Book
Reviews
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Obsessions
of an Extraordinary Executive: The Four Disciplines at the Heart of Making
Any Organization World Class by Patrick Lencioni Recommendation:
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Click on title or picture to buy from amazon.com |
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Time for discipline For those executives who
like to listen to made-up stories, one of the latest in the fable genre of
business writing is Patrick Lencioni's Obsessions
of an Extraordinary Executive: The Four Disciplines at the Heart of Making
Any Organization World Class. While I don't usually care for the fable
genre (like Who Moved My Cheese), Lencioni makes up a business situation that
can resonate for many executives, and while I may not also like to call
attention to obsessive behavior, I think many of the best leaders pay focused
attention to just a few areas of concern and impact. So, it's with some
reluctance that I recommend this book. Lencioni believes that an
organization can create an sustain competitive advantage through what he
calls "organizational health". Here's a quote: "A
healthy organization is one that has less politics and confusion, higher
morale and productivity, lower unwanted turnover, and lower recruiting costs
than an unhealthy one. No leader I know would dispute the power of these
qualities, and every one of them would love his or her organization to have
them. Unfortunately, most executives struggle with how to go about making
this happen." Lencioni's prescription is
to understand that organizational health is simple in theory and difficult in
practice, and the way to achieve it is to master and practice four
fundamental disciplines every day. Here's a summary of the four disciples and
what they mean: Build
and maintain a cohesive leadership team Create
teams and build trust, eliminate politics, and increase efficiency by: ·
Knowing one another's
unique strengths and weaknesses ·
Opening engaging in
constructive ideological conflict ·
Holding one another
accountable for behaviors and actions ·
Committing to group
decisions Create
organizational clarity A
healthy organization minimizes the potential for confusion by clarifying: ·
Why the organization
exists ·
Which behavioral
values are fundamental ·
What specific
business it is in ·
Who its competitors
are ·
How it is unique ·
What it plans to
achieve ·
Who is responsible
for what Over-communicate
organizational clarity Healthy
organizations align their employees around organizational clarity by
communicating key messages through ·
Repetition: don't be
afraid to repeat the same message, again and again ·
Simplicity: the more
complicated the message, the more the potential for confusion and
inconsistency ·
Multiple mediums:
people react to information in many ways; use a variety of mediums ·
Cascading messages:
leaders communicate key messages to direct reports; the cycle repeats itself
until the message is heard by all Reinforce
organizational clarity through human systems Organizations
sustain their health by ensuring consistency in: ·
Hiring ·
Managing performance ·
Rewards and
recognition ·
Employee dismissal The fable takes around 150
pages and Lencioni follows it with 30 or so pages on how to implement these
disciplines in your organization. Executives who are looking for analytical
support behind this approach won't find any. HR executives who are pressured
over finding reasons for high turnover or are dealing with dysfunctional
workplace behavior may find some stimulating conversation starters through
using this book. You may have read
Lencioni's The Five Temptations of a CEO. If you're looking for something
quick to read and think about, especially as a way to stimulate conversation
among fellow executives, give this book a try. Steve Hopkins, February 4, 2001 |
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ã 2001 Hopkins and Company, LLC |
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