Chapter 10
Be Careful What You Wish For
Tony was very enthusiastic about the team's progress. Kate was as well, but deep down she felt that they were about to enter the part of the process that may have been a stumbling block in their past efforts. They both sat at the small table in the corner of his office.
“Great group of people, Kate. I think you got a lot to work with. I saw some ideas up there I might want to take to some other client teams.”
“Thanks, Tony. It hasn't been easy, but I'm pleased with the work so far. They feel the need to do things differently and are willing to try the breakthrough process. I think this next part is going to be critical though.”
“Oh?” said Tony, wondering what was coming.
“There are some interpersonal issues surfacing and there will be some logistical issues ahead as well.”
“First, logistics. What do you need?” Tony asked. In his mind he was thinking about his own first rule of leadership—clear the way for your people to succeed. If resources were going to be an issue, he wanted to address that right away to enable the team to do its work.
“Like you said, we have a lot of ideas. I can tell that if we are going to be able to develop them, we're going to need some help. My team is talented but we can get the job done faster and better with some help from others in the firm.”
“I expected that. I'll talk with the other partners and see whom I can shake loose. Specifically, you want business analysts, correct?”
“Yes. The more the merrier. That and some dedicated administrative support. I think if the team has a plan, they might be able to complete the work in a couple of weeks.”
“Consider it done; Consolidated is a big client and I don't think I'll have any trouble rearranging things to bring our resources to bear for a couple of weeks. Now what about the interpersonal issues you mentioned?”
“We've had some conflicts today that I think mostly come from style differences. A couple members of the team can't really hear each other, you know. It's like their point of view is so set, they can't yet see from the other's point of view. I have a feeling these next steps—the developing, the implementing—are going to be the hardest to keep everyone engaged. Earlier, I was able to help them begin to talk about it. I'm just worried people are going to lose patience or just get annoyed by the self-discovery they are going to experience along the way.”
“Tell me more.”
“Elaine is a great implementer. In fact, pulling her reins back in the early stages of the process was important so that we allowed time to really clarify the situation and come up with some targeted ideas. She'd been really good so far at holding back—self-censoring, if you will. But it has been a challenge for her. Now that we are going to develop ideas, I need to keep her focused on making those ideas strong before leaping toward action steps.”
“OK, that's one.”
“Damon has been glowing lately because we've been brainstorming a bunch. I think he will be fine with developing at least the divergent part of how to make these ideas stronger but after that, when we converge and strengthen those ideas and when we get to implementation, I think there's a chance he might pull back from the group.”
“That's two.”
“Juan has really turned a corner today. I think he's totally onboard with the process so far. He's had a chance to really get into the weeds of the issues at Consolidated in ways he had not before. Maybe as a result of that he was able to stay engaged in the ideation sessions. That said, implementation might be a bit scary for him. He'll have to stop exploring and come down to actually getting closure on the project and I hope he'll feel good about it. But I'm worried he might hold us back.”
“OK, what about Amy and Maya?”
“Amy and Maya have been pretty much engaged the whole way. In fact, Maya has been really helpful in helping people see things differently. She was essential when we were converging on problems in helping the group focus on something valuable for our client. I hope she'll continue to be able to help bridge different perspectives as we move forward. Amy has also been helpful, especially in clarifying the situation. But deep down, I see her strength as someone who likes to develop ideas. She seems very thorough, very much in the weeds. I have a feeling she might frustrate Elaine in that she'll want to dig deep into the developing part while Elaine will be ready to run on to implementing as quickly as possible. She's a data specialist, you know. Going deep into data and producing results is where she's experienced.”
“OK. That's five. Sounds like you can see the players well. How about yourself?” asked Tony.
“I've got to admit, I am focused primarily on the end result at this point and turning our relationship with Alicia around. I want to be sure we blow her away with our best thinking.”
“So where in the process are you focusing then?”
Kate thought for a moment. She didn't necessarily enjoy the way Tony was going with his questioning. She would have much preferred to stay focused on getting the team to do what it needed rather than herself. She liked to see herself primarily as a facilitator of the team and not as much one of its members.
“My focus is on them. Getting them to do what we need to do,” she replied. “Isn't that what you expect of me?”
“Sure it is, Kate. But if you are going to be able to do that well, you need to recognize that you have your own preferences and they will influence how you work with the group. So I'll ask you again, where in the process do you seem to want to spend your time?”
“Right now, I'm focused on developing, I guess.”
“That's what I heard in your descriptions of others. You are concerned that you may be the only one who will want to focus completely on this part of the process.”
“Yes, and that's where we need to be in order to make sure we have the best product to win us back this client. I think it's imperative I keep the team focused on the developing part of the process. At the same time, I have to continue to encourage self-awareness of the process. I'm worried I have two places where the group might get bogged down or sidetracked.”
Tony looked into her eyes as if he had lost something and knew he would find it deep in her corneas. “Kate, you're the best facilitator I know. You can handle both of those potential problems. What's really got you worried?”
Kate had to look away from his stare, so she stood up and walked to the window. Looking out at the city below she reflected on her anxiety. Cars and trucks maneuvered through the canyons between the buildings below. People scurried about on the streets, madly rushing toward their destinations. Where were they all going? she thought. Then it struck her.
