WSS 2014 Leadership SummitLeading in Times of Change

March 25, 2014

www.publicconsultinggroup.com

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AgendaI. Introductions, Objectives, Observations

II. Sources Examined

III. Adaptive Leadership Principles

IV. Two Things to Ponder

V. Reflection and Q&A / Discussion

VI.Wrap Up

Public Consulting Group

Management Consulting Firm

• Established in 1986 & headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts

• 1,300+ employees, offices in 43 states throughout the U.S. and in Canada, the U.K. & Poland, including Asheville, Charlotte, and Raleigh

• Focused exclusively on public agencies and their private contractors/partners

• In NC since 1994, on WSS since 2011

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Presenter

Robin O’Brien

• Associate Manager in PCG’s Human Services Practice Area

• 20 years experience in project/program management across public, not-for-profit, and for-profit sectors

• 10 years experience helping public human services agencies continuously improve their performance, capacity, and results

• Co-Creator of APHSA’s Organizational Effectiveness practice built and refined through 75+ projects in 30 states

• Facilitated WSS planning in 2011 and monitoring/annual planning each year since

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Observations

WSS county and state leadership has been stable and resilient from 2011 to now.

NC FAST has blotted out the sun.

You’ve kept tacking toward your ultimate goals, and have made a lot of progress.

State-county relationships are strained, and you need to get back to “we” to stay on target and keep good people from leaving.

If you keep putting one foot in front of the other, you’ll look back in 3/5/10 years and be amazed at what you’ve accomplished.

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Objectives

1. Introduce concepts and tools for leading in times of change.

2. Help you begin to:

a. See a path from surviving to thriving; and

b. Plan ways to get on that path.

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Reflective Thinking Questions

1. What do we do well as an organization? What do I do well as a leader?

2. Where do we need to improve as an organization? Where do I need to improve as a leader?

3. Where can I get support when things get rough? How can I support others when things get rough for them?

4. What do I want my legacy to be?

5. What 2-3 concrete things can I do when I get back to my county/team?

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Sources Examined

Overcoming Trauma

Adaptive Leadership literature

Tools from practitioners

Direct experience in leadership, management, consulting

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Selected Sources - Literature

Overcoming Trauma

Fullan, M. (2001). Leading in a Culture of Change. San Francisco, CA. Jossey-Bass.

Heifetz, R. and Linsky, M. (2002). Leadership on the Line – Staying Alive Through the Dangers of Leading. Harvard Business School Press.

Heifetz, R., Linsky, M., and Grashow, A. (2009). Practice of Adaptive Leadership. Harvard Business School Press.

http://www.aphsa.org/content/dam/aphsa/pdfs/Innovation%20Center/2012-06-Art-of-Possible-Adaptive-Leadership-PolicyPractice.pdf

http://innovationcenter.aphsa.org/content/dam/aphsa/pdfs/Innovation%20Center/2013-04-Pursuit-of-Adaptive-Leaders-in-All-Levels-PolicyPractice.pdf

http://www.forbes.com/sites/travisbradberry/2012/11/09/leadership-2-0-are-you-an-adaptive-leader/

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Selected Sources - Practitioners

Overcoming Trauma

American Public Human Services Association. (2009). Positioning Public Child Welfare Guidance: Leadership Guidance. Retrieved from http://www.ppcwg.org/.

APHSA Adaptive Leadership Toolkit (DRAFT 1-13-2014)

APHSA Organizational Effectiveness Handbook, 4th Edition.

http://www.lifelongfaith.com/uploads/5/1/6/4/5164069/becoming_an_adaptive_leader.pdf

http://artsfwd.org/how-is-the-coachs-stance-valuable-in-adaptive-leadership/

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Selected Sources – Experience

Overcoming Trauma

Direct consulting experience with 25+ OE clients

Consultation with HHS leaders (e.g., 2010 Human Services Advisory Board of 20+ state and local HHS CEOs, former IN family court judge and state child welfare director Judge Jim Payne)

Experience helping to create national guidance (e.g., National Workgroup on Integration, PPCWG)

Experience profiling HHS promising practices (e.g., through APHSA’s Raise the Local Voice initiative)

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How Adults Learn

Overcoming Trauma

Adapted from David Kolb

(www.infed.org/mobi/david-a-kolb-on-experiential-learning)

