Patti Cotton

Executive Coach & Career Strategist

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Redefining Success: Aligning Your Leadership Role with Personal Fulfillment

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Redefining Success: Aligning Your Leadership Role with Personal Fulfillment
Image Credit: Depositphotos

It’s been a rough four years. No matter where you stand with the events of today’s world, we have experienced unprecedented challenges.

And it has taken its toll.

More business leaders are leaving their roles than at any other time in our lifetime (McKinsey, Forbes). And that echoes the sentiment I am hearing from so many of you. It’s no longer enough for you to weather the proverbial storms in order to reach organizational goals. It’s not enough to persevere in hiring and retaining the right talent to do the job. It’s not enough to feel as though you averted another crisis, completed another long day, and made it through yet another challenge.

On a scale of 1-5, how fulfilled are you as a leader? In your work? Your life?

Perhaps it is time to redefine success.

In the past, success has often been defined by career achievements. But over the last four years, as we have faced unmatched crises and a new and seemingly foreign business landscape, this definition has fallen short. Business leaders are asking for more…not more money, not more opportunities, but for more personal fulfillment. They seek more ease in leading – and more of a personal reward for filling those big shoes.

The fact is, personal fulfillment doesn’t come from occasional exotic trips or long weekends to regroup and re-energize. True fulfillment encompasses both professional and personal aspects of life.

It doesn’t have to be this hard.

And lest you think that this is soft stuff, allow me to make a business case for your personal fulfillment.

Some outcomes from leaders who embrace this include positive energy and motivation, role modeling, improved communication, better decision-making, increased resilience, more empathy and understanding, positive culture, and higher employee retention. The list is significant.

James, CEO and founder of a tech company, had lost his motivation and energy despite his company’s growth and success.

“There’s no excitement in leading anymore,” he shared. “We reach goals, or we don’t – and the alarming thing is, I’m beginning not to care.”

James claimed an overwhelming workload and a constant pressure to perform. But after exploring this in depth with him, the real issue became apparent: there was a lack of alignment between his professional achievements and his personal values.

Digging deeper, I discovered that James’ definition of success was narrowly focused on business metrics, without having defined first his vision of personal fulfillment.

Further, after conducting a comprehensive assessment, it was clear that James did not know how to tap into his top strengths for energy, and his approach conflicted with his top values – a recipe for burnout.

This called for a coaching intervention to help James develop a new definition of success incorporating personal happiness and wellbeing alongside professional achievements.

The Jumpstart

As so many of my clients appreciate, we met for an initial two-day jumpstart away from the office to fast-track the process. This was helpful in elevating James’ sense of hope, energy, clarity, and direction. It was necessary to define James’ values, personal mission and vision before moving on to the business.

This is a key factor that is often missed and, if not done well, can create chronic conflict in the leadership experience. We redefined James’ strengths, as he had taken multiple assessments over time, some of which were not reliable and others which were limited in scope (note to the reader: assessments are not apples and apples – beware!) During that initial two days, we also created a strategic plan to align his daily activities and long-term goals with his newly defined success criteria. This plan addressed both his business leadership and life.

The Deep Dive

With this as our GPS, we then coached over the next year. This is deep and transformational work, including shifting habits and approaches formed over years of time, reshaping the stories that James told himself to open up more potential, and removing roadblocks and triggers that had previously held him in place.

The Result

James’ enthusiasm and joy of leading was re-energized. This had a cascade effect on his executive team and on the company, since a leader’s influence is significant on culture and outcomes. Some of the results for his company included increased productivity, better work-life balance, improved team morale, and overall business growth.

What about you? What is your personal definition of success?

Does it include both career achievements and personal fulfillment? Are you aligned in your values and tapping into your top strengths daily as you lead?

© Patti Cotton and patticotton.com. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express written permission from the author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that attribution is made to Patti Cotton and patticotton.com, with links thereto.

Cracking the Accountability Code

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Cracking the Accountability Code
Image Credit: Depositphotos

Most executives in charge will find that accountability eludes them. In an effort to get things done, a senior executive may create a culture that is severe and unforgiving, with employees being terminated in rapid fashion. The executive hopes that different people will perform better than the ones dismissed – in most cases, faulty thinking.

Another senior executive will develop a soft culture, thinking that accountability is harsh – again, faulty thinking. This results in people at top levels chasing, babysitting, or actually doing the work of others in order to ensure that things get done.

Those who remain staunch in wanting to crack the accountability code will purchase expensive people management systems that ultimately may not work because of other factors. This kind of system focuses on just one of the three building blocks needed to reach healthy accountability.

