The Better Your Leaders Are, the Greater the Chances of You Actualizing Your Strategy With Kevin Black

Modern leadership development is underserving you. If you want to accelerate your growth and quickly raise your value as a leader, then you have to look beyond tradition and convention.

Kevin Black, MA, MBA, is a veteran US Army officer and seasoned entrepreneur, nationally recognized for learning and development services in leadership and strategy. His leadership workshops combine the excitement of eSports-like wargame competitions with advanced leadership development. The process enables companies to rapidly increase the value of their leaders and teams; it can also vet potential leaders for readiness or new hires for cultural compatibility. Kevin helps clients across a variety of industries, from start-ups to public companies, such as LifeLock, Medtronic, and McKesson. Overall, his work has helped to create over $500M of value.

He is the author of the upcoming book, Managing Chaos: The Emergent Leader, and host of the podcast, Black Market Leadership.

Key Leadership Takeaways:

Use the process below to help you when it’s your turn to lead a transformational change. Each essential element represents a step and/or stage during any major transformation. The better you understand them, the better prepared you are to achieve your goal(s), despite the inevitable friction that will be coming your way.

  • The first essential element is PROBLEM DEFINED. At this initial stage of the process, it is critically important for you to become fully aware of the challenge or the problem at hand. The first thing to do is to identify the root problem. This is tricky because many others around you will likely see a multitude of other problems, some serious, some not so much. If you get to the core of the subject, first, then usually other related challenges will diminish in effect, or just fall to the wayside. Next, define the problem, breaking it down into its essential elements. Critical to success is twofold: being able to articulate your definition, and then getting everyone else acknowledges that it is accurate.
  • The second essential element is SOLUTION PROVIDED. At this stage, it is important to offer a solution that addresses the root problem. Following that, make sure to establish the essential measures for success. Without metrics for success, the solution is not practical and will not be achieved as intended.
  • The third essential element is ENCOUNTERING RESISTANCE. Resistance will occur anytime you propose or deploy a new change to an existing process or tradition – especially one that has a deep, rich history. At this stage, leadership needs to anticipate objections and be prepared to address them. This is achieved by clearly communicating the solution; it also requires showing empathy for the concerns of team members, who need to adjust, adapt, and ultimately execute the new changes. Nevertheless, it is critical that the leader not compromise their commitment to making the change(s) occur, as designed and planned. This means be prepared to make organizational changes if necessary.
  • The fourth essential element is OVERCOMING RESISTANCE. As a leader, it is your responsibility to overcome resistance which can derail effective transformation. You must gain and maintain control of execution, including directly addressing any and all elements that are impediments to the progress. Remember success and failure ride on your shoulders. If you have authority, use it.
  • The fifth essential element is REALIGNING THE TEAM. Having a plan for transformation is one thing, getting buy-in and coaching others to execute it is another. Leaders must be prepared to explain why the change is occurring, then again be prepared to address individual’s specific questions and concerns. Be truthful in your message, and be clear and concise in explaining what is needed to achieve success. Articulate the expectations of each member, so they can contribute to how success is achieved.
  • The sixth and final essential element is SUCCESS REALIZED. Success comes in many forms, both big and small, directly and indirectly. In this stage of transformational leadership, it is important to examine all the outcomes of the changes that you implemented. Focus on the big picture, and then look beyond the immediate results to see the second-and third-order effects.

Iron Sharpens Iron Movement – Resources:

Discover More and Connect:

What are your thoughts on this episode? Post your comments below to start the discussion. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast and tell a friend so we can continue to build our tribe of people who have a passion for followership, mentorship, and leading!

Join our Facebook group to get even more behind the scenes action and exclusive content for leaders. Until next time- remember that Iron Sharpens Iron, make yourself and others around you better every day!