors Noel M. Tichy and Warren G. Bennis wrote, "If leaders don't make smart judgment calls about the people on their teams, or if they manage them poorly, then there is no way they can set a sound direction and strategy for the enterprise, nor can they effectively deal with crisis."

Tichy and Bennis also wrote that making good judgment calls during crisis requires a leader to have clear values with an ultimate goal in mind. They cite open and effective communication among members of the senior management and the team as key elements, as well as the ability to gather and analyze data and effectively execute strategy.

Lessons From Leaders

Andy Grove was CEO of Intel during the turbulent early years of the computer industry. He wrote a book about his experiences, and in it, he explains that it is imperative for leaders to recognize the moments when basic changes are occurring and act quickly and decisively. As for his ability to keep Intel at the top, Grove credits communicating appropriately when slight changes are on the horizon, as well as responding correctly to crisis situations.

Former head of GE Jack Welch always looked for leaders who had the ability to make tough calls during a crisis by using both cognitive and emotional skills.

Both of these exceptional leaders demonstrate that good leaders spend time figuring out what is critical, frame their communications, and then mobilize and energize the troops.

A Case for Training

A leadership study conducted by the Center for Creative found that approaches to collaboration, crossing boundaries and collective leadership are gaining increasingly more importance than just making the numbers. As organizations face change, they must invest in training their leaders to meet challenges.

Training leaders to manage through change gives an organization greater speed and agility. Effective cross-communication between management and effective communication upward to executive leadership creates a forum for better decisions and increased productivity during the complexity of chaos and change.

Training leaders to communicate openly and effectively during crisis and chaos is essential. Vital Learning's Communicating Up™ seminar teaches skills that many managers and supervisors have never learned:

• Understanding the importance of framing all communications with managers
• Clearly linking well-thought-out and well-stated objectives with facts that support plans and goals
• Moving conversations toward agreement using questions that focus on the benefits gained when the objective is reached

In addition, Vital Learning's Supporting Change™ seminar teaches that leaders must understand and interpret changes that affect team members. Leaders should also be able to accomplish the following:

• View change and the anxiety it can cause team members as natural and inevitable
• Assist team members as they adjust to change
• Mobilize team members in the process of making the change

Train your leaders to lead despite chaos with effective communication that breeds good decisions and the attainment of goals. Then, these leaders will be able to manage through the change in the resulting aftermath of crisis.

Leadership and management styles are changing with the times. Help your organization's leaders become effective so you can not only survive difficult times but also emerge from them successfully.

Thought for the Day

"I think many correct decisions are messed up in execution ... because you've bet on people that you thought could deliver and they couldn't."

---Steve Bennett

Sources:

Communicating Up (2010). Vital Learning
Herman, R. (1995). Turbulence: Challenges and Opportunities in the World of Work. Are You Prepared for the Future? Oakhill Press, Akron, Ohio.
London-Vargas, N. Creating Teamwork in the Midst of Organizational Chaos, Workplace Institute.
Supporting Change (2010). Vital Learning
Tichy, N.M and Bennis, W.G (2007). Judgment: How Winning Leaders Make Great Calls, Penguin Group, New York, New York.
Yip, J.; Ernst, C., and Campbell, M. (2009). Boundary Spanning Relationship, The Center for Creative Leadership.