The speed of change is the greatest competitive advantage in any industry

“The organization that adapts or changes the fastest will win every time”

-Nathan Jamail, Keynote Speaker, Bestselling Author

Most organizations in business are looking for their competitive advantage via marketing, competitive analysis reports, R&D and anything else they can think of in order to get a step ahead of their competition.  However, the answer is not in a new idea or direction, it is in the rate of speed a company can change or adjust their direction from top to bottom.  A new direction or change is not new if it takes a long time to get everybody in the organization (months or even years) to believe or embrace the change.  A new idea is only valuable if it is executed from top to bottom, quickly.  So the real question leaders need to ask is: how do we get our employees to buy-in early, or change more quickly?

The answer to this question lies in the middle.  The leaders in the middle; from the Presidents to the supervisors.  The key to maximizing the speed of change is a culture issue based on a lack of belief in our leaders and organizations, more than our own perspectives, even when they might be wrong- and those in the middle are what influences it the most.

I will share two ideas with you today about this:

• First:  the simple value of executing change quickly
• Second:  what we as leaders can do to speed up our rate of change, and more importantly what we can stop doing that is slowing us down    

The value of executing the speed of change the fastest

Think of of business as a relay race where the end point is changing through out the race.  You have one team that trusts the person giving direction and will start running to the finish line together cohesively.  While the other team stops to debate every move, in addition to some team members going off in their own direction causing more confusion and division.  The first team might even go the wrong direction at some point, but at least they are always moving in the same direction and the can turn around together too.  The other team, the one that is destined to lose, is stopping and debating while the other team is winning.  This might sound over simplified but it is exactly relative to business today.

How we as leaders in the middle can help speed up the rate of change

First we need to assume those we follow are right- thus we should be looking for solutions to our obstacles, not justification for why the leaders might be wrong.  Make sure those that follow you do the same.

Those we lead will typically believe and act as we believe.  If they see us doubting or ignoring those above us, they will do the same to their leader- which is “us”(even if you can’t see it, it is happening behind your back).   This is not about about being a “yes person’ or just a link in the chain, it’s about showing our power and humility and knowing our value is more about the execution of the decision, not about being part of the decision.

Three simple concepts for us to implement for ourselves and our teams:

1. Belief over buy-in: We must expect ourselves and our team to believe in those we follow and not require buy-in or proof of a new direction or idea.  If we don’t believe in those we work for then we should not work for them, because no one can be great if they don’t have conviction and belief in what they are doing.  The key here is to set the principle and belief in the organization and know that there are going to be times that leadership is going to ask for our input sometimes, and sometimes we just need to move in the direction given.
2. Share and seek the why to understand:  The is a phrase that many say and believe: “If people know the “why” they will do the “what”.  This is very true and as leaders we must share the “why” even if it is not very clear at the time.  We as followers can seek the “why” to understand only, and NOT to debate or attempt to prove someone wrong (this behavior is the single largest inhibitor to the speed of change).
3. Take bold action quickly: Take action immediately.  We must be bold in business and fearless.  If there is an obstacle, find ways to overcome it, and not use that obstacle to stop or prove others wrong.  Also embrace the failure and being willing to change again and again.

The number 1 obstacle is the speed of change is our own ego:

During a workshop, after I shared the leadership principle of believing in those we follow, a leader in the middle told me, “I am a Senior Director and my company pays me for my knowledge and experience, not to just follow direction”.  I asked him to consider that it might be his ego talking and not his boss.   I agreed that his company pays him for his experience and knowledge, buy not for for him to debate or challenge the direction given, rather they pay him to use his knowledge and experience to execute the direction given to him.

Our ego can be fuel for great things, but it can also be what makes us difficult or weak.  For this leader in particular, I don’t think he was a bad leader, he just felt that he deserved to be part of the decision and that less experienced or lower ranking leaders should do the work to execute it.

The greatest decision makers happen to most often be the best decision followers.  They know their value is based on what is needed to from them and not what their ego needs.  Just like any product or service for sale in the market today.  The value of one’s product or service is not based on the feature of the product, but on what the customer needs the product or service to do for them.

Final thoughts:

Let’s be clear, I have just as big of an ego as the next person.  As a leader in the middle for the majority of my life, I know how difficult it can be to follow direction when we feel it might be wrong or that our idea is better.  I know early on in my career I said this very statement that shows my ego and lack of belief in others: “Corporate has no idea what is going on in the field”. And I said it more than I would like to admit.  That was my ego getting in the way of my job.  Once I learned that my job was to be the executor and not the decision maker, I found more leaders would ask for my opinion and ideas.  I learned that once I stopped thinking that I had to be part of the decision to own the decision, my success and my team’s success became unlimited.  The greatest challenge in this situation is as leaders in the middle we are always both, “the follower” and “the leader”.  This means that our follower beliefs and behaviors will be determined by how they see us follow.