Vision or no vision, who cares? Everyone should care! A vision is a statement of the future - where the organization is headed and what it will become. If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll coincidentally get where you get. Pursuing a vision takes the element of surprise out your destination because the future is identified rather than coincidental.

Next, a plan including, goals, strategies and actions, can help ensure that you get where you want to go - achieving your vision. Once identified leaders can efficiently and effectively mobilize and focus resources, i.e., energy, time and expertise, to make the vision a reality.

In successful organizations vision statements are frequently communicated, internalized and serve as the long term central goal around which focused strategies, actions and metrics are developed and pursued.

The good news about a vision is that it provides organizational direction, a focal point for employees, the impetus for determining the path to the holy grail, i.e., the necessary strategies, actions and metrics, to achieve the vision.

On the other hand the bad news is that simply communicating the vision at staff and/or shareholder meetings, or publishing it on laminated cards and/or framing and hanging it in conference rooms is typically not compelling enough to generate the strong sense of ownership and commitment necessary to achieve the vision.

So the question is; what makes a vision compelling for leaders and employees? What would cause them to commit to and own the achievement of the vision?

Following are attributes I believe can make a vision compelling:

• It’s a Stretch but Achievable: Success isn’t guaranteed; therefore achieving the vision will require passion and a sustained, focused commitment to do whatever it takes to push themselves to exceed expectations.

• It requires Commitment and Ownership: It requires leaders and their teams to have personal and collective alignment with and commitment and ownership of the vision and its achievement.

• It’s perceived as a Value Add: It requires that leaders and their teams see the vision giving them the opportunity to make a significant difference and bring greater success to the organization.

• It’s Fervently Communicated: It requires that leaders at all levels continually and enthusiastically communicate and engage their teams to align with and commit to the pursuit of the vision.

• It offers a Line of Sight: It allows leaders and their teams to see how performing their roles and responsibilities contributes to the achievement of the vision.

• It generates Sustained Focus: The passion and value associated with achieving the vision is the highest priority and drives leaders and teams to sustain on an energetic, ongoing basis the pursuit of the vision.

What makes a vision compelling is its ability to get leaders and teams fired up and ready to go! The preceding attributes help leaders and teams get fired up by identifying with, owning and committing to the pursuit and achievement of their compelling vision.

A compelling vision can enable leaders and their teams to reinvent themselves by refocusing, re-energizing, and recommitting to new organization priorities.

A leadership coach can help leaders and their teams successfully identify, align with and pursue their compelling vision.

Through Executive Team Alignment the Corbett Group works with leaders and their teams to ensure ownership of their compelling vision and the focus and commitment necessary to achieve it.

Bob Corbett

How many of us have been members of capable, talented teams that were never quite as successful as they could have been and never achieved their full potential? If so, at times you may have experienced a range of mixed emotions including, feeling disappointed, frustrated, dysfunctional, alone, vulnerable, unsupported, and in political jeopardy. You also may have thought: “If only we had……, we could have acheived…..”.

A key ingredient to getting there, i.e., successfully achieving an organization’s vision and goals is Executive Team Alignment.

Executive team members are the senior leaders and policy makers in organizations. As such it’s their responsibility to identify the organization’s future direction (its compelling vision), the road map for achieving the vision (its priorities in terms of strategies, goals and actions to achieve the vision), the key steps needed to sustain progress and improvement (sustainability), and the level of commitment to each other’s success required for the achievement of the vision. Additionally, it’s also their responsibility to engage the teams reporting to them and model expected behaviors including, the proper sense of urgency, focus, actions, and commitment expected of their direct reports to achieve the organization’s vision.

With successful Executive Team Alignment, questions or statements of what might have been are mute because the members individually and collectively are committed to the organization’s direction, areas of focus, and to each other.

Unfortunately, most executive teams believe they are aligned, but most are not. This is typically because the vision though stated is not compelling; they don’t have a set of strategic objectives to which all members genuinely own; and they don’t know what it means to be truly committed to each other’s success. Therefore the likelihood of success is far less than assured.

Key elements for successful executive team alignment include:

• Executive Sponsorship: the commitment by a sponsoring executive to own and support the team’s plans and actions to achieve the organization’s vision.

• Compelling Vision: an inspiring vision developed by the team and the sponsoring executive that’s organizationally aligned and energizes and fires up team members to achieve it.

• Courage and Influence: the confidence to proactively and enthusiastically express your views and beliefs with other team members with an eye towards achieving the greatest good; helping peers understand key issues and contributing factors; then constructively debating the implications and possibilities; and finally, working collaboratively to identify and implement the best solutions.

