What are the most effective tools in your toolbox for establishing, nurturing, and leading your company culture to grow into a ‘Level 5’ culture?

Here are two proven methods (in detail) that you can start using right away to maintain the momentum going towards that ultimate goal:

1) Develop an Integrated Process Team and Charter Them to Create an Alignment Plan

Select a diverse group of leaders and team members to establish an Integrated Process Team (IPT), with the goal to develop an Alignment Plan (AP). An Integrated Process Team is a great way towards leading change. This Alignment Plan will address specific areas of improvement for your culture, particularly those an audit identifies as weaknesses. From my experience, the optimum size of the IPT should be 5 to 7 (if it gets much bigger it becomes unwieldy, and smaller it will be seen as not representative of the whole organization). Make sure they represent the major departments of your organization so everyone feels they have some representation on the team.

Using some of the techniques in Patrick Lencioni’s Five Dysfunctions of a Team, develop a pathway for the Integrated Process Team to build your Alignment Plan. Keep the workforce apprised of the team’s progress. The senior leader in the company should be an ex-officio member of the team (so he doesn’t vote on decisions, but he’s aware of them and the process underway for making those decisions).

2) Publish the Alignment Plan and Build It Into Your Operational Rhythm

Now the next step to keep the momentum going towards a Level 5 culture: With some degree of fanfare, publish the Alignment Plan. Make it an event, with some positive publicity. The message is important here, and the workforce will be much more supportive of the AP if they know the leadership is enthusiastic about the journey the plan represents.

Ensure there is an established timeline for the various stages of the AP (usually the complexity of this type of program will drive the planners to establish phases of implementation). Keep the IPT on duty while the plan is implemented, so they can assess and adjust as you progress.

Develop a Culture Scorecard to track the AP. Based on the focus areas of the plan, one technique would be to use The Big Six®. How well is your organization meeting the standards set by those six leadership principals? It is important to be able to benchmark the performance of your organization.

Expect this Alignment Plan to show progress in stages, so you’ll need some tactical patience and persistence to stay the course. If your scorecard system is designed to create monthly reports, you should be able to identify trends and charter the IPT to recommend adjustments as needed.

The key to success here is commitment. The process is not complex, but it will not work without the dedicated commitment of the leadership team, top to bottom. This is your opportunity—go for it!

 

Want to learn more?

This blog is based on material from my book “We’re All In.”

You can get a copy of the first chapter for free here.

If you’d like a full copy of the entire book, you can get it here.

Enjoy the journey!

 

 

 

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