Achieving Goals & Status

Booz Allen Hamilton featured a great article recently, titled “The Community Network Solution“.

It highlighted how ‘relationships trump rank’ when it comes to making things happen – and how so many projects are doomed from the outset because they involve the wrong people.

Although based on public sector initiatives, the studies that underlie this report have immediate application in the corporate environment. Anyone involved with a major outsourcing deal, a reengineering project or organizational redesign will immediately recognize the symptoms. People are often appointed because of rank and supposed power or influence, rather than because of any relevant specialist knowledge or – more importantly – any proven ability to reconcile perspectives, to act as ‘glue’.

The thoughts and ideas within this article should certainly assist those who are deciding on the make-up of a team. But they should also provoke thoughts among those in contracts, sourcing, legal or commercial management who often feel excluded. We need to ensure that we exhibit the right behaviors and characteristics – and make decision-makers and team leaders aware of these.

As we heard recently in an IACCM Ask The Expert call, support groups like contracts, procurement and legal are frequently perceived as ‘too negative’ and not good team players. They are left to a review role. This  is truly bad news for everyone – and, as the article points out, goes a long way to explaining why so many key projects and business relationships fail to deliver.