A630.7.4.RB - Mastering the Art of Corporate Reinvention

Former Honeywell International CEO Michael Bonsignore talked about the success and leadership after the major 1999 merger of Allied Signal and Honeywell during a video interview titled, Master the Art of Corporate Reinvention. Honeywell, at the time was going through many changes and struggles. Michael Bonsignore stresses the importance of communication and how vital teamwork is within the organization. This mentality and work ethics is a testament of the success which Honeywell has seem. Mr. Bonsignore approach to keeping his employees accountable and rewarding their hard work was instrumental to their success. According to Brown (2011), “if the situation allows, managers can arrange promotions, monetary rewards, or public recognition for those who participate in the change program” (Brown, 2011, p. 157). This is a resource which CEO Michael Bonsignore effectively used. However, with the implantation of change there are always some barriers that will arise. Mr. Bonsignore strong and head first approach was effective, but many had to change old habits to meet new ones. Additionally, implementing new norms and culture after the merger could be a long and hard task; he refers this to “Kick in the seat of the pants". Communication is a critical to success and must not be overlooked; this is paramount to the success of the merger. Bonsignore’s 30 years with Honeywell, has giving him the experience necessary to take Honeywell to the next level. His accessibility to his people and involvement helped him get credibility and trust within his management team and employees.  He points out the importance of being adaptable in spite of “challenging circumstances”.  I believe this a great quality of leader that we all look up to.

In summary, there are many takeaways from this interview. Leaders must be ready for change and have the courage to reward and keep his employees accountable for their part. Leaders should also be trustworthy, humble and open to the feedback and ideas of their team. Finally, be able to overcome adversity and lead from the front.

References

Bonsignore, M.  (2011).  Mastering the Art of Corporate Reinvention.  Retrieved from     http://digital.films.com/play/GWEU7L

Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Brown, D. R. (2011). An experiential approach to organization development (8th ed.).   

A630.6.4.RB - 50 Reasons Not to Change/The Tribes We Lead

The presentation of 50 Reasons Not to Change by Daryl Watkins and the TED presentation by Seth Godin both of these presentations focused on the necessity of change.

Some of the excuses that I constantly hear my colleagues expressing are that there is too much added work on other departments, it’s impossible, or that it can’t be done. It is hard for me to understand this type of mentality, because all I see from this way of thinking is excuses. Of course, there are going to be obstacle along the way; but if we convince leadership and get through financial constraints the only thing stopping us is ourselves. Do you find yourselves using these excuses? I think we all do at some points. We get stranded in our bubble of security where everything is going perfect, so why do we need to change? I found myself feeling this way in my career; the thought of just conforming to the mentality of just doing enough to get the job done was appealing. It wasn’t until I started feeling life was not fun anymore that I realized that I needed to make a mental change and do what made me happy in life. My wife Amber was a big inspiration to change; she constantly reminded of the things that made me happy, and that I shouldn’t be scare of change. Change, when done in the right direction will always bring growth, and most importantly inner fulfillment.

According, Brown (2011) managers and organizations face rapid changes in three
areas: technological advances, environmental changes, and social changes.
These areas of change can be a culture shock for leaders. However, organization must renew and
adapt to these changing situations, because every day presents a new set of conditions (Brown, 2011).
The key to overcome the thinking that creates those negative responses is to adapt, and be part of the solution. Leaders must be innovative and be humble enough to know that there are many ways to get to the right answer and not be resistance to change. Brown (2011) suggests, “Resistance to change can be used as feedback about the change (p. 154). We must be able to take constructive criticism and align ourselves with positive change.

            In Seth Godin’s video, The Tribes We Lead, he argues that the Internet has ended mass marketing and revived a human social unit from the distant past: tribes (Gordin, 2009). Seth concept is about leading and connecting people and ideas.  I agree with Godins concept that tribes drive change. There are tribes in many things we do in life for example, the workgroup at work, or your church group or even you sport team. We connect with these individuals that help create ideas and movements.

            The content of Watkins and Goodin video presentation was very educational. I have a better understanding about the many excuses we make to not move toward change. It was good to understand the types of tribes we created and how as leader we have the power to connect with others to create a movement and ideas. Change is something I’m very open to and know how much power words have. As a leader I must stay positive and see the importance to change, I must adapt to meet new environments and to see the positive in new things.

References:

Brown, D. (2011). An experiential approach to organizational development (8^th ed.).  Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Seth Godin: The tribes we lead | Video on TED.com. (2009, February 1). TED: Ideas worth spreading. Retrieved from http://www.ted.com/talks/seth_godin_on_the_tribes_we_lead.html

A630.5.4.RB - NASA Culture Change

C-SPAN, a public service created by the American Cable Television Industry T broadcast a short video about the findings from the NASA Shuttle Columbia Accident. On February 1, 2003, the Space Shuttle Columbia and its crew of seven were lost during return to earth (BST, 2004). As a result of the Space Shuttle accidents, NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe appointed an external group, the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB), to investigate the accident. The BST assisted in the development and implementation of a plan for changing the safety climate and culture within the organization. The CAIB, identified the physical cause of the accident to be a breach in the thermal protection system on the leading edge of the left wing, caused by a piece of the insulating foam that struck the wing immediately after launch. However, the CAIB also said that the accident was a product of long-term organizational problems (CAIB, 2003).

