How to inadvertently jeopardize the success of your big initiative

Leaders have a fundamental choice to make when building and launching big organizational initiatives.  

They can take the directive approach, providing top-down guidance on everything from vision, function, structure, and implementation. While the directive approach can get you out of the gate quickly, you’ll run into some predictable walls in short order:

• Others will feel confused about what you’re doing and why, causing resistance.

• They’ll feel shut out from the process, as though their ideas aren’t valued or their concerns aren’t worthwhile.

• They’ll disengage when you really want buy in.

  
  

Alternatively, leaders can take the collaborative approach.

That’s what the senior leader of a large university sought to do as he was gearing up for a multimillion dollar renovation of a popular campus space.

He strongly intuited that the success of this crown-jewel initiative would depend on engaging people around the idea of the initiative well before hiring an architect or knocking down walls.

He wanted my advice on how to do so.

As the leader described the reality on the ground, I keyed in on three priority challenges:

• People already in the space were worried the redesign would result in them losing their toehold (issue: turf)

• There was an incomplete understanding of the needs and desires of the stakeholders who would eventually use the space (issue: needs)

• The space was being developed for a cool purpose, but nobody seemed clear about what activities fell under that purpose umbrella (issue: vision)

  
  

The leader asked if I could share some thoughts on how best to move forward. Here’s what I told him: Before sketching floor plans or grabbing the sledge hammer, bring people together to explore possibilities, share ideas, and cohere a vision.

Based on my Collaborative Action Model, I recommended a comprehensive, multi-stakeholder needs assessment and visioning process to collaboratively generate a compelling vision of what this center could and should be:

• Form a cross-functional working group to serve as a visible and accessible conduit of information into and out of the assessment and visioning efforts

• Design and conduct an orchestrated suite of interviews, focus groups, and surveys to elevate stakeholder insights, concerns, enthusiasm, and recommendations

• Host tailored summits to identify viable pathways and build consensus

• Devise a simple communication plan to keep stakeholder groups informed and engaged. In other words, engage your people early and often. Ask them: What could we do? What should we do? How should we do it?

Failure to pay sufficient early attention to meaningful stakeholder engagement will undermine the success of your complex, resource-intensive, multi-stakeholder initiative.

If you know the pain of leading a big initiative that fell flat and would like to do things differently this time around, then reply with the word COLLABORATE to learn about my collaboration advising, design, and facilitation services.  I can help you do together better.