• Trust: the willingness to listen to others, assume the positive,  give them the benefit of the doubt, and expect them to honor their commitments.

• Ownership and Commitment: a promise to enthusiastically do what you promised and to enthusiastically help others be successful who are part of the same agreement.

• Focus and Sense of Urgency: laser-like attention to carrying out the agreed upon priorities, goals, actions and metrics, and an urgent need to accomplish them immediately if not sooner.

• Selflessness: the willingness to put others first in an effort to achieve the greatest good.

• Continuous Learning: the continuous intellectual curiosity to ask why and the willingness to learn the answer and apply the new learning.

• Sustainability: the willingness to change the culture and key processes needed to achieve the team’s plans and actions and ultimately its compelling vision.

• Strategic and Results Orientation: the ability to see the big picture and to work collaboratively with others to execute the strategies, actions, metrics, and time lines needed to successfully achieve the compelling vision.

The Corbett Group a leadership/executive coaching and consulting firm can bring the objectivity and expertise required to work with CEO s and their teams to successfully achieve Executive Team Alignment by developing a compelling vision of the future, team alignment, focused strategies and actions, metrics and time lines, sustainability, and a commitment to each other’s success.

Bob Corbett

Challenges, disappointment and failure are a part of life. While distasteful and unsettling these experiences offer opportunities to succeed, learn and grow, if we’re willing to face them and respond. Overcoming adversity and disappointment require the energy and willingness to bounce back, face and respond to challenges. This commitment to bounce back and respond is Resilience.

In today’s dynamic, challenging economy and work environment there are plenty of opportunities to demonstrate resilience.

What are examples of adversity in today’s environment? Examples of adversity include, the Information Technology Leader who’s resources have been cut yet he/she is still expected to successfully implement a major Enterprise Resources Planning (SAP) solution with fewer people - affectionately know as doing more with less. Or, it could be the Sales Leader who is expected to convince a customer with whom he/she has a trusting relationship to purchase  a suboptimal solution because his/her company needs the sales revenue.

What can help you confirm your strengths in Resilience and your ability to bounce back and successfully overcoming adversity?

• An assessment of your Resilience strengths.

• If necessary, preparing and executing a Personal Development Action Plan.

The underpinnings of a personal development action plan include:

• Self Confidence

• the Instinct to Survive and the Commitment to Succeed.

• the ability to quickly Learn from Past Experiences and to Anticipate.

• being Intellectually Curious with a willingness to identify Root Causes.

• a strong Personal Compass (i.e., including your Purpose, Vision and Values).

• Specific Actions, Metrics, a Time Line and Timely Feedback.

How can you assess your your strengths in the area of Resilience? Two thoughts come to mind. First, you could conduct a self assessment of  your strengths by:

• asking yourself how effectively you’ve responded to adversity in the past including a consideration of what worked, what didn’t and why.

• selectively sharing your self assessment with someone you trust who was aware of the adversity you faced, and ask his/her opinion of how well you responded and why.

• identifying key learnings from the self assessment and corresponding corrective actions necessary to improve your capabilities and respond more effectively to adversity going forward.

Alternatively, you could measure your Resilience strengths objectively by working with a leadership coach and using a Resilience strengths assessment tool . One such tool is the Graham-Sloan Resilience Questionnaire. This tool measures your Resilience strengths in three areas, i.e., Relationship to Others, to Self and to the Environment, utilizing 13 Resilience attributes. The coach will debrief your results and help you prepare an Action Plan to both leverage your Resilience strengths and address areas for development.

Using the Graham-Sloan Resilience Assessment Tool the Corbett Group provides coaching support to individuals helping them confirm their Resilience strengths and areas for development and helping them prepare and successfully execute an action plan that helps them recognize and overcome adversity today and tomorrow.

Bob Corbett

There are times in our careers when it’s important to get an objective confirmation of our personal growth and our best opportunities for continued development.

At a personal and subjective level we are generally knowledgeable of our tendencies (i.e., the way we typically acquire and process information to make judgments and decisions and interact with others); of our strengths (i.e., the things we’re good at and do well); of our development opportunities (i.e., skills and/or behaviors that could become strengths).

So the question becomes, how can I objectively identify my tendencies, strengths and development opportunities? Are there tools available that can give me an objective assessment of where I am developmentally, i.e., currently versus previously versus where I need to be?

The answer is yes there are a number of tools that can give you an objective baseline assessment of  your tendencies, strengths and development opportunities. You can then use these baseline results to assess your progress to date and determine areas for development going forward. Next, you can prepare a personal development plan with specific goals and actions for turning development opportunities into strengths.

