Page 181 - Just Promoted A 12 Month Road Map for Success in Your New Leadership Role

166 Just Promoted!

whom they have reservations. Chapter 4 has many useful tips in this regard.
Transitions are a good time to make tough decisions, including those that
could result in the termination of people who have been low performers but
to whom your predecessor felt personal loyalty.
In this case, coach your direct reports on how to handle these situations
with problematic or low-performing employees. Sometimes you may need
to counsel the employee yourself. But do take straightforward, short-term
steps to redress the weakness through training, coaching, or redesigning
responsibilities. Careful performance improvement plans may need to be
developed that could potentially lead to improved performance or, alterna-
tively, lead to terminations. Your leadership team will be only as strong as its
weakest link.
Also assess the key department tasks and who is accountable for each. In
many organizations, people look puzzled or point in multiple directions when
asked, “Who is accountable for a certain job or task?” Lack of clear account-
ability is a sure sign of trouble. Does the person who is accountable exert suf-
ficient control over the work to be sure that performance meets standards?
Efficient organizations work quickly, profitably, efficiently, productively, or by
whatever criteria you set or approve as performance expectations. The more
effective you are in selecting and developing talented team members, the less
you should need to exert or expect others to exert a highly controlling
approach with your people. In Good to Great, Collins describes a culture that
reduces the need for bureaucracy and heavy-handed management practices
by having carefully selected people with disciplined thoughts that lead to effec-
tive and disciplined actions.

The Informal Power of Your Leaders
Check the difference between informal and formal leadership. A manager of
a data center had earned her position on the basis of diligence and hard work.
She was the best technical data center manager in the group. Unfortunately,
she was not very friendly or outgoing with peers and colleagues. She had
earned neither their friendship nor respect. After her promotion, the group
grudgingly followed her lead. Most of the time, they simply ignored her when-
ever they could. Before promoting her, her boss should have seen that she was
not the group’s informal leader. She had no informal power and no informal
authority with the group. The leader of this group would have been better off
promoting the group’s natural leader or going outside the department.