While organizational change ultimately leads to improvements in operational efficiencies and service delivery, getting there often involves leadership challenges.
Questions arise: How do we build leadership skills and confidence in people promoted to new positions? How do we increase accountability, responsibility, and consistency in implementing policies and procedures? How do we help staff resolve conflicts?
These questions faced Eastern Plains Community Action Agency (EPCAA), the organization that delivers Head Start services to children and families in six eastern New Mexico counties. To address these challenges, Mary Rose Jimenez, Director, and Susie Zamora, Associate Director, contracted with Suzanne Kryder, Inc., a Washington, DC-based training and coaching company that offers The Mind to Lead leadership development program.
Challenges
Accreditation at risk
Low accountability
High absenteeism
Several factors impacted the agency’s mission, and they required change. In the previous organizational structure, mid-level area managers oversaw local supervisors at sites up to 100 miles from EPCAA’s central office. The following challenges arose:
In some cases, area managers were either not involved enough or overly involved.
Inconsistencies among the area managers put national accreditation at risk.
Though retirements provided opportunities for new people to step into leadership roles, some supervisors did not have the necessary skills to fill these positions. Mary Rose said, “I was becoming concerned that we were having staff retire. I felt some staff – those here long enough who should be ready – weren’t ready to move into higher-level positions. Transitioning them was of real concern, because they were unable or unwilling to take on that additional responsibility.”
The agency struggled with accountability and responsibility issues at all levels as employees were not following policies and procedures. Susie commented, “Staff members were able to make excuses. Things didn’t get done, and excuses were accepted. Personnel pieces and dealing with personalities were huge challenges keeping us from offering the services we wanted to provide.”
Staff members avoided difficult conversations and did not hold each other accountable.
Absenteeism was high among supervisors and employees.
Services
Leadership Training
Neuroleadership Coaching
Organizational Change Management
EPCAA and Suzanne Kryder collaborated on the design, development, and execution of a comprehensive Mind to Lead training and coaching program to address the challenges. Susie commented on planning, “Suzanne listened to us up front and built the training around our conversations. I felt she was tailoring it toward our organization, and that really made a difference.”
Planning conversations led to three two-day training sessions spread out over nine months – both to reinforce learning and to support fieldwork assignments between sessions. The Mind to Lead curriculum focuses on learning and practicing a neutral, results-oriented leadership style called calm, confident power. This style helps leaders and teams get unstuck and, without getting angry or anxious, hold people accountable for their work. Sessions included neuroleadership tools and techniques presented through whole group, dyads, triads, assessments and individual exercises.
A key challenge that group members faced was the discomfort often present in difficult conversations. Learning to allow discomfort was key to the process of addressing it. Mary Rose explained, “Suzanne taught us it was okay to feel uncomfortable when you were going to practice one of these skills with a staff member, particularly if it was somebody you were having a negative conversation with. She gave us the confidence to practice in class, plus the field experience made us do that in between her visits.”
Regarding individual monthly coaching, Susie said, “Suzanne helped me understand new uses of the tools and how well they could be utilized. Being able to work one-on-one with someone who was not connected to day-to-day operations gave me fresh insights. I really got a lot out of the coaching.”
Regarding Suzanne’s skills and expertise, Mary Rose said, “She has an awesome way of holding people accountable in a really kind way. She wasn’t trying to fix us. She was trying to get us to do what we needed to do to fix ourselves. She was very clear we could make the organizational change.” Susie added, “Suzanne was always totally authentic and genuine – I appreciated that.”
Results
Increased leader confidence
Increased accountability
Decreased absenteeism
The leadership training and coaching generated strong positive results: staff now express themselves as confident leaders, are accountable for their actions, and engage in difficult conversations that resolve conflicts.
A new-found sense of confidence characterizes interactions. Susie explained, “Supervisors were astounded how well the tools were working. Hearing the supervisors at the local site - who were cautious and careful – begin to speak in a more confident and calm manner was really gratifying.”
Mary Rose added, “Supervisors talked a lot about how using the techniques made a difference with their toughest staff – who now are either coming around or preparing to leave at year end. Some staff have been here a long time and realize the supervisor isn’t going to accept their behavior anymore.”
Personal accountability and responsibility have increased. Mary Rose said, “I have to tell you – from a year ago – I was blown away about the staff’s willingness to speak up and hold each other accountable. They accept that responsibility, and they’re willing to be accountable for their work.”
Supervisors are taking on difficult conversations. Susie said, “It’s huge, the confidence I see in their willingness to allow their staff to bring issues to the table. Before, it was swept under the rug, because it was too difficult to have that conversation. Now people are more willing, and that’s been positive.”
Staff absenteeism has declined. Susie observed, “Holding staff accountable has decreased the number of absences for staff.”
Mary Rose concluded, “I wanted organizational change badly, and I wanted people to act differently. It really worked. Results exceeded what I was hoping would happen. It’s a huge change at some of the centers…remarkable.”
