Your executive team is at odds over priorities. How do you find common ground and move forward effectively?
Navigating a situation where your executive team disagrees on priorities can be a challenging aspect of executive management. The key to finding common ground lies in effective communication and a strategic approach to problem-solving. As an executive, your role is to guide your team through these divergences, ensuring that everyone's perspectives are heard and that the company's goals remain in focus. Understanding the different viewpoints and the reasoning behind them is crucial to resolving conflicts and aligning your team's objectives.
-
Marc Christopher Held, MBACEO | Geschäftsführer 👨💼 | 15+ years of commercial & sales experience | proven track record in accelerating growth…
-
Herschell Rodriguez VaglioBusiness Administration, Operations, Management, and Project Management.
-
Mohammed Mahmoud Abd ElghaffarExecutive Business Manager | Executive MBA | PMP | Specialize in Driving Innovation, Enhancing Productivity, and…
Begin by methodically evaluating each executive's stance on the priorities at hand. Listen attentively to their arguments, considering the underlying motivations and potential impact on the business. This isn't just about hearing each side; it's about understanding the nuances of their perspectives. By acknowledging the validity in each viewpoint, you create an environment of respect that is conducive to collaboration. This step is about gathering information, not making judgments.
-
Según mi experiencia, una manera de acercarse efectivamente a la introducción de nuevas ideas o prioridades es entender cuales son , desde el punto de vista del equipo, las suyas. No es fácil! es un ejercicio que demanda habilidades de escucha y hasta de humildad ya que no necesariamente, lo que los miembros del equipo piensan es lo mismo que el jefe! Promover discusiones abiertas, donde todos se sientan comodos de expresar su opinión es una tarea que puede llevar tiempo, pero los resultados son relaciones de confianza y respeto mas sólidas.
-
Um gemeinsame Prioritäten zu finden, ist es wichtig, die Ansichten aller Teammitglieder objektiv zu bewerten. Führt offene Diskussionen und ermöglicht jedem, seine Perspektive zu teilen. Nutzt Techniken wie SWOT-Analysen, um die Vor- und Nachteile der verschiedenen Standpunkte herauszuarbeiten. Durch eine transparente Bewertung können Gemeinsamkeiten und die besten Ansätze für das Unternehmen identifiziert werden.
-
Start by conducting individual and group discussions to thoroughly understand each member's viewpoint and reasoning. Use tools like surveys or anonymous feedback to gather honest opinions. Facilitating open and respectful dialogue helps identify shared goals and values, making it easier to align on a unified path forward.
-
Start by methodically evaluating each executive's stance on the priorities at hand. Listen attentively to their arguments, considering the underlying motivations and potential impact on the business. This isn't just about hearing each side; it's about understanding the nuances of their perspectives. By acknowledging the validity in each viewpoint, you create an environment of respect that is conducive to collaboration. This step is about gathering information, not making judgments.
-
Here's how to bridge the gap in your executive team: Facilitate Discussion: Set a clear agenda for a meeting focused on finding common ground. Encourage open and respectful dialogue. Identify Goals: Unify the team by uncovering the overarching business goals everyone wants to achieve. Explore Options: Brainstorm solutions together. Consider the pros and cons of each priority from different perspectives. Find Overlap: Look for areas of agreement. Often, both sides value efficiency or growth, but differ on methods. Prioritize Strategically: Decide on a shared vision that addresses all priorities. Consider phasing projects or allocating resources to achieve them all, even if not simultaneously.
Once you've comprehensively assessed the differing views, work together to define the overarching goals for your organization. These should be broad objectives that everyone can agree upon, such as increasing market share or improving customer satisfaction. By focusing on common goals, you can shift the conversation from conflicting priorities to a shared vision for success. This alignment is critical in creating a united front and a clear direction for your team.
-
Definiert klare, gemeinsame Ziele, die für alle Teammitglieder von Bedeutung sind. Setzt euch zusammen, um die übergeordneten Ziele des Unternehmens zu formulieren und diese in konkrete, messbare Zwischenziele zu unterteilen. Wenn jeder versteht, wie seine individuellen Prioritäten zu den Gesamtzielen beitragen, wird es einfacher, sich auf gemeinsame Prioritäten zu einigen und effektiv voranzukommen. Regelmäßige
-
After assessing differing views, collaborate to define overarching goals for your organization. Focus on broad objectives everyone can agree upon, like increasing market share or improving customer satisfaction. By emphasizing common goals, you can shift the conversation from conflicting priorities to a shared vision for success. This alignment is crucial for creating a united front and providing clear direction for your team.
