We aim to send out a brief email once a month with facilitation and coaching hints. Do sign up if you would like to receive this.
Sample Newsletter from May 2020 by David
Hi, As a time of rapid change leads into a phase of consolidation in many organisations it is helpful to think how we balance the two leadership styles of what I call ‘follow the flag’ and ‘consult and review’. There is of course a time for each to be dominant and many ways to blend the needs to both ‘lead from the front’ and ‘bring everyone with you’. At times of crisis a leader who charges ahead can win great victories but can be left vulnerable and isolated. The need to attend to priorities and focus on immediate goals can mean it is a struggle to take everyone’s opinion into account. Taking stock of changes your leadership team have made and things you want to develop further is often helped by a period of individual and team reflection or even a semiformal team appraisal. One part of this is to actively seek out and encourage the diversity of opinion and skills in your teams another is to develop a better understanding of our individual and collective blind spots. The attached on advantage blindness by a colleague (Ben Fuchs) and the i player podcast on Diversity by Mathew Syed at https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07np7xtare, I think, useful ways of creatively thinking about diversity. Other ways include ensuring all parts of the organisation (including different staff teams and patients) have information about the changes you have made and are able to feedback. I’ve seen both internal and external communication contribute positively in organisations going through significant change, whether through newsletter, website, patient or staff team meetings.
Together these ways of working with different views and constituents in your organisation will enhance the capacity you and your teams have to consolidate what has already been achieved and explore the next phase of change that inevitably follows a significant shift in normal patterns of work.
Next month I plan to share some thoughts and a resource you can use to consider the main archetypes that drive you – and of course explore the inevitable ‘shadow’ that every archetype brings. If you’d rather not receive this occasional leadership / coaching email just let me know. Best wishes David
Wessex Facilitation 