Leaders in Crisis
What Military Leadership can teach us in tough times
As a division officer in the #1 ranked high risk training command in the U.S., I was struggling. I remember the phone ringing. It was a salty Commander from Florida who was at the top of my command chain. “Lieutenant, what’s the status in your training unit?” At the time, our unit was in the throws of a political firestorm. Allegations of misconduct from a senior officer polarized the staff and began to impact our performance. “Well sir, I feel as though I’m being asked to play both sides of a messy fight, and I’m not quite sure how to move forward.” His reply has never left me. “Lieutenant, when in command, command.” Make the decision to lead, regardless.
Many business leaders today are facing some of the toughest challenges they have ever known. Entire companies need to be restructured. Millions are losing jobs. Business leaders need to adopt two of the best lessons taught in the military:
1. Be decisive.
Patton once said, “A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week.” In my situation above, I was waiting for “better intel”; my staff suffered as a result of my indecision. Today, make a list of five important decisions, meet with your advisory team and then execute.
2. Don’t dwell on your losses.
The second is equally important, but perhaps more difficult. In 1812, after Napoleon invaded Russia, the celebrated Field Marshal Mikhail Kutuzov knew that strategically he had to abandon Moscow to the French, in order to regroup and fight Napolean from a position of strength. The spiritual capital of Russia was looted and burned, but Kutuzof prevailed due to his forward thinking. (1)
What we do.
We partner with leaders in crisis to make better decisions and to reframe their losses. Our 100 Day Battle Plan gets you moving forward and at the same time strengthens your company and resources.
Phase One: Mission,Vision and Values.
Phase Two: SWOT analysis with current comparative to competitors.
Phase Three: Define and map your Performance Pivot to create a realistic survival scenario.
Phase Four: Identify your NorthStar for long term resilience and growth.
Phase Five: Performance Coaching built on our four pillars of growth: Clarity, Commitment, Connection and Completion.
The benefits to you.
A recent small business suffered a huge hit from internal conflict in the top team. In six weeks, we were able to resolve the conflict, capitalize on low hanging sales opportunities, and identify a Northstar that the leadership team was mutually committed to achieving (for the first time in the company’s history). Immediately following and as a result of their newly forged unity, they posted their largest quarterly profits.
Some say there aren’t any “silver bullets” in a crisis – but these sure feel like two. Be decisive and reframe losses to drive a clear path forward. Some businesses will see positive change because of it – click the link below to schedule a complimentary 30 minute call to see if this fits.