Premise: Organizational performance improves with management stability and consistent vision.
Seven-in-eight, eight-in-nine…both are very telling stories. I recently worked with two different people who reported having almost a boss-a-year. Seven bosses in eight years! Is it a surprise that performance stagnates when the senior person constantly changes? A union president in Singapore summed it up the best by saying, “Working here is like having a mother who remarries every two years.” This is a powerful image that speaks to the level of insecurity, uncertainty and instability that characterizes their environment. To a union official, the frustration of constantly retraining management in the terms of the contract,the precedent and re-fighting battles already won, easily moves into anger. This is a non-productive foundation for improvement. When management constantly churns, the operation of the business sits squarely on the shoulders of first line supervision. And if you recall the Spirit-and-Will O’meter, http://myvaluetree.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/swmeter.pdf , all of my data shows that they sit squarely in the yellow corner of the “whatever zone.”
Management tip: If churn is the norm, invest in your first line supervisors to create a team and a vision, because this is the only place from which real leadership will come.
Stay well and keep adding value,