Generating TOTAL Ownership, Alignment & Engagement

The Process:

The TOTAL Ownership, Alignment & Engagement process transforms your organization or team by taking it through seven key breakthrough steps — each building on the one that came before it.

Every step represents a significant breakthrough in culture, alignment and engagement.

Any change in an organization has to begin at the top.

As such, the TOTAL Ownership, Alignment & Engagement process begins with the transformation of the senior team. Once the senior leaders are fully aligned on the need for change, and committed to a bold and compelling future strategy, the transformation is rolled out to the managers and then employees. When the entire organization is truly aligned and engaged, key stakeholders and customers are brought on board at the relevant levels.

While typically I strive to facilitate the TOTAL Ownership, Alignment & Engagement process in a linear fashion, in reality, some steps are often rolled out in parallel in order to accommodate and fulfill the priorities, timelines and needs of your organization.

I can start working with your organization at any point along the path. However, I find that in order to achieve TOTAL Ownership, Alignment & Engagement, it works best to follow the order described below.

My TOTAL Ownership, Alignment & Engagement process is predicated on proven principles. However, it is always custom-designed with you and refined throughout the process to fit the specific nature, opportunity and need of your organization.

I can start working with your organization at any point along the path. However, I find that in order to achieve TOTAL Ownership, Alignment & Engagement, it works best to follow the order described below.

The Seven-Step Process

Step One

Align the leadership team on the need for change

• The Cultural Analysis process provides a no-nonsense assessment of your current organizational spirit, culture and performance.
• Through this step senior managers understand, own and align on the need for dramatic improvements in strategy, culture and/or performance.
• This step enable your senior managers to commit to investing the time and resources required to undertake the TOTAL Ownership, Alignment & Engagement process.

Step Two

Build an honest, authentic, and courageous leadership team dynamic

• The Team Development process allows your leadership team to deal with undermining and limiting issues and baggage with honest, authentic, courageous and effective communication and trust.
• This process enables the leadership team to put their past behind and start thinking about their future in a more powerful and inspiring future-based way.
• The leaders emerge with a collective excitement and mindset of being “one team”, “all in”, and “in it together.”
• In this step I begin to provide executive coaching to your leaders to enable them to step up their leadership behaviors and impact.

Step Three

Generate a set of bold and compelling Strategic Promises

• Using the Strategy Development process the leadership team creates a bold and compelling new future for your organization in the form of a set of Strategic Promises.
• The leaders also establish clear roles and accountabilities for their new strategy, as well as,strategic initiatives necessary to deliver on the promises.
• All leaders emerge from this exercise with 100% alignment and ownership for the promises and the overall change process, as well as a very strong sense of excitement and passion about the new future of their organization and team.

Step Four

Engage the middle managers in co-owning and co-leading the change

• Through the Team Development process, with strong participation and ownership from the leadership team, align and engage the middle managers around the new culture and promise.
• Managers take on a strong level of ownership, commitment, accountability and excitement to co-lead the transformational initiative with their senior leaders.
• A new level of alignment, trust and communication that can break down silos and drive cross-functional change is formed among the managers and between the managers and the senior team.
• When the leadership team and all managers are on the same page about the future culture and promises a new “buzz” of excitement, hope and change begins to be felt throughout the organization. This new energy begins to trickle down to the employees.

Step Five

Mobilize the employees around the new culture and promises

• Senior leaders and middle managers engage the employees in the new future and promises.
• Employees join initiatives that start adjusting work, processes and policies to fit the new direction.
• Many employees step up and volunteer to do more, take more risks and participate in the collective effort to take the organization to a new level.

Step Six

Bring on board key stockholders and customers

• Marketing and communication initiatives focus on enrolling key stakeholders and customers in the new vision and promises.
• Functional, regional and local teams begin to engage their stakeholders and customers in new mutually-beneficial ways.
• Feedback mechanisms are established to ensure continuous progress.

Step Seven

Generate ‘Unstoppable Momentum’

• Leadership team continues to drive and inspire cross-functional alignment and engagement.
• Leadership team continues to drive the partnership with the managers.
• Leaders and managers keep everyone informed about progress through frequent communication.
• Setbacks are addressed immediately when they occur.
• Leaders and managers continue to raise the bar where successes are common, coach and support people when performance lags.