-
There is nothing like setting a common vision for the team. One lays bricks, while another builds a cathedral, as the saying goes. I try to help my team see the importance of their work in contributing to achieving their part in the overall strategic goal of the company. Then, two things. 1) I make sure each person on the team is acknowledged for the value they bring, and 2) ensure that each person knows that they are valued and appreciated for their work. Their goal must reach beyond their immediacy. Everyone wants to be part of something bigger than themselves. When I lead a team, it's my job to get them on the same page so that they can see the beauty of working together to reach their goals.
-
Defining cross teams goals, where we have a sense of how these areas contribute for a company high level goals, bringing an equilibrium between the strategy, tactical and operational goals. Also, clearly demonstrating those different areas works as a gear to achieve a high level goal, where they play a relevant part of that
With common goals established, the next step is to prioritize the tasks that will help you achieve them. This involves a delicate balance of short-term wins and long-term strategies. Encourage your team to consider which actions will have the most significant impact and to be willing to compromise on less critical items. Prioritizing tasks together ensures that everyone has a stake in the outcome and that the path forward is one of collective effort.
-
With common goals set, the next step is to prioritize the tasks that will help achieve them. Balance short-term wins with long-term strategies. Encourage your team to focus on actions with the most significant impact, compromising on less critical items. Prioritizing tasks together ensures everyone has a stake in the outcome and that the path forward is a collective effort.
-
There are tasks more complicated then others, but I would stick with few tasks (maximum 3) that has more relevance and impact, aligned with the company strategy. Balancing the short and long terms goals.
Open and continuous dialogue is essential for maintaining alignment and addressing any issues that arise. Encourage your team to engage in honest and constructive conversations. This ongoing communication not only helps in resolving immediate disagreements but also builds a foundation for handling future conflicts. A culture of open dialogue will keep your team connected and informed as you work towards your common goals.
-
Fostering open and continuous dialogue is crucial for maintaining alignment and addressing issues. Encourage your team to engage in honest, constructive conversations. This ongoing communication helps resolve immediate disagreements and builds a foundation for handling future conflicts. A culture of open dialogue keeps your team connected and informed as you work towards common goals.
-
Establish an alignment working session, where the teams come prepared, open to new ideas and with good intention behind a more hard discussion. Also, an aggressive communication never works and the executive needs to be a facilitator in this whole process.
After thorough discussion and consensus-building, it's time to implement the decisions made by the team. This step requires clear communication of action plans and responsibilities. Ensure that each member of the executive team understands their role in executing the agreed-upon priorities. Effective implementation is a testament to the team's ability to work together despite initial differences, setting a positive example for the entire organization.
-
Define clear communication cadences, with roles and responsibilities, with implementation status report, with risks and mitigations plans. Ensure that we all have the stakeholders buy in.
-
After thorough discussion and consensus-building, it's time to implement the decisions made by the team. Clear communication of action plans and responsibilities is essential. Ensure each executive understands their role in executing the agreed-upon priorities. Effective implementation demonstrates the team's ability to collaborate despite initial differences, setting a positive example for the entire organization.
Finally, establish mechanisms to monitor progress toward the set priorities. Regular check-ins and updates will keep the team accountable and allow for adjustments as needed. Monitoring progress helps maintain momentum and demonstrates that the effort to find common ground has tangible results. It's a critical component of not just resolving current disagreements but also preventing future discord by showing the benefits of collaboration.
-
Attribute mapping is a powerful technique for decision-making that helps merge diverse ideas effectively. Start by identifying key attributes or criteria relevant to the decision at hand, such as cost, feasibility, and impact. Plot each idea on a matrix based on these attributes to visualize strengths and weaknesses objectively. This method facilitates comparison and enables leaders to synthesize different perspectives, ultimately leading to informed decisions that balance various considerations.
Rate this article
More relevant reading
-
Executive ManagementHere's how you can skillfully convey changes and updates to your team as an executive manager.
-
Performance ManagementHow can you use the GRPI model to clarify team roles?
-
ManagementWhat do you do if your management team lacks strong professional relationships?
-
Team ManagementWhat do you do if your team manager's intuition is leading to poor strategic decisions?