Observation and

Reflection (2)

Forming Abstract Concepts

(3)

Testing in New

Situations (4)

Concrete Experience

(1)

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Adaptive Leadership

Principles

Overcoming Trauma

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What Works

Overcoming Trauma

1. Know the organization

2. Project into the future (assess trends and the environment)

3. Break down barriers

4. Be disruptive

5. Be agile to get to the goal

6. Empower the organization

7. Sense and respond

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Know the Organization

Overcoming Trauma

Its history … of change, relationships, structure

Its people … staff, clients, other stakeholders

Its community … culture, politics, values

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Project Into the Future

Overcoming Trauma

Environmental trends in client demographics, funding, regulation

Long-term impact of decisions

Potentially revolutionary impact of evolutionary changes

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Break Down Barriers

Overcoming Trauma

Collaborate with others who impact your clients’ success

Build trust between individuals and teams within your organization

Find common interests with traditional adversaries – build something together, “break bread” together

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Be Disruptive

Overcoming Trauma

Work back from what clients need

Challenge organizational norms, “sacred cows”

Find ways to comply that drive toward the desired future

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Be Agile to Get to the Goal

Overcoming Trauma

Regularly update organizational plans due to:o Lessons learned from implementationo New opportunities

Keep moving forward in a systematic wayo Stay true to core practice principles and valueso Pilot, monitor, and continuously improve

innovations vs chasing “shiny things” React to crisis and exit crisis mode asap Explain changes as steps forward toward

meeting client needs

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Empower the Organization

Overcoming Trauma

Engage staff, clients, and stakeholders as partners in identifying, analyzing, and implementing change -- user groups, task forces, surveys/focus groups

Flatten the organization by deemphasizing hierarchy, silos

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Sense and Respond

Overcoming Trauma

Know yourself – your strengths, gaps, tendencies – and model continuous learning

Communicate to the hearts, minds, and guts of your peopleo Acknowledge feelings of loss, celebrate small

victories o Meet people where they are, and help them to

move forward Recognize and understand sources of

resistance and engage with them head on

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Examples from Other States

Overcoming Trauma

Virginia (e.g., Albemarle County, Hampton)

Minnesota (e.g., Dakota and Olmsted Counties)

Colorado (e.g., Jefferson County)

California (e.g., San Diego County)

Idaho WSS

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Two Things to Ponder

Overcoming Trauma

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Individual Coaching vs. Adaptive Leadership

Overcoming Trauma

Individual coaching and adaptive leadership can be seen as parallel processes:

1. Works to inspire the coachee and helps him/her see a vision of what is possible

2. Listens and asks questions

3. Gets to know the coachee as a person

4. Helps the coachee come up with solutions (but doesn’t problem-solve for them)

5. Leads open and honest conversations about the coachee’s performance and behavior

6. Sees coaching as a process that takes time

7. Knows and takes care of themselves

From recent PCG training in Coaching for Performance Management, adapted from literature/practice/experience review and refined by trainees

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Resilience from Trauma as a Potential Source of Leadership Strength

Overcoming Trauma

Drivers of resilience and drivers of leadership capacity are similar:

1. Social supports and role models

2. Optimism balanced by realism

3. Faith in something larger than one’s self

4. A sense of meaning, morality and ethics

5. Reframing circumstances and events as constructive and instructive

6. Problem-solving skills

7. Forgiveness

8. Facing and overcoming fears

9. A sense of humor

10.Brain fitness

11. Physical fitness and stress management

From recent joint APHSA-PCG OE Tool Development Work

Reflective Thinking Questions

1. What do we do well as an organization? What do I do well as a leader?

2. Where do we need to improve as an organization? Where do I need to improve as a leader?

3. Where can I get support when things get rough? How can I support others when things get rough for them?

4. What do I want my legacy to be?

5. What 2-3 concrete things can I do when I get back to my county/team?

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Reactions? Questions?

Overcoming Trauma

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For More Information

Robin O’Brien

Associate Manager

rfobrien@pcgus.com

(617) 426-1366

Erin Henderlight

Senior Consultant

ehenderlight@pcgus.com

(828) 214-3614

Overcoming Trauma

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Public Consulting Group, Inc.148 State Street, Tenth Floor, Boston, Massachusetts 02109

(617) 426-2026, www.publicconsultinggroup.com