The Three Building Blocks of Healthy Accountability

  1. Leadership Development.
  2. Performance Management
  3. Risk Governance

When carefully orchestrated, integrating these three building blocks will make a significant difference in a company’s sustainability, profit, and growth trajectory. On a more personal level, it supports the executive’s cognitive and emotional capacity, which means the executive will enjoy less stress, have a greater ability to think strategically, focus on what matters, make better decisions, and model and develop her people.

Let’s examine each building block and see how it plays out in business scenarios.

(Note: No matter what the size of your company, these three building blocks are still valid and necessary!)

  1. Leadership Development

Executives will need to shift their leadership style from traditional command-and-control to more empowering and coaching roles.

This involves:

  • Fostering empathy, compassion, and vulnerability.
  • Building psychological safety to encourage innovation and problem-solving.
  • Acting as a coach to facilitate constant learning and skill development among employees.

Leadership Development in Action: Elysian Enterprises

At Elysian Enterprises, CEO Sarah Jones noticed that her team’s creativity and problem-solving capabilities were stagnating under the traditional command-and-control leadership model she had inherited.

To begin addressing this, she embarked on making the shift to a more empowering leadership approach.

  • Empathy and Compassion: Sarah began by instituting regular one-on-one meetings with her team members, aimed at understanding their personal and professional challenges. This shift was inspired by a practice at Google, where managers are trained to start meetings with personal check-ins, enhancing team cohesion and emotional safety.
  • Psychological Safety: To cultivate an environment where employees felt safe to express ideas and concerns, Sarah introduced a ‘no blame’ policy for failed projects, focusing instead on learning from mistakes. This mirrors practices at companies like Pixar, where ‘brain trust’ sessions are held, allowing creative teams to present ideas without fear of criticism or repercussions.
  • Coaching Instead of Controlling: Transitioning from a director to a coach, Sarah facilitated workshops and provided resources for continuous learning. Inspired by the coaching culture at Microsoft under CEO Satya Nadella, she focused on growth mindset training, significantly enhancing her team’s adaptability and innovation.

  1. Performance Management

Effective performance management is crucial for holding people accountable. This includes:

  • Setting clear, challenging yet achievable targets.
  • Ensuring transparency in how these targets align with the company’s overall objectives.
  • Maintaining open communication about performance, where metrics are actively discussed and not just passively reported.
  • Instituting appropriate rewards and consequences to reinforce the importance of meeting targets.

Performance Management in Action: Orion Industries

At Orion Industries, CEO Mark Liu faced issues with underperformance and unclear accountability.

He overhauled the performance management system to align individual goals with corporate strategy.

  • Setting Relevant Targets: Mark introduced a system where targets were co-developed with employees, ensuring they were challenging yet attainable. This was similar to the approach at Intel with OKRs (Objectives and Key Results), where ambitious and transparent goal setting is standard practice.
  • Transparency and Communication: To improve transparency, Mark implemented a dashboard visible to all employees, showing real-time data on performance relative to targets, akin to Salesforce’s use of similar dashboards to drive sales performance.
  • Rewards and Consequences: Recognizing the power of incentives, Mark revamped the reward system to include both financial bonuses and recognition programs, such as ‘Employee of the Month’, which not only rewarded results but also behaviors aligned with the company’s values.

  1. Risk Governance

Robust risk management systems help ensure accountability at all levels of an organization by:

  • Establishing a clear risk governance framework that defines roles and responsibilities across the organization.
  • Implementing comprehensive controls and regular stress tests to manage financial, operational, and strategic risks.
  • Encouraging a culture where risk-aware decision-making is valued and practiced by all employees.

Risk Governance in Action: Proteus Corp

At Proteus Corp, a multinational company with diverse operations, CEO Linda Zhu strengthened the company’s risk management framework after a major data breach.

  • Clear Risk Governance Framework: Linda established a dedicated risk committee that reported directly to the board, ensuring high-level oversight and accountability. This mirrored the approach of banks like JPMorgan Chase, which have robust governance structures in place to oversee various types of risks.
  • Comprehensive Controls and Regular Stress Tests: Proteus Corp implemented regular IT system checks and scenario planning exercises to assess the impact of potential threats, similar to stress testing done by financial institutions as required by regulations like the Dodd-Frank Act.
  • Culture of Risk Awareness: Linda fostered a culture where every employee was trained to recognize and report potential risks, much like the safety culture at airlines like Southwest, where employees at all levels are encouraged to report safety concerns without fear of retribution.

