I like to analogize organizational leadership with being a bus driver. For the moment, consider that management in your organization is asking you to buy into a change. It might be a fundamental change in direction, it might be an operational change, or it might be just a technology change. The change is a bus, and management (the bus driver) is asking you to get on.
When the bus pulls up, which of the following three factors will most compel you to get on board? Is it (1) the bus driver, (2) the destination, or (3) the journey? I’ve asked this question hundreds of times in leadership workshops, and I’ve kept a running tally over the years of the thousands of individual responses I’ve received. The results may surprise you. About 48% of those surveyed have chosen the bus driver, 33% chose the destination, and 19% chose the journey.
There's a valuable change management lesson here. The 19% – about one out of five – chose the journey because they enjoy change and are likely to take on any initiative with a sense of adventure. But the rest -- four out of five -- don’t love it and will need more to get them to buy in. They’ll need confidence in management and a clearly communicated, compelling vision of the destination. In fact, they will tolerate an uncomfortable trip if they are sold on the bus driver and the destination.
In my experience, too many managers focus their energy on the journey -- the management details that move the initiative from point A to point B -- and then are surprised at the level of apathy or resistance they encounter from employees.
Potential riders always read the destination sign at the top of the bus when it pulls up. If it says "NOT SURE" or "TRUST ME", employees are not likely to get on board. Even if you possess other great leadership qualities, you still need vision. I'll give you more on vision in a later post.
Think about a change you’re wanting employees to make. What's compelling them to get on board your bus? In what area -- your leadership presence, the vision you are pursuing, or how you will get there -- do you need to pay better attention?
