Читать книгу Amplifiers - Tom Finegan - Страница 21

At Clarkston Consulting, we operate as a group of partners who serve our clients, and we have broad autonomy to do so, as long as the partner remains consistent with our strategy and values. Some of our partners and senior practitioners have developed innovative approaches to solving our clients' needs and have developed new solution offerings that would be beneficial for a number of our clients. Despite how effective these solutions are, I have witnessed how difficult it is for them to influence other partners to bring the same highly effective offerings to their own clients. Generally, a second partner will deliver the solution (perhaps in coordination with the original innovation team) but even after a second client success story, the solution often fizzles out. It's not until a third partner gets involved in delivery, and the magic of the power of three kicks, in where the service offering gains traction in the marketplace. This highlights the power of followership and the importance of not just one but two followers needed to create a safe environment for others to participate.

Over the years, I've watched outstanding performers get drowned out by others in the room. It may be that some of the individuals were more charismatic and always needed to voice their strong opinions first. In some cases, it was due to a lack of gender or racial diversity. When others talked over them, although they were strong performers, they were simply hesitant to voice their concerns or ideas. Tim Hassinger shared his experience with a critical employee, Mary. She was part of a key team filled with charismatic leaders and followers. However, they talked over her and often missed her critical input at important junctures in the decision-making process. Over time, the team learned they needed her input and, furthermore, they learned that before they made any major decision, they made sure they gathered Mary's input prior to advancing the discussion and decision.

Hassinger, recently retired as CEO, shared a gimmick he used to help effect cultural change. Because the culture at this company was so “nice,” they were not making difficult decisions and were unwilling to confront each other during meetings when such decisions needed to be made. So, he ordered toy elephants for each of the conference rooms. The elephants symbolized “the elephant in the room” and were used in meetings to provide safety for people to highlight a norm or previous assumption that no longer held true or that needed to be reevaluated.