Field Notes #9: How Do You Measure Your Leaders?

The Situation:

A leader we worked with was frustrated with a manager on their team. “They do good work,” they shared, “but I’m always the one pointing out what needs attention.”

The manager was frustrated, too. They solved the problems brought to them, met expectations, and followed through. Now they’re hearing that doing those things isn’t enough.

In organizations where this occurs, leadership levels and the necessary skill sets have often not been clearly defined. To build a strong leadership team (and leadership pipeline) it is essential to do so.

Food for Thought:

In chapter 9 of Cultures of Belonging: Building Inclusive Organizations That Last, Alida Miranda-Wolff offers a useful way to understand the expectations at three levels of work. Paraphrasing her framework:

• Entry: You are usually given the problem and the solution. Your responsibility is to carry out the work.

• Mid: You are usually given the problem. Your responsibility is to figure out the solution.

• Senior: Your responsibility includes identifying problems others haven’t seen and finding solutions.

This gives us something more specific to discuss than telling someone to “show more initiative” or “be more strategic.”

An employee may be very good at solving the problems brought to them. Moving into a senior role asks something additional: paying attention to patterns, questioning what seems normal, and recognizing what may need to change before someone else names it.

But people need to know that this is part of the job.

If we promote someone because they’re dependable and capable, then quietly expect them to recognize problems across the organization, we may be holding them accountable for a transition we haven’t helped them make.

They also need room to practice. What happens when they identify a problem we don’t want to hear about? Do we get curious? Do they have access to the information they need? Can they question an established process without being treated as difficult?

Our response helps determine whether they’ll bring the next concern to us.

Your Turn…

• Does your team know who is expected to carry out solutions, develop solutions, and identify problems?

• Where might you be expecting someone to work differently without having explained the change?

• How do you respond when someone names a problem you haven’t noticed—or would rather avoid?