Together, these steps form a comprehensive approach that a chief executive can use to build a culture of accountability and resilience that supports both individual and organizational growth.

In the next article, I’ll share why top executives still won’t delegate – and if you are one or are supervising one, what you can do to shift this.

© Patti Cotton and patticotton.com. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express written permission from the author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that attribution is made to Patti Cotton and patticotton.com, with links thereto.

The Key to Developing Your People

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The Key to Developing Your People
Image Credit: Shutterstock

Developing your people is key to keeping your business strong. Rather than a “sometime event,” it should be an active part of your culture so that you always have your leadership talent pipeline full.

Jim was worried. His company had a knack for hiring great people. But the turnover was significant. Employee exit interviews often reflected that they felt there were little or no career path opportunities. This was puzzling to Jim, as he had always encouraged his executives to watch to support bright and promising talent in their areas for bigger things.

He had brought in several targeted trainings so that his executives were well-versed, but the numbers showed that this was not working.

What was missing?

When Jim called me, he had just learned that a key manager was leaving for a competitor.

“I can’t have this talent bleed anymore,” Jim blurted. “How can we get a handle on developing our people so that we quit losing good talent, and so that this talent is ready to move into greater responsibility?”

“Jim,” I answered, “your approach is a familiar one. Leaders may bring in occasional targeted trainings or leave people development up to their individual executives to groom people in their areas. Neither of these approaches is effective.

“What is needed is a uniform, systemic approach to developing your people that is well-defined, modeled, and replicable. Otherwise, your talent pipeline – your leadership pipeline – will be leaking from all sides.

“Well, I need to do something quickly,” Jim replied. “What are my marching orders?”

Jim and I worked on three simple steps to turn things around. By the end of 12 months, results were remarkable.

3 Steps to Developing Your People

1. Define it. Developing your people requires addressing competencies, character, and commitment. This means reviewing and identifying:

a. The technical skills needed for the role
b. The relational skills or character traits that support your culture and work environment (e.g., integrity, connection, respect, etc.)
c. Employee commitment (what does commitment look like in their personal leadership, their work, etc.)

2. Make it systemic and formalize it as part of expectations. Agreeing on your approach and framework is a good start, but you will then want to create a plan to cascade this throughout the company in a way that is replicable. What needs to be refined and emphasized in your messaging to support this as a cultural expectation? In employee job descriptions to support this? In performance reviews?

3. Model it. Start at the top. Too many leaders issue the directive to launch such an initiative, but do not actively take part in it. You as leader, and your executive team, need to begin this process first, and actively model it so that directors and managers can take the ball and run with it.

Taking the time and devoting the energy to developing your people is one of the greatest ROIs I see in the business world. I encourage you to make this a topic of discussion with your team – and to act on it.

© Patti Cotton and patticotton.com. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express written permission from the author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that attribution is made to Patti Cotton and patticotton.com, with links thereto.

What Does Compassionate Leadership Look Like in a Crisis?

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What Does Compassionate Leadership Look Like in a Crisis?
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Making decisions in a crisis may feel like one arm is tied behind your back. Whether you head one direction or another, the anticipated results are full of challenges.

Compassion is key to moving your people forward and promoting organizational health.

What does it look like when you don’t have all the answers?

I help leaders to lead change. Most typically, leaders call me when they are ready to grow, develop new leadership talent for succession, expand into new markets, or transition through a merger or acquisition. Leading and managing at such critical change points can make or break an organization.

COVID-19, however, is one of those change points that takes us by surprise and has turned the business landscape upside down. Such a cataclysmic event requires all the fortitude, competency, and character of a leader to move through such devastation.

At such a time as this, compassion rises up to be most important.

Compassion is perhaps the most misunderstood characteristic of leading from the heart. Many interpret this to be “touchy-feely,” or devoid of backbone. Yet, compassion is perhaps the strongest trait that a leader can embody.

What does compassion look like in a crisis?

Following are three conversations I have had with leaders in the past few weeks. I’ve protected their identity through slight changes in the profiles.

  1. Containment is more important than reinforcing vision.

“Our people seem to be doing pretty well,” said the CEO. “They are adjusting to working from home and finding creative ways to connect with each other during the pandemic.”

“Well, you can thank yourself and the leadership team for that,” I replied. “I just talked with one of your directors who said you all have made a great difference. He said your president assured everyone that the company was on solid ground. You have been sending personal notes of acknowledgment and encouragement. Your entire team has expanded the “open door” policy to holding virtual “kitchen time” hours so that people to drop in and say hello to you.

