Leadership Underperformance and the Culture of Excuse-making
January is typically, characterized by inspiring townhall meetings, retreats to marshal out the strategies for delivering and executing organizational goals, juiced up with key notes that lift employees’ spirits. These are all good. In my corporate HR days, I like to select these speakers, identify the books we need to read as an organization and to facilitate these sessions. I believe in these kinds of activities.
I have to say that it is only going to take the 2nd quarter (which is right around the corner) for all the huff-puff to drain and for the stress and frustrations to set in because the goals are not moving any further, any faster. The quarterly reviews will soon become a dreaded event and the excuses start climbing on each other why things are not happening.
Organizational executives like to get “lost” in organizational goals to the detriment of their own personal development and growth.
This is even worse for middle managers who feel like they are torn in different directions with very little support. They find themselves “thinning out” and it is no surprise that the burnout rate for this group is the highest when compared to the other groups in the organization.
They are plagued by fears, and insecurities that manifest through avoiding responsibilities, justifying shortcomings, and hiding under some other masks to explain incompetence and failures.
Having worked with middle management teams across the globe for over 20 years, I know that the greatest challenge is getting them to focus on building the capacity to deliver the results they desperately need to move forward. To shift the mindset from doing to growing.
The organizations that understand how to support this group have sustained performance. This was the magic of Jack Welch with GE that propelled GE to the top and kept them there for a long time.
This year, I am conducting trainings and workshops on how to lead and deliver results without making excuses.
Excuse making perpetuates a cycle of stagnation, preventing individuals from reaching their full potential and hindering the progress of teams and organizations.
If less excuses, less procrastination, and higher productivity is what you want from your team and the middle managers in your organization, connect with me to know about the workshop.
