In response to changes in the business climate, brought about by the pandemic, some companies are attempting to up-level their teams by adding new talent. If you’d like to up-level your own senior leadership team’s mindset, performance and results, consider the benefits of coaching your current team rather than the costly and time-consuming effort of bringing in new people.
As we’ve all heard, the health care industry faced mammoth challenges during the onset of Covid-19 which disrupted their entire way of doing business. The executive team of a health care client weathered the same storm, but was able to boast a positive outcome due to the coaching their entire team was already involved in when their world turned upside down.
Health Care Client Rapidly Up-levels Senior Team in the Face of Covid
If the desire is present, change can happen – quicker than you think – within your current team, and it’s much less costly than hiring new staff. Our client demonstrated that when leadership development keeps pace with the unpredictable, rapid changes that characterize the pandemic, the benefits can be seen in the bottom line.
They learned that every member of the senior leadership team wants to feel that they are making a difference. If the performance of one (or more) individuals on a team isn’t optimal, perhaps even perceived as an impediment, a change in the lens through which team members see the work environment can bring about behavioral change. When each team member experiences this new view simultaneously, the entire team dynamic changes which leads to elevated leadership performance and a positive impact on KPIs.
In Need of a New Way
We began working with the senior leadership team at this large health care provider in 2019. The goal was to up-level the team’s performance by concurrently coaching each individual member of the team. When we began coaching these executives using our neurolinguistics-based Power PathwaysTM approach, behavioral patterns quickly emerged that revealed:
- Low levels of trust
- Communication that lacked clarity and effectiveness
- Unhealthy and unproductive conflict
- Undermining other team members
- Unwillingness to compromise (“I do things MY way”)
- A lack of team collaboration
When we were enlisted by this team, many of its members had become blind to these counterproductive behaviors, which had been explained away over time rather than addressed. Covid-19 was actually a positive catalyst for this team. As health care workers dealing with a pressure-intensive, on-going crisis, this team was forced to open itself to new solutions and expanded thinking.
Groundwork Prepared Them to Face Crisis
Well before virtual meetings became the new norm, Exponential Results Leadership Consulting has effectively employed video coaching. It is the perfect platform to meet with executives where they are, when they can meet.
Our coaches used this same approach, conducting monthly video coaching with each individual team member. This allowed each team member their own space to do their work, to grow, and make improvements rapidly. The Velocity Leadership Consulting team examined both group and individual behavioral patterns that underpinned the team’s dynamic and offered each team member alternative ways to approach inputs that would lead to different outcomes.
As the pandemic unfolded, with backs against the wall, team members simply had to perform in ways they hadn’t previously. Fortunately, the team had already gained invaluable insight into the impact of their behaviors and the groundwork was laid. When faced with new, intense pressures and threats to their business, the team responded almost instantly by employing new behaviors and a more impactful work dynamic literally fell into place.
Unanimous Positive Conclusion
In this new normal, change will be a constant, so innovative thinking and a team dynamic that enables taking a different approach is essential. Behaviors that support your team as a unit – and each individual within it – yield superior results. All of the teams we worked with prior to Covid-19 have come through with glowing results, poised to finish 2020 head and shoulders above the field. Each of these leaders points to their leadership development coaching work with Velocity as the differentiator.
You can’t pause your way to success, nor save your way to prosperity. Now is the time to take action. Companies that thrive have pivoted and will likely pivot again – and again, while investing in their people to stay ahead.