Aligning People and Strategy

Our region is in the midst of a heat wave. Given our location in the California desert, this is not unexpected. But it’s still H-O-T! During these temperature surges I provide extra care to our outdoor greenery. As I was watering some distressed plants, I noticed that two plants – located only a few feet apart – were responding to the heat wave in vastly different ways. The plant pictured on the left (a Caesalpinia) was thriving and just beginning to bloom (and it was transplanted only 8 weeks ago!). However, the succulents (right photo) were not thriving at all! In fact, our succulents always die in summer heat and are replaced with new ones each fall.

So why blog about an obvious gardening lesson?

A recurring challenge I encounter as I work with organizations are plants (people) that are in the wrong climate (job description, culture, boss, teams). In fact, I am often asked to work with employees to help them bloom. And sometimes they can’t. These are challenging situations because they often need to undergo the painful process of a transplant (moving into a new job or organization). However, the deeper problem with this situation is that the employee is typically labelled as a bad plant. In reality, it is often the organization (and the person who hired them) that made the wrong choice. It is a mistake to place a succulent in 119 F heat and then blame the plant for withering.

How do we avoid planting mistakes in our organizations?

Here are three things to consider when aligning people and strategy.

1. Identify hiring bias. We like people who are like us. So, we hire people who are like us. But we usually need people who are not like us because employees need to take care of the things we suck at. A client recently hired someone they liked rather than the best qualified person (a decision that was defended by ‘culture fit’). And as the probationary employment period ends, this plant is starting to wilt in the heat (but they are well liked – which makes the problem even more challenging!).
2. Develop a clear job description with requisite skills and experience. While this seems too obvious to have on the list, it is not. As a client recently reminded me, “common sense isn’t that common”. When I ask a client to see the job description about the employee we are discussing, an uncomfortable conversation often ensues (because there isn’t one!). A job description helps serve as an objective anchor on which to assess the fit of plants and climates.
3. Use a workstyle assessment. When we buy plants, they have a label that tells us how to help them thrive (shade/sun, moisture levels, indoor/outdoor, etc.). A good psychometric tool (often called a personality assessment) helps you do the same thing. You can objectively assess a person’s skills, aptitudes, and the core drives that influence behavior. Understanding their preferred work-pace, a preference for structure (or not), thinking out loud vs. thinking alone, are all critical factors to determine if there is a plant/environment fit. I personally use the Predictive Index with many clients because it provides insights about an individuals drives as well as how they fit into an organizations strategy (contact me if you want to learn more).

Sometimes our businesses have distressed plants because we have not cared for them properly (coaching, adequate training, etc.). But often, we have staff members who are planted where they do not belong. Ensure you plant your Caesalpinia’s in the heat and your succulents in the shade!

Jeff Suderman is a consultant and professor who works in the field of organizational development. He partners with clients to improve leadership, teamwork, organizational alignment, strategy, and their Future-Readiness. He resides in Palm Desert, California.