Rend Stephen identifies the most underrated skill in leadership and offers an example taken from a conversation with a CEO on how to manage a successful transformation program.
About 10 years ago, a CEO of a major industrial company asked me to help better manage their transformation program.
I told him: “If that’s what you need, this’ll be a very short conversation.”
Their transformation program had been designed by a top consulting firm after careful engagement with internal and external stakeholders.
On paper, it had all the best practices.
The problem? It wasn’t working.
After 2 years of effort, they were well behind schedule with no real progress.
Why? Because it was too complex.
And you can’t manage complexity.
You have to address it head-on.
So instead of managing complexity, we reframed the transformation around simplicity.
Here’s how:
- Recognized that complexity was the primary driver of non-performance.
- Took a clean-slate approach.
- Unbundled and decluttered every step of the way.
- Identified what truly mattered, the essence.
- Built everything around that.
By doing this, the transformation finally succeeded.
My point?
The ability to focus on what is essential is the most underrated skill in leadership.