For many of us, there are at least three steep climbs we make in our careers. They involve acquiring critical managerial and leadership skills, and they are often tied to specific titles or levels in a hierarchy.
Conquering Scope and Scale
When Time Stops Being Your Friend
The first happens when we realize that time is no longer our friend. Early in careers and up through a Manager level, we are often individual contributors with a limited span of responsibility. The thoroughness of our work begins to get stressed as more responsibility is put on our plates.
There comes a point when the requirements of the job are too great for one person to do an exceptional job on everything. Responsibility and accountability begin to diverge. You may have ownership for results without being able to manage the task yourself.
Learning to Let Go Through Delegation
I remember having a very competent manager, Henry, working for me in a HQ marketing role. He had checked all the boxes and was eager for a more senior assignment. Henry assumed a Sr Manager position leading a nascent marketing organization of four people.
It was his first time with direct reports, and he couldn’t let go of the work. He was uncertain of his team’s ability to do their work and he tried to do it all himself. Instead of diving in as he did before his promotion, he got stuck. The amount on his plate became paralyzing.
It took Henry several months of coaching and training in prioritization and delegation before he got some traction. He finally internalized that, in his more senior position, parts of his former job were too low value for him to continue doing.
With that realization, he (reluctantly) delegated to his reports. With some oversight on his part, they succeeded and so did he.
Solving Ambiguity With Insight
Defining the Real Problem
If there is a condition that defines director-level work, it may be working in ambiguous situations. You are asked to solve a problem, but nobody defines the problem for you. You see symptoms. You have lagging indicators. But the root cause has escaped people, until you are given the task.
Charles Kettering, head of research for General Motors for over a quarter century, said, “A problem defined is a problem half solved.”
Cutting Through the Fog
The Prussian military analyst Carl von Clausewitz coined the phrase “the fog of war,” describing the lack of situational awareness that confronts participants in military action. He said,
“A sensitive and discriminating judgment is called for; a skilled intelligence to scent out the truth.”
Through confusion and lack of clarity, success comes from insight. Albert Einstein captured this when he said,
“Creativity is seeing what others see and thinking what no one else ever thought.”
Some undefined problems are difficult to uncover. Sometimes people before you simply got caught in the fog. Whatever the case, seeing a problem for what it truly is and solving it is a milestone in a leader’s evolution.
Developing an Enterprise Orientation
Getting Out of Your Lane
Executive Springboard mentor John Keppeler once shared a story from his first C-suite role. As head of sales for CNS, the company that introduced Breathe Right nasal strips, CEO Marti Morfitt gave him advice that still resonates:
“John, you are a really good sales guy. Learn what it takes to be part of a cross-functional management team. Get out of your lane and be more than the VP of Sales.”
Thinking Beyond Your Function
Leadership teams are weakened by members who stay in their lanes, protect their turf, and fail to challenge one another.
Joe had all the functional skills one could want in an Operations VP. His team loved him. But his relationships with other leaders were strained. Any suggestion about Operations met strong resistance. The only time he commented on other functions was when they affected his own.
Joe wasn’t unskilled he simply played for his team, not the company.
It is critical for leaders to work for the common good, not just their own function. Your team needs you to champion them and provide political air cover. But successful organizations demand more leaders who operate with a wider lens and an enterprise mindset.
