How to build and lead an effective executive team
People are your most valuable resource - a cliché perhaps, but true. To achieve what you want for your organisation, you will need to surround yourself at the top level with the best people - an effective management or executive team. The bonus is that having a good team is a very smart way of enhancing your own abilities. Here are a few ideas on how to assemble that team - then lead it...
1. Develop an inner circle.
Whatever your management situation, you need a trusted inner circle of colleagues; not people who always agree with you, but people who really contribute to the process and the end result. Smaller groups, often established on an ad hoc basis, are usually more productive than larger ones; entry to, or exit from, such groups depends on a person’s talents, performance, and the specific task.
2. Select the best people.
For an executive team to be effective, you will need people who:
- can get things done
- have leadership qualities
- are able to create useful ideas
- analyse problems effectively
- are good at oral and written communication
- have technical expertise
- can control the work flow
- can think and evaluate logically.
Select or build a team with compensating strengths and weak-nesses. If you inherit an existing team, reshuffle or reinforce it as required.
3. Stress the importance of the team’s decision-making role.
People are often reluctant to make tough decisions; it’s easy to postpone difficult decisions to another meeting. So when you assemble your executive group, see this as a major challenge. Set targets and make decisions - and don’t let yourself be talked into extending deadlines. Your determination will gain the support of members tired of attending endless meetings that transfer agenda items to other occasions.
