The Challenge

Because prosperity drains urgency, and things naturally wind down rather than up, most leaders won't get serious about finding, developing, or retaining talent, or dealing with deadweight, until something bad happens (the red-ink quarter, an economic downturn, a top performer defects, or some other unforeseen crisis). To strengthen your culture and consistently increase results, you will need to become far more proactive and fix the roof while the sun is shining. And if things have already turned down for you, learn the lessons inherent in your reversal, and resolve to do better going forward.

JFK Was Right

In his 1962 State of the Union Address, John F. Kennedy declared, “The best time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining” (BrainyQuote, n.d.). His philosophy wasn't intended for organizations per se, but it fits quite well, especially during times of abundance.

Remember: Just like in physics, organizational momentum naturally winds down rather than up unless outside energy is applied. You won't plunge downward when you neglect the right disciplines—you'll slope there. Because of this, you often will not realize you are in decline until it's too late.

If you have momentum, it is easier to steer than to restart, so here are three suggested actions you can take to leverage momentum when you have it:

1. Redefine performance expectations while things are going well. There's no better time to redefine performance expectations for the organization overall, and for each team member, than when things are already rolling along. This keeps people sharp, focused, and in a stretch mode. Redefined expectations should meet the following criteria:
   • They are in writing.
   • There are daily activity objectives—master the art of execution (MAX) acts—not just outcome goals—the ultimate few objectives (TUFs).
   • There are consequences for failing to meet a standard.
   • The team standards are introduced to the group as a whole and then gone over one-on-one as you relate each individual's required contribution to the total team effort.
   • The expectations become part of the conversation in meetings, during private coaching sessions, and at performance reviews.

   If you are not sure whether your current expectations are clear enough or high enough, they're probably not. Practice presenting new performance expectations in a positive, rather than a high-handed or threatening, manner, with a script similar to this:

   Team, we are in a great position to leverage our current momentum for even greater success. But for us to reach our potential, I know I need to do a better job of defining exactly what I expect from each of you daily, weekly, and monthly going forward. In this meeting I want to give you some clearer targets to shoot for that will get us on the same page and help you become more successful. If we all step up, we can make something very special happen here this year.

   Incidentally, if your performance expectations aren't clear enough, it will be extremely difficult for you to hold anyone accountable because the question becomes “Accountable for what?” This brings us to the next suggested step for how to fix the roof while the sun is shining:

2. Remove the deadweight. During tough times, removing deadweight isn't normally a problem. The temptation during robust business periods is to learn to live with, work around, or rationalize performers operating at levels unworthy of your standards. Deadweight, enabled by a lack of accountability, breaks momentum, lowers morale, hurts the customer experience, and can destroy your personal credibility as a leader. If you have set clear expectations, have consistently invested in the development of a team member, offer honest and fast feedback to eliminate gray areas and blind spots, and still have no grounds for believing tomorrow's performance will be any better than today, then you should apply the three Ts filter to determine your next step. Leadership is about doing what is right. It is about putting what's best for the team overall before your personal likes, preferences, convenience, or comfort zone.
3. Don't overmanage and underlead. This point takes us back to what I discussed early in the “Get the Leaders Right!” part. When everything seems to be rocking and under control, it's tempting to disengage and spend less time in the trenches and more in your office (engaging more in paperwork than in people work, substituting rules for relationships, and talking like a leader but acting like an anchor). Continue leading daily by focusing on simple disciplines. Here are quick reminders:
   • Commit to daily wanderarounds where you get into the trenches with your people, give feedback, seek out feedback, catch people doing things right, and quickly correct them when they're off track.
   • Schedule one-on-one coaching sessions with team members so that you formally and systematically grow them to new levels.
   • Take your training program up a notch. Devise weekly training themes, assign tasks for people to work on in between your training meetings, require action plans from attendees, and then follow up during one-on-ones to help them implement what they committed to do.

Parting Thought

Do not wait for something bad to happen before you fix, reinforce, or rebuild your roof. Although these steps are basic, they are not necessarily easy. They require hard, smart work. But that's why you make the big bucks. As a leader, if you're not going to get this done, then whose job is it? If you are not going to begin now, then what's your reasoning? The answers are obvious: You are the one, and now is the time. See? It's not rocket science!