The following is a re-post of something I wrote over 3 years ago. Had a conversation yesterday with a peer and we still see way too much of this:
Talked to a friend yesterday who works for a large organization with many deadlines and targets to hit. She's a star in the company's eyes. And like other "stars," she tends to get access to places and people that average performers don't. She takes advantage of the opportunity-in a good way. What's frustrating this star is managment's lack of clarity around directives. Management has taken the approach of "need to know basis." That might work at the CIA, but not in an organization made up of performance-workers.
Funny thing about star performers, they demand clarity. It isn't given often with management.
Why the dichotomy? A languishing leadership/management culture as far as I can see. The company may have a viable product, long-standing customer base, and a model that's effective in good times and bad. But getting managers who understand how to lead great performers is tough. Here are a few reasons:
- High insecurity on the part of the manager. Maybe they were taught (erroneously) that they were supposed to be the smartest gal/guy in the room. The reality of this can be crushing to some.
- The manager may talk a good game around diversity, but leading diverse people in real-life does not come through.
- The manager has atrophied in their leadership and just wants people to follow orders.
When managers are vague, it creates an environment of vigilantes. Everyone (star performers and bottom-feeders) wants to take control based on how they need to survive. In many ways, the manager has become nothing more than a body in a suit.
Restoring (assuming it was there some time in the past) clarity is vital. To not to do this would be organizational suicide.
You have very good points!
Clarity is important from both sides, employee or employer alike. No one should be misleading. An applicant should be clear in his resume (here are some tips what to keep in mind: http://moneyland.time.com/2012/04/13/how-to-make-your-resume-last-longer-than-6-seconds/ – I think they are valuable ones though I would add honesty as well) and an employer should be clear about the requirements. It saves time and money for both.
Thanks for the comments and for subscribing.
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Thanks for the great insights, Scot.
I do believe the “elephant” in the corner of the room is fear and a lack of managers being able to handle power. Both create a misguided approach of being vague.
The other reason for clarity is that the person will then understand exactly what is to be delivered to the team. Research? Recommendations? Competitive information?
Is the deliverable for the team? Manager? Manager two levels up in the organization?
PowerPoint? Word document? Excel? Summary? Details? Summary and details?
Clarity is critical and she’s right to be looking for it in management. High performers want to deliver the right stuff for the right audience in the right format. Anything less is a waste of talent.