5 keys to lead with intent

5 KEYS TO LEAD WITH INTENT

“Lead with Intent” resides at the center of most modern leadership philosophy.

It is in recognition and response to a complicated and ever-changing business

environment, where independent action is necessary to achieve results.

So, what is Intent ?

– Bungay, Stephen The Art of Action (p. 110)

“An intent is the decision to do something now (a task) in order to achieve an outcome (a purpose).”

Intent

We shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the success of liberty.

John F. Kennedy

So, communicating intent is to relate two things:

What and Why

Simple Right?

Not so fast…

Getting it Just Right is an Art not a Science

Too Little

Too little will leave the audience confused and poorly aligned. The result will be

inefficient action, or worse, paralysis.

Too Much

Too much and the result will be low morale, upward delegation, and inefficient ineffective action.

There are 5 Keys to Leading with Intent

Thats what this presentation is about

• Define a Strategy, not a plan

• Develop the Values & Competence of your team

• Align Organizational Structure with action

• Craft Communication that is clear and precise

• Be Disciplined to give enough direction, not more

Keys to Leading with Intent

First, you need to answer the question:

“How are we going to Compete?”

Strategy is at the Heart of Leading with Intent


“An intent is the decision to do something now (a task) in order to achieve an outcome (a purpose).”

This strategy forms the intent


“It is not a path, but a direction. A direction could be set by giving a destination or simply a compass

heading.”

The Decision

–Richard P. RumeltGood Strategy Bad Strategy

“Good strategy works by focusing energy and resources on one, or a very few, pivotal objectives whose accomplishment will lead to a cascade of

favorable outcomes.”

Strategy is the input. People drive activity.

Measurable results are the output.

In an organization led with Intent

– Bungay, StephenThe Art of Action (p. 90)

“Strategy is a framework for decision making, a guide to thoughtful, purposive action.”

So, good Strategy is all about

helping people make good decisions

Good Strategy

• Provides direction (destination +/or compass heading) which inform decisions (particularly in trade-off situations)

• Includes “just enough” information as necessary so as not to confuse the intent or inhibit independent action

• Drives measurable results, reflecting that the strategy is informing important decisions (the most important to the organization)


“Such a model will only work if people are competent and share basic values.”

Competence and Values fill in where specifics leave off

Since Strategy is purposely limited

Competence

• Context Specific

• Often a function of Knowledge & Experience

• Quantitative, it can be measured to some extent

Values

• Underlying Principles

• May not always exist (particularly in weaker orgs)

• Often a function of organizational culture

• Qualitative, it is difficult to measure

Assessing Competence

• Start with Standard Industry Guidelines

• Accept less based on organization’s ability and willingness to invest in training

Assessing Values

• Observe, identify leaders

• Risk takers• Influencers

• Observe, identify followers

• Risk avoiders• Upward delegators

We want to cultivate these

(Some) Good leadership Characteristics

• Courageous

• “Independent thinking”

• Clear reasoning

• Decisive


“Authoritarians micro-manage under all circumstances because it is the only approach they are comfortable with. An autocrat only does so if the circumstances

render such behavior appropriate.”

Watch out for Authoritarians

(i.e. bullies)

Take Action: Deploy Your Team

• Remove Authoritarians (bullies, g-bye)

• Hire New Team Members (if needed)

• Start Training, if a lot of training is needed dig in (this is the longest part of the road and a topic that deserves a presentation in itself)


“unless the structure of the organization broadly reflects the structure of the tasks implied by executing

the strategy, the strategy will not be executed.”

Extrapolate the “implied tasks” from the Strategy

The discrete “main effort”(s)

required to achieve a strategy

Take Action: Remove Conflicts in Structure

• Structure “implied tasks” so that they have no gaps and no overlaps (if possible)

• Remove Gaps (clarify authority and accountability)

• Remove Overlaps • (1) redraw lines of authority and accountability or • (2) promote a new leader with specific command over a strategic

task that places him or her above the overlapping leaders. The express purpose is to aligning and coordinating action.

People don’t just know the strategy. You have to tell them. And they need to

understand it. In other words, communication unites strategy and

people


“What matters about creating alignment around a strategy is not the volume of communication, but its

quality and precision.”

a process worth trying:

Strategy Brief &

Back Brief

Strategy

Strategy Brief

Back Brief

Reflect and Revise

There are many ways to look at this cycle. Important point is it is a cycle.

1

2

3

4

Repeat

What & Why

(Intent)

How

(Confirms

understanding)


The Strategy Briefing “is a way of structuring thought so as to concentrate the mind on what matters now,

and leave out what does not matter.”

Deconstructing the brief• Context (what is the situation?)• Higher Intent

• 1 level up (my boss’s intent)

• 2 levels up (my boss’s boss intent)• My Intent (what are we trying to achieve and why?) most important

• What

• Why

• Measures• Implied Tasks

• Main Tasks

• Responsibility

• Timing• Freedoms & Constraints

Deconstructing the brief• Context (what is the situation?)


“Understanding the context and the overall intention is what enables junior officers to take independent

decisions if the specific orders issued to them become invalid because of a change in the situation.”

Deconstructing the brief• Higher Intent


• 2 levels up (my boss’s boss intent)

• Context (what is the situation?)• Context (what is the situation?)

Expressing the higher intent unifies action across the

organization. It also resolves issues that arise in a matrix environment.




• What

• Why

• Measures

What and Why-

Decision and Outcome

measures help clarify this




• What

• Why


• Main Tasks

• Responsibility

• Timing

State the intent as simply as possible.




• What

• Why


• Main Tasks

• Responsibility

• Timing• Freedoms & Constraints

If it is not already clear, state the bounds of their autonomy (e.g.

what situations they should escalate)

Goal OutcomePeople Plan

Intent replaces PLAN with PEOPLE

Goal OutcomePeople

Intent replaces PLAN with PEOPLE

No. Not quite.

When Leading with Intent you’re attempting to guide Independent Action by diagnosing and communicating the

key to competitive advantage

–General Feldmarshall Graf von Moltke

“The rule to follow is that an order should contain all, but also only, what subordinates cannot

determine for themselves to achieve a particular purpose.”

Be disciplined, or else you erode the culture of

independent thinking, and condition upward delegation


“People only show independent thinking obedience if they have the means to do so, and are operating

within a network of trust.”

Avoid These Traps

• Avoid unclear ownership of a task (especially when its you). Make it clear to everyone who owns responsibility for a task. When its you, make it clear its is their job to assist you in achieving, but that you will be dictating specifics in this case. The worst thing you can do is appear to delegate then take it back.

• Avoid criticizing mistakes of commission: “a failure to act or a delay is a more serious fault than making a mistake in the choice of means.” - The Art of Action (p. 71)

Its a Skill not a Process

&what to say what not to say

It takes practice

The Art of Action

closing the gaps between plans, actions, and results

by Stephen Bungay

For more, check out this book

Recommended Reading

5 keys to lead with intent

Business