During the video, officials from the investigation board, talked with NASA employees about plans to bring about proposed changes at the space agency that were called for by the Shuttle Columbia Accident Investigation Board. NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe addressed NASA employees and described the plans necessary to bring about changes and how they can change NASA’s culture. Sean O'Keefe address some of the findings of the survey; according to the survey conducted by BST (2004), non-managerial personnel have low opinions of “management credibility” in areas and the agency received low scores for upward communication efforts and for managers’ perceived support of employees. This is a topic where O’keefe encourages for change and growth. Brown (20110), states “to be successful in the twenty-first century, organizations must have flexibility and the ability for rapid transformation. This is clearly an area that was overseen and was one of the subjects of recommendation for improvement.

It is important to be genuine when addressing your leadership, especially after a disastrous accident. It seem that Sean O’keefe seem to be honest and sincere. However, he didn’t seem to portray that of a leader that just lost seven individuals of his organization. The audience, seem like just going through the motions and there weren’t much emotions shown during the presentation. I was in squadron where we lost two pilots, and let me tell you that everyone from the youngest to the oldest person there felt the need to make sure it didn’t happen again, and to preserve the great memories of those individual; this is something I did not get from the watching the video.

Some of the things that were talked about were changing the culture for the organization. The concern is the inability for subordinates to express their opinions and to be able to communicate to leadership; which is not a good indication of a healthy organization. Brown (2011), states, “Only the more healthy organizations allow their members to challenge their norms (pg. 13). This is one of the reasons why the board recommended a cultural change in the organization.

I believe the whole world learned something from this mishap. NASA is the leader in space travel and development, with a great safety records; however, bad cultural norm in the organization was one of the contributing cause of the Columbia accident. One of the take of way is that communication is key. You must be courageous enough to communicate your concerns even if you are scare of what leadership might say. Additionally, as a leader you must create an environment where you subordinate feel safe to communicate.

Reference:

C-SPAN (2014). NASA cultural changes. Retrieved from: http://www.c-span.org/video/?181348-1/nasa-cultural-changes 

BST Solutions. (n.d.). Assessment and Plan for Organizational Culture Change at NASA.

Brown, R. D, (2011). An experiential approach to organization development (8th edition.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

CAIB (Columbia Accident Investigation Board). 2003. Report, 6 vols.: vol. 1. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC. www.caib.us/news/report/default.html.

A630.4.4.RB - How Companies Can Make Better Decisions

Today’s leaders are faced with increasing pressures to make the right decisions at the right time. Making the correct decision may make or break a company and might positive or negatively affect the cultural norm in the company. Decision don’t have to be made by one single individual, as described by Brown (2011), good deal of evidence showing that decisions implemented by members who use consensus rules are more effective. Collaboration within employees when making a decision, positively effects how the organization is operating.

 In Marcia Blenko’s interview with the Harvard Business Review, she argues that decision effectiveness correlates positively with employee engagement and organizational performance (HBR, 2010). Marcia Blenko, stated that researched showed that there is high correlation between decision effectiveness and financial results in multiple companies (HBR, 2010). Employee engagement is extremely important in decision effectiveness. Blenko, defined decision effectiveness into four components: the quality of the decision, the speed of making the decision, the yield of the extent of the decision and how much effort in making the decision (HBR, 2010). In my view, these elements are essential in decision-making. In my experience I have also seen that communication and trust also play a major role in the decision making process. In my current department I have seen that bad communication and lack of trust from employees lead to bad decision effectiveness.

            Blenko, described a couple of impediments to good decision making such as: organizations are more complex, and employees aren’t clear who is the decision-maker; the right information doesn’t get to the decision maker and leadership behavior gets in the way (HBR, 2010). These impediments are true of my organization; with the rapid growth and the unrealistic expectation from leadership, this makes it hard on managers to be secure in decisions. Additionally, tasking without proper guidance and resources are big problem in my department.

            In conclusion, the takeaway from this exercise to use immediately in my organization is that employee engagement is correlated to effective decisions. As a leader, I must empower my subordinate and give them the tools necessary to help me in the decision process. 

Reference:

Brown, D. (2011).  An experiential approach to organizational development (8th Ed.). Saddle River, NJ:  Pearson Education, Inc. EndFragment

Harvard Business Review (2010, October 13).  How companies can make better decisions. Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbxpg6D4Hk8&feature=player_embedded