Several effective assessment tools you may want to consider include:

Lominger Voices 360: Competency based 360 feedback multi-rater tool assessing your strengths against 66 competencies and 19 derailers.

Website: www.lominger.com

Genos EI 360: Competency based emotional intelligence 360 tool assessing your competence using seven emotional intelligence skills managing yourself and others.

Website: www.genosinternational.com

Strengths Finder 2.0: Measures your strengths in four leadership strength domains and with 34 strength themes.

Website: http://strengths.gallup.com

Firo-b: Assesses the strengths and weaknesses of your leadership style.

Website: www.cpp.com/products/firo-b/index.aspx

Myers-Briggs: Assesses your personality type using 16 possible types.

Website: www.myersbriggs.com

Resistance: Assesses your ability to bounce back and overcome challenges and adversity.

Website: www.karlinsloan.com

Kolbe Index: Assesses your natural instinctive method of operating and helps maximize your potential, e.g., in creatively solving problems.

Website: www.kolbe.com

After establishing a baseline using one or more tools you should then:

• Identify a certified leadership coach to help you discuss, select and, if necessary,  arrange the administration of appropriate assessment tool(s).

• You and your coach will interpret assessment results including, identifying leveragable strengths and development opportunities.

• You and your coach will establish a baseline from which to confirm and prioritize your tendencies, strengths and development opportunities.

• From your assessment results you and your coach will prepare your personal development plan using 1-3 specific goals and related actions that are aligned with organization expectations, further leverage your strengths and address your development opportunities.

• Your coach will monitor your weekly progress and hold you accountable for executing your plan and help you navigate challenges.

• Finally, your coach will conduct a follow up multi-rater assessment to compare your latest assessment with your prvious baseline assessment.

Remember it’s easier to grow and develop if you know where you’re going, as well as, where you’ve been. Appropriate assessment tools can help you confirm your past and present and plan for your future growth.

Bob Corbett

Traditionally leadership has been viewed as a top down process, i.e., organizations are led from the top. In other words the conventional wisdom has been that it’s the sole responsibility of top management to lead organizations; and that other employees should wait to be led.

The belief then was that, since top management was seen as the smartest and most knowledgeable of organizations and their operations, they were the ones best equipped to lead. This view was also based on the belief in command and control through organizational hierarchies and that leadership was vested in individuals based on their level in the organization, i.e., Vice Presidents were leaders and supervisors were not.

Today we know that this belief is flawed. In today’s complex, global economy populated by many large, complex organizations, there’s too much to know, understand and manage to vest leadership solely with an individual or level of executive.

Today many organization structures are matrix rather than vertical hierarchies. Today being proactive is valued and new ideas are encouraged and bubble up for debate and evaluation.

Today leadership is a shared responsibility, allowing Top Management to focus on leading the “where and when”, i.e., the organization’s vision and strategic direction; Middle Management to focus on leading the “what and how”, i.e., what needs to be done and by when to achieve the vision and strategy; and Front Line employees to focus on proactively initiating and leading organization innovation efforts, i.e., identifying and executing opportunities to introduce new products and/or services, as well as, to streamline and improve existing products and/or services.

Suggested key skills for proactive, successful Front Line leadership include:

• Envisioning: the ability to form a clear picture of the desired outcome.

• Passion: the energy, intellectual curiosity, commitment and focus to overcome obstacles and achieve the best outcome.

• Collaboration: the ability to engage, actively listen and work effectively with others to achieve the best outcome even if it’s not my idea.

• Communication: the ability to communicate clearly and effectively both verbally and in writing.

Suggested keys for organizations to encourage and support proactive, successful Front Line Leadership include:

• Empowerment: encouraging Front Line employees to be proactive and add value by offering innovative ideas and being willing to lead the implementation process.

• Commitment: actively supporting decisions to implement the best innovative ideas offered by Front Line employees and providing the required resources.

• Coaching: supporting leaders in organizations through growth and development efforts including, strengths assessments, multi-rater feedback, action planning, continuous learning, skills development, behavior modification, team effectiveness and change management.

• Recognition: Provide visibility and rewards for the successful innovative outcomes of Front Line Leaders.

• Career Growth: Provide opportunities for Front Line Leaders to grow and develop through lateral and/or expanded responsibilities.

So the good news is that the conventional wisdom on leadership has evolved over time and today individuals can lead from the top, the middle or the front line of organizations.

Bob Corbett