Centrify<\/a> found that 79 percent of CTOs said they had experienced a technical breach, but just 55 percent of CEOs said the same. \u00a0What were they observing that made for this large difference in perception? Were CEOs only being informed of what were considered to be more serious technical breaches, and if so, whose choice was it to handle information in that way?<\/span><\/p>\nFor example, the majority of C-Suite team members may have a limited understanding of technology and of how things work. \u00a0It is up to the CIO to make a clear presentation, using a methodical approach, using analogies every adult can understand, in order to bridge that knowledge gap and secure the support and funding for the technology necessary for the organization to be secure.<\/span><\/p>\nRecognize the conflict inherent in personality differences<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/em><\/p>\nBusy people focusing on different responsibilities, without enough information to see the overall picture, are just part of the problem.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n
Personality differences come into play, too, with big differences in risk aversion, focus (people or tasks?) and scope (big picture or details?), resulting in conflicting agendas \u2013 the \u201cdesire \u00a0to move quickly versus the need to reduce risk or the desire to develop pricey marketing campaigns versus a directive to keep costs under control,\u201d \u00a0for example.<\/span><\/p>\nWhat if we could help people recognize their personal deep-seated, unrecognized preferences and shift the joint focus from deep-seated personal preferences to jointly-shared outcomes?<\/span><\/p>\nHow can we help big picture people recognize that \u201cthe devil is in the details\u201d and when the nitpickers are actually helping them be safe. \u00a0The technocrats, too, need to be educated to present their ideas in a manner that is clear and addresses the values of the non-technical.<\/span><\/p>\nThis is the area of soft skills, the training that companies often jettison during difficult financial times, only to find themselves scrambling to make up for the loss as the economy improves.<\/span><\/p>\nRecognition that training in soft skills can actually make the company more productive is a big first step.<\/span><\/p>\nWho is responsible?<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\nWhen a serious disconnect occurs, Boards, shareholders, clients and customers look for \u00a0the ultimate \u201cthroat to choke\u201d and it is \u00a0generally the CEO, whose critical task is to forge an informed, cohesive team, first by making sure that information is not only shared from the top down, but that it is also shared laterally. One expert says the CEO has to make a clear directive: \u201cDon\u2019t surprise your peers.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\nWhat\u2019s a CEO to do?<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\nThe Chief Executive Officer has to have heightened awareness of how seemingly small personality differences, which profoundly affect communication differences, can have an enormous impact on the organization. Those differences, which might be perceived as small annoyances to be accepted while moving on, can create troublesome roadblocks. \u00a0Here are just some of those differences that create roadblocks:<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\nHesitation based on fear of being taken advantage of vs. fear of being disliked or fear of being wrong. Do reports withhold information from their managers or from each other for one of these reasons? Or fear of being blamed? \u00a0 What about the employee who hugs an innovative idea to himself\/herself for fear a manager will claim credit for the idea?<\/span><\/li>\nWillingness to move forward without complete information vs. need to have every \u2018t\u201d crossed before moving on<\/span><\/li>\nReduction of \u00a0personal stress by glossing over problems vs. constructing elaborate \u201cinsurance\u201d scenarios \u00a0to avoid failure\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\nBelief that one has heard the other person out while the other person is frustrated by backed-up communication he\/she was never able to deliver<\/span><\/li>\nUsing dynamic enthusiasm intended to be motivating but which can \u00a0nevertheless crush another person\u2019s first moves towards innovative solutions<\/span><\/li>\nInability to recognize another person\u2019s behavioral style as strongly contributory, resulting in failure to hire, develop, and retain innovative talent<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n
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Clarifying these differences and building self-awareness at all levels of an organization is paramount but the CEO must make it clear that it is important, and then allocate time and resources to do just that.<\/span><\/p>\nThe Forbes article cited above ends with the danger of being satisfied with less than complete alignment: \u00a0 \u201c\u2019 \u2018mostly aligned\u2019 \u00a0is amplified exponentially further down in the organization, creating more and more distance among an organization\u2019s members. By the time you’ve reached the rank-and-file, the organization is only slightly alive.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\nBeing fully aligned can ignite an organization\u2019s innovation and productivity as it becomes \u201cfully alive.\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\nDo you recognize echoes or reflections of your own organization or team in any of these examples? What red flags do you see and do you have a plan to address them?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n
\n \n<\/span>Lynette Crane, MA, is a Minneapolis-based \u00a0mentor to introvert leaders, an acclaimed national speaker, corporate trainer, executive coach and author, and Founder of Quiet Brilliance Consulting LLC.<\/span><\/p>\nHer company helps leaders and team connect and communicate effectively across personality differences, igniting productivity and inspiring collaboration.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
When most members of the C-Suite are laser-focused on their unique responsibilities and priorities the possibilities for a disconnect between different functions are numerous, and the CEO, who oversees all of the functions, is often on a different page altogether. Here are a few of those disconnects that are drawing attention<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3275,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[746],"tags":[748,756,755,750,752,749,11,753,754,751],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Disconnect or Alignment in the C-Suite? - Quiet Brilliance Consulting<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n