7 Lessons for Navigating the Storm - HBS Working Knowledge - The Diigo Meta page

• 26 Oct 09
  

  Michael Tebbano

  leadership learning

  • 7 Lessons for Navigating the Storm

  • "Crises offer rare opportunities to make major changes in an organization because they lessen the resistance that exists in good times."

    
    
    

    "Leaders must be willing to ask for help," he continues. "They should rely on a mentor, an internal management team, and an external support group. No one can be an effective leader in a crisis by attempting to go it alone. Leaders must be the first to recognize this reality and plan accordingly."

  • 1 more annotations...
  • • • Face reality, starting with yourself.
      • Don't be Atlas; get the world off your shoulders.
      • Dig deep for the root cause.
      • Get ready for the long haul.
      • Never waste a good crisis.
      • You're in the spotlight: follow your True North.
      • Go on offense: focus on winning now.
• 14 Oct 09
  

  Ambika K

  grit entrepreneur

  • See crisis as a chance to develop and enhance your leadership skills.
  • "Leaders must be willing to ask for help," he continues. "They should rely on a mentor, an internal management team, and an external support group. No one can be an effective leader in a crisis by attempting to go it alone.
  • 15 more annotations...
  • • The leaders who successfully navigate their organizations through crises are ones who focused on their leadership principles and stayed true to their values. Only by practicing a clear set of principles can we ensure that the recovery is long-lasting and that future business is sustainable
    • By taking the first step in revealing their vulnerabilities, leaders encourage an atmosphere where concerns and doubts are voiced. Potentially unforeseen problems can be addressed sooner, and with a team focus. It's difficult to do, but expressing vulnerabilities appropriately will make leaders more effective.
    • There they will develop much faster than they will in leading through good times, or studying how other leaders behaved in crises. As the military learned long ago, there is simply no substitute for being in the thick of a crisis and testing yourself.
    • Under the pressures of a crisis, there is a temptation for less experienced leaders to jump to quick-fix solutions that may mask the real problems. The only way to solve these problems is to understand their root cause and implement permanent solutions.
    • Crises offer rare opportunities to make major changes in an organization because they lessen the resistance that exists in good times. Leaders should move aggressively to take actions necessary to strengthen their organizations as they emerge from the crisis. Coming out of a crisis, the market never looks the same as it did going in. Leaders should see this as an opportunity to reshape the market to play to their strengths, while shedding their weaknesses. While others are licking their wounds, successful companies focus on winning now.
    • going on offense when they are in the depth of a crisis is most counter-intuitive, yet it is the winning strategy.
    • crisis represents the best opportunity to transform your business and to win in the marketplace.
    • Rethink your industry strategy. To figure out what your markets will look like after the crisis requires a keen understanding of the changing needs of your customers.
    • eliminate your organization's weaknesses, especially if it is too bureaucratic or too slow-moving to be competitive.
    • move your entire industry to make your strengths the basis for competition while exposing your competitors' weaknesses
    • What investments must you make at the depths of the downturn to emerge as the leader? Can you think the unthinkable and invest in a new strategic thrust when you're on your knees? It takes courage to defy conventional thinking and launch a bold new strategy when business is bad.
    • there's a risk that your entire organization gets so focused on keeping the ship afloat that no one is planning ahead. Therefore, you should assign a small team of highly talented people to devise the post-crisis strategy.
    • Create your company's image as the industry leader
    • recreate your company's image to be the emerging leader that understands customer needs in the new environment
    • Sound execution requires not only attention to detailed planning, but adaptability to changing market conditions to alter tactics to meet customer needs. How effective is your organization in executing its plans? Do you assign your best people to this task and measure them in minute detail? Are your plans flexible enough to adapt to changing market conditions, while still maintaining discipline?
• 13 Oct 09
  

  Ann Feeney

  leadership recession management

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