December 17, 2011
"What's your perspective?"
It’s the question every HR executive wants to hear from the CEO. Every HR leader wants to share their opinion on important matters. It’s affirmation that HR’s perspective is valued. Maybe the issue relates to the relevance of the company’s strategy, changes in organizational structure or ideas for retaining top talent. In any event, the question presents an important opportunity to demonstrate your value.
So what is your perspective? Most of the HR folks I meet with are most comfortable speaking from their position as steward of the company’s talent. But after in-depth conversations with scores of business leaders for our book, Shockproof, what emerged were five distinct perspectives (we call them lenses) that enable leaders to maintain alignment between strategy, organization, and talent.
I’ll go into more detail and case studies about each lens in upcoming posts. But here’s a quick overview of the five lenses that leaders rely on to execute strategy in their organization.
Systems lens: A wide-angle, panoramic perspective that helps leaders see the dynamic relationships and connections that exist inside and outside the company—business units, functions, processes, technology, and employees as well as customers, suppliers, regulators and other external stakeholders. When a company talks about operating in silos, executives are lacking a systems lens.
Value lens: This perspective enables leaders to focus and act on those things that are most important to creating long-term value. When leaders complain about the “tyranny of the urgent” and being “nibbled to death by ducks,” chances are their value lens is foggy. Perhaps that’s because they are spending too much time putting out fires and have lost sight activities that are at the core of value creation.
Change lens: Priorities shift, new organization structures take shape, and people are called upon to change (an often uncomfortable task). The change lens helps leaders manage change and pay attention to emotional needs along the change journey. Executives who feel like they’re churning, but not really changing typically aren’t looking through a change lens to see what’s required to secure alignment of strategy, organization and talent.
Interpersonal lens: This makes it possible for leaders to see how to best understand empathize, and connect with people to forge the relationships that are essential to creating alignment. Accurate information about what people are really thinking helps leaders adapt their leadership styles and communication methods to better fit with the preferences of others. Lav Shelat, group vice president at India-based Avantha Group, oversees human resources across 15 countries at $4 billion conglomerate. He has some sound practical advice about understanding cultural differences in a global environment. But even entrepreneurs in small start-ups can benefit by seeing relationships through an interpersonal lens to find more value and discover points of connection.
Self-Awareness lens: Leaders use this perspective to look in the mirror and take a hard look at their strengths and weaknesses, their personality, style, and values. After looking through the self-awareness lens, leaders typically commit to growing and learning (particularly from their mistakes.) They take time for self-reflection and can marshal the strength to resolve difficult circumstances. They remain true to themselves and cognizant of the importance of aligning their intentions with their actual behavior. For example, when Crown Imports undertook an initiative aimed at aligning strategy, organization, and talent, the company’s president, Bill Hackett looked within himself. Typically a strong, hands-on leader, Bill decided in this case the base course of action was developing and challenging others, and getting out of the day-to-day details. By reconsidering his usual approach, he actually enabled the alignment he sought and contributed to the development of new leaders in the company.
What lens are you looking through most often? And which do you most often overlook?
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