“What you are doing is containing or ‘holding,’” I said. “Containing people’s emotions and showing them that you are shouldering with them is key to helping them move forward together. On the other hand, some of your peers are not doing this.”

“What’s happening there?” the CEO inquired.

“We are sadly seeing a lot of anxiety and fragmentation,” I answered. “It turns out that painting a brighter future isn’t effective when your people don’t feel held with empathy and compassion in the moment.”

  1. Asking questions before making judgments yields better results.

“I’m frustrated,” said the president of another company. “We could move a lot faster, but I’m finding people are not performing the way they could. Granted, we are in strange circumstances, but I’m not getting results.”

“Let’s get one of your managers on the phone with us,” I suggested. “You and she have always been able to troubleshoot together, and I’m sensing we need to dive deeper here.”

A 20-minute 3-way call proved to be revealing. After probing deeper in a couple of key areas, we discovered that although the company’s systems supported this crisis environment, protocols and processes had not been ironed out. Conflict was on the rise, and as a result, productivity was very low. The president called an emergency executive team meeting to help troubleshoot this. Two weeks later, productivity has risen quickly even though people are still working from home.

I debriefed last week with the president. “So, what lessons are you learning from your COVID experience?” I asked.

“Well, Patti, I’m learning that I should ask more questions before I make judgments,” the president answered. “I can’t believe I didn’t dive into the productivity challenge more deeply before talking with you.”

“We most often revert to ‘fire-fighting mode’ when crisis hits,” I said. “And leaders and their teams sometimes have to put out big fires quickly, so let yourself off the hook here. But asking questions before judging is key. Great learning.”

  1. Making business decisions that support the company will best support its people.

Emotions and tensions are high. Executive team members have been working around the clock to cut costs as they incur big losses. Part of the emergency measures can involve layoffs and furloughs, and this is always devastating. Each life involved has a family and livelihood tied to it. And it is in this kind of scenario where compassion may look like ruthlessness.

“The executive team decided 5 week ago that we need to lay off 50 employees,” the CMO shared. “We have cut the budget by 40% and need to cut more in order for the business to stay afloat. We’ve even taken pay cuts at the executive level. But we are going to have to eliminate positions or keep ourselves in extreme jeopardy.”

“I’m so sorry to hear this,” I responded. “Layoffs are always so very sad. But what’s holding you back? It’s been 5 weeks since you made the decision. We are in tough times right now.”

“Truthfully, some of us just can’t face laying off our people,” the CMO answered. “We keep hoping an alternative will emerge.”

“Sounds tough,” I agreed. “But you know a miracle isn’t going to pop up. Allow me to help you reframe this. If you don’t effectuate the layoffs, it will hurt the company. If the company is in jeopardy because you aren’t making the cuts, then this places the rest of your employee base at risk. Right?”

“I guess so,” the CMO said. “Yes, you are right. If we don’t make these cuts, there will be no jobs for anyone.”

“Exactly,” I said. “Deferring to the business case, as strange as it sounds, is the highest expression of compassion. Making emotional decisions for a few at the expense of many is unwittingly destructive.”

“It helps to process with you,” the CMO said. “It’s still hard.”

“Yes, it’s still really hard,” I answered. “I’m sorry you and the team are having to do this. Just keep in front of you the people you are helping to keep afloat by supporting the solvency of the business. It doesn’t fix that hard situations often call for tough choices.”

Exercising compassion in your leadership when facing crisis isn’t always easily detected to the outsider.

In fact, it can seem quite the opposite. It can give the idea to some observing that you aren’t coming up with quick answers when in fact, you are allaying the fears and concerns that otherwise keep your people paralyzed. It can seem to those not involved that you aren’t taking quick action when you are simply asking critical questions first in order to make best decisions. It may even appear ruthless to some when you are really supporting the fate of many.

It is now that the courage to exercise strong compassion is paramount.

“A true leader has the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions, and the compassion to listen to the needs of others. He does not set out to be a leader, but becomes one by the equality of his actions and the integrity of his intent.” — Douglas MacArthur

The Clockwork of Excellent Leadership:   3 Essential Gears

What makes up excellent leadership? The essential components that go into leadership must all work together, or they begin to wear on one another and bring things to a stop. Learn how to keep them running like clockwork. Sign up to receive the  complimentary infographic.

© Patti Cotton and patticotton.com. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express written permission from the author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that attribution is made to Patti Cotton and patticotton.com, with links thereto.

