I originally posted this on LinkedIn a couple days ago. It is rare that I post something, and then repost on the newsletter, but I liked this short post. “We're 100% aligned!" Oh really? "We finished our OKRs! We're aligned!" Oh really? "The team agreed on action items!" Oh really?
Apr 20, 2023·edited Apr 20, 2023Liked by John Cutler
Was heartened to see the traction on your LinkedIn post John. It's a crucial topic that presents so much opportunity in terms of learning about the definition and nature of alignment between people; about the role of the leader and the role of data insights in the alignment process; about how that process works best and under what circumstances; and about the power of such work in enabling engagement and effectiveness, and mitigating the risks of misalignment. After all, behind every observable problem is misalignment as a root cause.
This reminds me of a speech given by Abraham Kuyper back in the 1800s where he makes the distinction between “uniformity” and “unity”. Things that are uniform look the same, though they may have nothing in common under the surface and things that are unified / united grow from the same root, even though they may not look anything like each other.
Your post made me think about a common theme highlighted in Jim Collins’ books Good to Great and Built to Last. That theme was that the companies that became and had longevity at being great were deeply aligned in their strategy.
Often the initial implementation of that strategy was counter intuitive and painful but it worked. Competitors with equal or better opportunity to win in the same markets were not as consistently successful because they lacked focus and alignment around cohesive business strategy.
This is so interesting and so simply written. Very easy to digest and certainly makes me think what is the point in fighting so hard to be aligned as long as everyone is on a "similar" journey towards the right goal. We can deal with the conflicts on the way and be aligned in the fact that we will have different views on how we achieve the same goal. It's called diversity and innvoation.
I'd rather lead or be part of a team/organisation thats 60% aligned and respectfully diverse and innovative than 100% aligned where everyone thinks the same.
I REALLY appreciated this post - how concise it's articulated. I've been seeking, preaching, and focusing on deep alignment in my org, my role specifically, for the past year and this week (yay!) began receiving the recognition for how I'm engaging and problem solving that it is the growing pattern that will be important for the business. I've used the word shallow to describe some of the activities and plans in the past years, but didn't think to use the word deep to describe the more valuable opposite. Thank you for this! Will be sharing this post for sure.
Reminds me of Peter Senge’s commentary about engagement with a team, not quite the same as this but close. He describes the spectrum as apathetic “is it 5 o clock yet” to compliant and enrolled and committed “will create whatever structures are needed to make it happen”
Was heartened to see the traction on your LinkedIn post John. It's a crucial topic that presents so much opportunity in terms of learning about the definition and nature of alignment between people; about the role of the leader and the role of data insights in the alignment process; about how that process works best and under what circumstances; and about the power of such work in enabling engagement and effectiveness, and mitigating the risks of misalignment. After all, behind every observable problem is misalignment as a root cause.
This reminds me of a speech given by Abraham Kuyper back in the 1800s where he makes the distinction between “uniformity” and “unity”. Things that are uniform look the same, though they may have nothing in common under the surface and things that are unified / united grow from the same root, even though they may not look anything like each other.
Your post made me think about a common theme highlighted in Jim Collins’ books Good to Great and Built to Last. That theme was that the companies that became and had longevity at being great were deeply aligned in their strategy.
Often the initial implementation of that strategy was counter intuitive and painful but it worked. Competitors with equal or better opportunity to win in the same markets were not as consistently successful because they lacked focus and alignment around cohesive business strategy.
Keep up the thought-provoking work John!
This is so interesting and so simply written. Very easy to digest and certainly makes me think what is the point in fighting so hard to be aligned as long as everyone is on a "similar" journey towards the right goal. We can deal with the conflicts on the way and be aligned in the fact that we will have different views on how we achieve the same goal. It's called diversity and innvoation.
I'd rather lead or be part of a team/organisation thats 60% aligned and respectfully diverse and innovative than 100% aligned where everyone thinks the same.
I REALLY appreciated this post - how concise it's articulated. I've been seeking, preaching, and focusing on deep alignment in my org, my role specifically, for the past year and this week (yay!) began receiving the recognition for how I'm engaging and problem solving that it is the growing pattern that will be important for the business. I've used the word shallow to describe some of the activities and plans in the past years, but didn't think to use the word deep to describe the more valuable opposite. Thank you for this! Will be sharing this post for sure.
Reminds me of Peter Senge’s commentary about engagement with a team, not quite the same as this but close. He describes the spectrum as apathetic “is it 5 o clock yet” to compliant and enrolled and committed “will create whatever structures are needed to make it happen”