Continuing our discussion of Alan Lafley's turnaround experiences at P&G, brings us to the third element of Lafley's formula for CEO success - "coaching and coaxing." In a large company like P&G, it is usually obvious to everyone that the CEO's job is not to make all the decisions, but to chart the course, set the boundaries, and empower the organization's managers and employees to make the necessary business decisions.
Owner/CEOs of middle market companies in transition often achieved their initial success by making all of the key business decisions themselves. While desirable and even necessary in the early stages of a company's life, that model does not scale very well.
Lafley practices the "CEO as coach'" style of management. That means insisting that managers make the tough choices and then live with those choices. The process also includes developing and agreeing on a "not-do list." Foreclosing lots of options prevents people from falling back on them rather than dealing assertively with the actions necessary to execute on the choices which were agreed to.
To be successful coaches, owner/CEOs must clearly:
- support the choices agreed to with their own actions,
- enforce the "not-do list,"
- continually re-enforce the unchanging nature of the company's mission and values,
- clearly call out the areas where change is mandatory for survival and success.
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