MJ's little flock

[MaryJanet]

Is that scary? I'm confused. This is managing in a matrix. I have no direct authority over any of these people. This group has been dysfunctional for a while. By the time I leave they will understand that it is better and more efficient to work together.

For example, just this evening I got a proposed process from someone who had everything figured out. Or so they thought. They actually held meetings on the project that I am supposed to guide, without me. But not just without me, without other key people. Meetings I actually knew nothing about. No joke.

They submitted the results of their partial stakeholder meeting as final product. It took no time at all to show them what they had not considered because they had not included all stakeholders. I even shared something that knocked 5 steps out of their process including some bizarre manual gymnastics they created that were doomed to failure. No one in this group knows about what I shared with them. I do. They have no idea.

Right now I count 5 different little groups all doing what this person did, going off on their own. 4 more meetings like this and they will all want to be working together. No one has ever helped them to work as a team. I have to teach them that they need each other. I find a great way to do that is to let them fail on their own first. That way when they succeed together, it resonates.

The pain will create the gain. It delays things but in the long run they will be a much higher performing team when I am done.

Sounds like good practice to me.

 

[Ribh]

Is that scary? I'm confused. This is managing in a matrix. I have no direct authority over any of these people. This group has been dysfunctional for a while. By the time I leave they will understand that it is better and more efficient to work together.

For example, just this evening I got a proposed process from someone who had everything figured out. Or so they thought. They actually held meetings on the project that I am supposed to guide, without me. But not just without me, without other key people. Meetings I actually knew nothing about. No joke.

They submitted the results of their partial stakeholder meeting as final product. It took no time at all to show them what they had not considered because they had not included all stakeholders. I even shared something that knocked 5 steps out of their process including some bizarre manual gymnastics they created that were doomed to failure. No one in this group knows about what I shared with them. I do. They have no idea.

Right now I count 5 different little groups all doing what this person did, going off on their own. 4 more meetings like this and they will all want to be working together. No one has ever helped them to work as a team. I have to teach them that they need each other. I find a great way to do that is to let them fail on their own first. That way when they succeed together, it resonates.

The pain will create the gain. It delays things but in the long run they will be a much higher performing team when I am done.

AAAh. I have a much better understanding of what is going on now. I had imagined something else...

 

[LaFemmeKatia]

Oh Bob. Now I have visions of Tsuki flouncing dramatically from the coop squawking
"That's it! I'm not laying any more eggs! So THERE! "

Well, I’m patiently waiting for my leghorn to start putting out! Haha! I figure she’ll be the first to start. Her comb and wattles are all bright red, I think she’s prime. And she’s 24 weeks old.

 

[LaFemmeKatia]

Is that scary? I'm confused. This is managing in a matrix. I have no direct authority over any of these people. This group has been dysfunctional for a while. By the time I leave they will understand that it is better and more efficient to work together.

For example, just this evening I got a proposed process from someone who had everything figured out. Or so they thought. They actually held meetings on the project that I am supposed to guide, without me. But not just without me, without other key people. Meetings I actually knew nothing about. No joke.

They submitted the results of their partial stakeholder meeting as final product. It took no time at all to show them what they had not considered because they had not included all stakeholders. I even shared something that knocked 5 steps out of their process including some bizarre manual gymnastics they created that were doomed to failure. No one in this group knows about what I shared with them. I do. They have no idea.

Right now I count 5 different little groups all doing what this person did, going off on their own. 4 more meetings like this and they will all want to be working together. No one has ever helped them to work as a team. I have to teach them that they need each other. I find a great way to do that is to let them fail on their own first. That way when they succeed together, it resonates.

The pain will create the gain. It delays things but in the long run they will be a much higher performing team when I am done.

Your strategy is brilliant.

 

[BY Bob]

AAAh. I have a much better understanding of what is going on now. I had imagined something else...

I'm not that kind of leader. Sometimes though.......

 

[BY Bob]

Well, I’m patiently waiting for my leghorn to start putting out! Haha! I figure she’ll be the first to start. Her comb and wattles are all bright red, I think she’s prime. And she’s 24 weeks old.

Any day now. We need a picture of her and the egg when it happens. Like this.

 

[BY Bob]

Your strategy is brilliant.

Thank you. To a certain extent, tried and true.

 

[MaryJanet]

I'm not that kind of leader. Sometimes though.......

I'm surfacing some issues with an ornery person at present. He's timing meetings so that people who need to make changes don't have an opportunity to do so.

Extremely transparent although he thinks it's all off the radar.

 

[BY Bob]

I'm surfacing some issues with an ornery person at present. He's timing meetings so that people who need to make changes don't have an opportunity to do so.

Extremely transparent although he thinks it's all off the radar.

That's just nasty for no reason. Has anyone just declined to participate in their meetings? If I could not be prepared in time, I would not participate in theirs. Especially once they started doing it frequently. I simply would let them know I can't be prepared to adequately participate and therefore I don't want to waste her/his valuable time.

 

[MaryJanet]

That's just nasty for no reason. Has anyone just declined to participate in their meetings? If I could not be prepared in time, I would not participate in theirs. Especially once they started doing it frequently. I simply would let them know I can't be prepared to adequately participate and therefore I don't want to waste her/his valuable time.

On everyone's behalf, I asked for a reschedule to a reasonable date.