Building adaptive leadership capacity in a diverse global organization

¶ … adaptive leadership. It will explore the major adaptive challenges faced by organizational leaders in the workplace, and means to overcome them. It will also delve into how a firm's adaptive capacity may be enhanced.

The Adaptive Challenge

The firm studied in this paper has employees of diverse identities and natures, hailing from different places with different values and beliefs; thus, the company demonstrates a kaleidoscope of thoughts and ideas. An attempt at balancing this varying set of personalities could be burdensome to any organization. Hence, we will seek a means to enable the workforce to work as one strong team, in spite of their differences. Thus, an adaptive company environment will be sought (Paper @ Document Provided By Customer), which would display how the firm would manage an environment that has employees from around the globe.

Current State of Organization Adaptation

Of late, it has proven very challenging to identify any particular individual as the company's weakest link. This 'weakest link' might be an employee who holds the firm back due to egotistical and/or personality factors; they may also be a consequence of union membership. Thus, other methods need to be established to resolve individual personality issues for the company (Survey Data Document Provided By Customer). Greater responsibility should be delegated between workers. Some leaders are hesitant to take such a step as they believe that the task would be better done by senior company leaders themselves. At present, 'older' personnel (not necessarily age, but potentially experience) appear to have greater knowledge compared to junior employees. This could be because of a failure in the latter to expand their knowledge and skill base (Survey Data Document Provided by Customer). The firm, on the bright side, effectively espouses continuous learning by means of training, on a monthly and three-monthly basis. The company has a program for tracking every training assignment's headway and completion. The firm is highly reputable for both its objectivity and subjectivity. What keeps it running successfully is the firm's capability of developing resolution strategies for handling issues which may emerge from workplace conflicts.

Measuring Success

The crux of Kotter's idea is: the reason behind the failure of so many change plans is over-reliance on data collection, analysis, report preparation, and presentations, rather than a more inventive approach that endeavors to capture the feelings motivating useful action. Kotter's text, The Heart of Change, demonstrates, with the aid of a Deloitte Consulting partner, Dan Cohen, how his 8-level strategy has proven successful in more than a hundred firms (Kotter and Cohen, 2002). Nearly every case reveals that change occurred because players were made to "observe" and "feel" it. One case in the book describes a sales agent emphasizing a necessity to bring changes into an industrial process via a videotaped meeting with a displeased customer. Another example is that of a purchasing executive who convinces senior managers regarding corporate waste through a meeting in which he displays to them 424 different types of gloves -- all variations procured by the company at very different prices from different vendors.

Leadership metrics deal with behaviors that should be exhibited by company leaders and senior managers to support an innovative culture in the company, including input and support from certain growth ideas. Within each category, there are "output metrics" representing desired outcomes for a metric category, and "input metrics" or resources, investments and activities essential for driving results (Kaplan). For example, Procter & Gamble (P&G) employs an input metric- organizational capability- that refers to the ratio of external technology- and idea- sourcing as a means to propel its "Connect + Develop" open innovation model. In the year 2000, 10% of P&G's research and development was outsourced; currently, half the company's technology and ideas come from external sources. The company considered in this paper will also apply a similar method.