“I think it might be the direction we are heading,” she said to the city, still avoiding Tony's stare. “I'm not convinced we're heading the right way, and I've got to be if I'm going to lead them there. You know what I mean?”
“You have a lot of potential directions to go in. That room we were just in is full of directions. Do you mean you're just not sure which is best?” asked Tony from his seat.
Yes, I guess that's it,” she said, though that explanation of her anxiety still felt incomplete to her. She turned around and dared to look at Tony again. “In order to lead these people and set them up for success, I need to know we are on the right track. Do you think we are?”
“You know who you should be asking, right? It's not me.”
“Yes. You're right. I need to check in with my client. Alicia needs to help us pick which ways we should be going,” Kate said, as if it should have been obvious to her.
“OK. Are you ready to have that conversation with her?” asked Tony.
“She's been open to my contacting her before. I think she'll be interested to hear the directions we've been thinking about going.”
“Yes. But this conversation will be different than earlier in this engagement—now it's mission critical. You are not simply asking for her guidance on which direction she likes. This conversation is also about laying the groundwork for success.”
“Say more,” Kate said, intrigued.
“Two things: the first is about helping the client be open to the creativity of the group. She has asked for something creative but it's a case of being careful what you wish for, you know? Is she is really going to be open to creativity? If you present her with some far-out ideas without priming the pump a bit, she is more likely to swat them down and call your efforts a waste of time. How might you get her buy-in for the general direction you are heading—how might you increase the probability that she will accept what the team is generating?”
“And second?” asked Kate.
“The second issue is one of the hardest challenges consultants face. How you keep your client in the client role and not the ‘boss’ role is critical in this situation. Alicia has asked for our expertise and that is what we have to provide and ultimately sell to her. When you ask for direction, you run the risk of giving her too much control of your team. You are not asking for her approval of specific ideas. You are asking about openness to the direction you are heading. Again, how open to novelty is she really? Her approval is what happens later on when she gets our full report—our analysis of recommendations. This conversation is getting her ready to receive those results. You see what I'm getting at?”
“I think so. I need to check in with her to both confirm our direction and ready her for what might be coming. I get it. That makes sense.” As Kate said these words, she was already trying to imagine how this conversation with Alicia might go. She paused in thought. “But what do you mean about not letting her be ‘boss’? If the satisfaction of our client is our goal, how can I not see her as the boss?”
“Kate, she hired us for our expertise. She will ultimately decide what the right way to go is. She may hail us as prophets or dismiss us as lunatics. Our job is to bring her our best thinking. If we give her our well-reasoned ideas, we enable her to use her best judgment to decide her course. If we don’t, we fail her. If we ask her to make the choice of direction before we've given her our best analysis of both process and steps, then we've done nothing for our client. Instead we enable her to continue to make the same mistakes. You have to guide her a little now. Get her ready for our directions so she can see them with some positive anticipation rather than killing the novelty she requested.”
This made some sense to Kate. As she began to think it through, she again began surveying the city outside the window. After a moment or two seeking to clarify the issue more, she likened it to something else she had been through. “On my last assignment our client was terrific. He was crying out for something new. I never had to worry about whether he would take our direction. He craved it. Alicia is in a different place. She is balancing a lot of expectations and we have to come through with something that will fit those expectations and at the same time challenge them. . . .”
“So you think,” Tony came back, “in reality, how she handles what we generate is her work? What you have to manage is your work. What are you going to bring to her and how can you prepare her to hear it?”
Kate nodded. In her heart she was coming to grips with the limitations of her consulting role. She could not tell the client definitively that this way or that was the right course to take. She could only put forth some new directions and help her client understand the thinking behind the proposals. As she looked at the city she noticed the awkward pattern of starting and stopping traffic. She could hear the muffled sounds of sirens and horns from the streets below.
“I'm going to call her as soon as I can, just to get a sense of her openness to the directions we're thinking. Nothing too specific,” Kate said. “It will be a conversation that informs us both,” she said as she turned her back to the city beyond the windows and refocused on the partner in charge of the account.
Tony smiled. He had an idea what Kate was thinking about and decided to offer one more bit of advice. “Just one thing, for what it's worth: I mean, you probably are already going to approach it like this, but I would lead with some questions. Find out generally if she sees the potential of the idea groupings you've generated. Ask her questions to make your own determination as to whether those are indeed the best directions in which to proceed.”
“Exactly where I was going with this. Thanks, Tony, this helped me sort it out. I have some priming of the pump to do,” Kate said, “and then I'll feel more confident we are heading down the right path. Thanks for this.”
“Good luck, Kate. Keep me posted,” Tony said as she left his office and headed back down the hall to the conference room.
Before she walked into the room, she was stopped in her tracks by the noise coming from inside. She could hear two conversations happening with both sets of people trying to talk over each other. She listened for a minute to try to guess what was going on and not interrupt the flow of energy that had taken over the room.
She heard Juan, Elaine, and Amy debating the qualities of different ideas. Damon and Maya seemed to still be generating more ideas. Her excitement over the team's energy quickly turned to anxiety as she realized the team was no longer working together.