Mind the gap!

Many organizations are overstretched and not balanced. They show significant gaps between elements that work seamlessly in successful companies.

Examples:

• Gaps between the leaders’ inspiration and the staff’s motivation. Very often, there are light years between these two. While leaders talk enthusiastically about the dramatic changes that will propel the company to success, the employees feel scared and alienated.
• Gaps between inspiration and operational excellence. Even the greatest inspiration vanishes rapidly if nobody has the tools and processes to make progress quickly. Many enthusiastically announced change projects fail because they lack the link to the operational reality and to the people doing the work. They might even be missing the simplest tools and competencies to do their job.
• Gaps between the staff and the customers. Many organizations suffer from an uncountable number of initiatives and projects, most of them internally focused. Employees spend endless time in internal meetings and discussions. The link to the customers gets tinier and tinier, until most people can’t remember when they talked to the customer last time.

The effects: Lack of productivity, missed growth opportunities, demotivated staff, and frustrated customers.

You as a leader can improve this situation substantially by closing these chasms. Sure, you need to know where they are.

First step: Brainstorm a list of gaps and discuss it with your leadership team. Then take action.

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This post is from our Friday noon memo #92. Interested in regular updates? Sign up here.
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