Going from Organizer to Orchestrator... what does that mean?

[CareyJo]

Let me explain...

This post is about delegating responsibilities within your company or organization.  This post also focuses on the person who is either the owner or CEO and wears a lot of hats and has a minimum of two people underneath them.  If you’re a solo-preneur this won’t make sense to you because you have no one to delegate things to.  However, it can still be a great read if you will someday!

Some of this information here is what I have recently learned and some is what I’ve learned over the course of my career.  Please do not think that I consider myself to be the expert in this area, just passing along what I’ve learned.

One of the biggest things we can do to avoid burn-out is to simply not do it all.  When we successfully learn how to delegate, we begin leading our company by orchestration, not by organization.

Are you a control freak?  Are you convinced that your business cannot possibly do well if you don’t oversee every aspect of it?  Do you hire the best in their fields to work for you because you know that their expertise will benefit your company?  Then trust them to do their jobs!  Give them the responsibility that they’re qualified for and delegate.

If you surround yourself with a lot of experts, then you clearly know what you’re doing as an owner – you hired the best!  When you have heads of departments who work for you, it’s their job to report to you on how their department is running and it allows you the freedom to manage the things that only you can manage.

I realize that there are many instances where those people either don’t yet have the level of experience required or for whatever reason you don’t trust them.  That creates the opportunity to then decide, do I need to replace them or educate them?  What will cost me more and how will it impact my business?

Leading from a place of orchestration means that you’re not busy with constantly focusing on the schedule, projects and who’s doing what.  This is also a leadership skill to be attained, something to work towards.  (If you read my other post on leadership, this will make sense.)

We were given this analogy at the summit last week and it’s a great lesson.  It was shared with us by the CEO of KOA Campgrounds, which happens to be a Montana born company....

Think about the kaleidoscope... it has all of those little colorful pieces inside it and mirrors.  Those little pieces all need each other to create the whole picture.  The mirrors reflect back to us what is lacking or what we need to work on as a company.

She also said, think about your company as a ship.  The owner or CEO should be guiding the ship and the mission while keeping the company on the path and letting the people and experts do what they’re good at.

Someone else, I don’t remember who, said when it comes to new-hires, one thing to always consider when looking at how you orchestrate is, your culture.  If you’re forced to choose between culture, talent and experience, culture is always going to be the top priority.  Does this person you’re considering fit into your existing culture or do they bring what you want and need to implement in your culture?  Someone who has immense talent or experience but doesn’t fit your culture is only going to cause rifts within your company.  You will likely never get them invested in the culture you have or want to create and they could actually undo the culture that you’ve built.  I, personally, would rather train someone with zero experience, so I can train them correctly, then to untrain bad habits, if that person fits my culture.

I wish that I could tell you all about our business culture, but we’re just a mom and pop team.  However, I have worked in many capacities through my adult life and I’ve seen self-employed for 39 (yikes!) years.  I have been a part of multiple organizations and employed by several companies along the way.  What I can speak to is how I felt as a member of each of those cultures and what it meant to me when I clearly didn’t fit in.

Of the cultures that I enjoyed, I was given lead positions, I was supported and encouraged, I was complimented on a job well done and received recognition for my efforts.  Where I did not fit in, I hated going to work, I didn’t enjoy the company of my co-workers and I couldn’t wait to go somewhere else.  I hid in my space and avoided people as much as possible.

We all want a great culture for our work and we want to work for people who not only know what they’re doing but don’t act like it.  They are kind, respectful and guide you to the person who can most directly help you, without ever making you feel inferior.  You know that when you’re in their presence that they’re orchestrating the company and in a good way.

I hope the information I’ve shared here has been beneficial to you, please be sure and share if it has!

[DinaLRosenberg]

Thank you so much for this post! We have seen the culture issue so many times. Recently we had a long-time employee resign and the shift in the "air" is palpable. Yes, they were a top booker, but they were no longer a fit in our culture and it was obvious. 

[CareyJo]

I hope you were able to replace them with a better fit for your culture!