Leading with Greater Inner Agility

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Leading with Greater Inner Agility
Image Credit: Shutterstock

You are moving an entire business through uncharted waters right now. A lot of people are depending on you.

Grit isn’t enough to meet the challenges you are facing. You need to increase your inner agility in two ways to deal with the complexity occurring right now.

Owen, president of a manufacturing firm, reached out to me some time ago to help develop talent for the company’s succession planning.

“I’m tired,” he began. “And I think the company needs new blood. Can you provide executive coaching for my second in command?”

“I’d be pleased to help you, Owen,” I answered. “But if I can ask, why do you think the company needs new blood? You seem like you have more good years to give.”

“Truth be told, I’ve been perplexed by the business scene,” Owen answered. “Strategies that used to work don’t cut it. The challenges that we are presented with are new. I can’t refer back to anything I’ve dealt with before in order to create a roadmap out that makes sense.”

“Owen, you aren’t alone,” I responded. “Today’s business landscape is changing so fast that it’s hard to stay on top of what’s in front of you.”

“You aren’t kidding,” he shot back. “I can’t catch my breath. It’s one fire after another. I guess I’m just too old for this.”

“You aren’t too old, Owen. You are finding yourself in the same situation as most other executives right now. It’s time to increase your leadership’s ‘inner’ agility.”

“I’m ready for anything that helps me stay sane while I move this business forward,” he said. “Tell me more.”

“Well, there are two parts of inner agility,” I shared. “These are emotional and cognitive, and they both play a part in how well you make decisions and take actions. Emotional agility has to do with how well you manage your thoughts and emotions around your experiences. And cognitive agility has to do with your ability to make complex decisions.”

Owen and I talked for a bit about emotional agility and after exploring a bit, it seemed he was on top of things there. If you are interested in working on this particular aspect of agility, see the article Four Steps to Crisis Management.

We then talked about his ability to make complex decisions in light of the current business landscape, and this is where Owen admitted he was struggling. He had no past success he could reference as he confronted presenting challenges – the things that had worked in the past were not relevant.

I shared the following 5 steps to help him begin to develop greater cognitive ability:

1. Stand still while moving.

It’s important for a leader to find time for pause, but it feels impossible when the challenges keep coming non-stop. Yet, pausing is what provides self-awareness, reflection, and a moment to replenish one’s emotional and mental stores. Some executives practice breathing meditations, journaling, a walk around the building once or twice daily, or another habit that creates a moment where they can regroup.

2. Adopt uncertainty.

We are creatures of comfort, and when challenges arise, we run to what feels familiar and safe. Yet, with the world’s volatility and its effects on business, we must learn to embrace what feels new and trade in the hat of “expert” for that of “explorer.” If you find yourself using language like, “When this is all over,” think again. Our mindsets and rhetoric need to change to, “Let’s explore this challenge!”

3. Change Up Your Questions.

Begin by asking yourself where you need to go. Avoid gravitating to “how do we do this?” too soon, and replace this impulse with “What if we could…?” By remaining in the visionary portion of your questioning for a longer brainstorming period, you can begin to think outside the box about the way to accomplish it at a later time. Involve your greater management team and line employees. Tell them what you want to accomplish and get their feedback about what they think needs to change in order to accomplish this. And don’t be afraid to ask, “What am I missing?” Be open to thinking about different ways of moving forward and accomplishing your goals.

4. Focus on the journey, not the destination.

The destination you head for today may not be there tomorrow. Set shorter-term strategies to continue supporting your customers and their current needs, using your values as the foundational rudder that keeps you, the team and the organization grounded in who you are and what you are about.

5. Work on the who of your personal leadership and not the how.

Hard skills and competencies are no adequate to support the business of tomorrow. Your leadership character – your personal values and integrity – along with your agility to move through the unfamiliar – will be what count now and in the future.

I was pleased that Owen decided to work on his inner agility, focusing on the cognitive piece, to help move the company forward. As we shouldered this together, he became more confident, able to read the business landscape and connect the dots to make complex decisions, and at the same time, reported that he was less stressed than he had been in years.

Now is the time to step away from old habits to embrace the new and uncertain as exciting, uncharted territory, full of promise. The landscape continues to shift and evolve. How about you?

The Clockwork of Excellent Leadership:   3 Essential Gears

What makes up excellent leadership? The essential components that go into leadership must all work together, or they begin to wear on one another and bring things to a stop. Learn how to keep them running like clockwork. Sign up to receive the  complimentary infographic.

© Patti Cotton and patticotton.com. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express written permission from the author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that attribution is made to Patti Cotton and patticotton.com, with links thereto.