Post on 09-Oct-2020
How to lead when you’re not in chargeWays of thinking to guide even more effective leadership
Di Neale
Image from: @TheWorldStories
Image from: @TheWorldStories
Most large scale change doesn’t fully
deliver its objectives
Source: McKinsey Performance Transformation Survey, 3000
respondents to global, multi-industry survey
70%
25%
5%
Gets anywhere near achieving the change and
delivering the benefits
Organisations as machines
Factories as machines
Workers as cogs or ‘units of
production’
Workers motivated by money
60% increase in productivity in
pig iron produced by
Bethlehem Steel Corporation
“It’s possible to know all
you need to know…to be
able to plan what we do.”
“There is but one right
way.”
How do systems work?
Modes of Thinking
reductionism
holism
Modes of Thinking
single
perspectivemultiple
perspectives
reductionism
holism
Modes of Thinking
single
perspectivemultiple
perspectives
reductionism
holism
mechanistic
thinking
systems
thinking
Holistic look at targets
targets set to
improve
performance
targets incorporated
into performance
management
professionals
feel distrusted
staff focus on
target rather
than client
activity on
target distorts
system
service to clients
deteriorates
increased
dissatisfaction
with service
increased pressure
on politicians to
improve situation
Prison
‘University’ of Crime
Sanctuary
Punishment
Rehabilitation
Deterrent
Protect Society
Holiday camp
Employer
A Pluralistic Look at The Prison System
Adapted from Checkland
Pavement artistry
by Julian Beever
Illustrating the power of
perspectives!
People see what they
see from where they
are
Modes of Thinking
single
perspectivemultiple
perspectives
reductionism
holism
mechanistic
thinking
systems
thinking
How do systems work?
Obesity system
The Network Secrets of Great Change AgentsJulie Battilana &Tiziana Casciaro
1. As a change agent, my centrality in the informal
network is more important than my position in
the formal hierarchy
2. If you want to create small scale change, work
through a cohesive network
If you want to create big change, create
bridge networks between disconnected groups
Table conversation
The first challenge is to improve our understanding of the
challenge by trying to make it more holistic and more
pluralistic
More holistic. Connect to purpose, values and outcomes for
real people. Why is this important? What is the difference that
improving on this situation needs to make to learners, families,
communities, society? “in order to….”
More pluralistic. Who are most vital perspectives / voices in
this issue? Assign perspectives to people around the table. Try
and inhabit that perspective: what do they see, hear, feel in
relation to this. What will they feel their purpose is?
Session Two – how to lead…
Leadership is taking responsibility for enabling others to achieve shared purpose in the face of
uncertainty
Marshall Ganz
“ There is always a well-known solution to
every human problem—neat, plausible, and
wrong.”
― H.L. Mencken, Prejudices: Second Series
Beware the route of detailed analysis
Beware the pursuit of illusory order
…and adopt the world of the Bricoleur -
the do-it-yourself craftworker
Keith Grint
Leadership
• Focus on purpose, users, benefits
• Saying ‘yes to the mess’; experiments; diversity; different perspectives; curious
• Encouraging connections, conversation, relationships, building networks/coalition
• Challenging habits and assumptions;
• Reducing power differentials – those who do the work – do the change
• Containing anxiety
Far from certainty
Far from agreement
Close toagreement
Near to certainty
Management
• Technical/rational decision making
• Simple structures
• Effective procedures
• Monitoring/co-ordination
• Providing direction
After Ralph
Stacey
Table conversation
Actions we can take on our journey…
BLUE BOX - things that are agreed by those involved, and
that we know will help
YELLOW CIRCLE – things that we can do to help us come
together in the messy space