Christina Employee
Dear Carie—
I'm having an issue at work that's really troubling me - I work at a non-profit financial institution that does mission based lending, grant writing, and some advocacy. Lately, though, I (and a lot of the newer staff) feel like the organization is much more focused on the financial institution part of our jobs then the mission part. Our leadership has become increasingly risk adverse, and as a result we become more and more like a traditional bank that is more interested in being self-sustainable than solving hard social problems.
Several of my co-workers and I have tried to raise this issue as part of our 5 year strategic planning process, but with little to no success. It feels like we're either ignored or met with immediate defensiveness. People aren't even willing to discuss the POSSIBILITY that we might not be as "good" as we think we are, so it's hard to imagine how we can ever course correct. The more I bring it up, the more I worry about becoming a social pariah at my workplace, but I also can't seem to let it go. Any advice on how I should approach the issue with my leadership team?
Christina Employee
Dear Christina—
I admire you for having trouble letting this go. I’m jumping to the conclusion that you were drawn to this job because of the mission. That you are not a great fan of willed blindness. And that you are looking for insight and strategy for whether and how to stay or maybe whether and how to leave.
You may be asking yourself how you can influence the organization without creating a backlash.
Here are two conflict-wisdom ideas for you: the influence diagram and the triangle of satisfaction. Yes, we’re being very graphic here.
You are already on to the triangle. I’m just making it more explicit: Include not just substantive issues (such as the demographics of the people you serve, the types of loans, etc.) but also process (how you evaluate success—’goodness'—, who makes decisions at what level based on what feedback) and relationships or emotions (you mention defensiveness). When you make your influence diagram, check to be sure you have addressed all three parts of the triangle.
Mission-oriented organizations have an inexorable tendency to roll towards orthodoxy. (There’s a lot of literature about this that you are probably well aware of.) I always envision mission sag in ecosystem terms. For example, a lake will inexorably become a swamp and then inevitably a little dimple of a wetland, just as a movement eventually ‘silts’ up and becomes… flatter. Whether it is a lake or a social movement, the predictable pattern suggests you are dealing with a complex adaptive system. That means you need the appropriate systems tools. The influence diagram is a must.
Just remember that ‘inexorable’ doesn’t mean ‘hopeless’ in your time frame. Complex adaptive systems can be manipulated. The lake can stay lake-ish for a long time, just as some mission organizations can keep embracing risk.
Monkeying around with systems can also be surprising. Again, think of human efforts to, say, ‘save the lake’ that somehow backfire. The influence diagram is not only a good way to find your strategic opportunities. It also helps you see where those opportunities may have unintended consequences.
Now, for the influence diagram. This is a great tool for finding levers in a complex adaptive system.* It is also useful in helping you predict and avoid unintended consequences—such as making your management retreat deeper into their hole. (Also, doodling influence diagrams is a good way to pass time during boring staff meetings.) For a while, try doing this obsessively: on napkins, in the sand, on real paper, in your head.
I have made up facts about your situation to illustrate the influence diagram. (You can find a more complex influence diagram on the cover to this entry.)
On the napkin, I’ve graphed the relationship between your manager’s comfort and your organization’s income. You would think the more the merrier. But is it? Or do they become more clutchy the more they have? (That is illustrated on the take-out bag…)
#1
#2
Next, expand your influence diagram a little…
#3
If you find yourself in this territory, where the black sharpie appears, run:
#4
Run, because an organization that is afraid of good feedback is not a place where you will be happy.
But, of course, these are made-up facts. I don’t know your situation. All I glean is that you want strategy and insight, and I think the influence diagram will give you that. (If this were your real diagram, you would probably want to examine the Board of Directors option in more detail, making a whole influence diagram just for them, but then being sure to tie it back in to the big picture because that’s where the unintended consequences will pop out at you.)
As you proceed, remember the three sides to the triangle of satisfaction. Be sure your diagram addresses substance, process and … you know… feelings. Including your own.
And let me know how this goes!
Carie
Conflict Resolution Skill #1
When assessing a situation, be sure to address all three aspects of the Triangle of Strategery Satisfaction: substance, process, relationships.
Conflict Resolution Skill #2
If your problem feels like part of a complex adaptive system, sketch about 1,000 influence diagrams so that you can better understand and strategize.
Pro tip for the influence diagram:
Sometimes the most important part of a system snarl is delayed feedback. Let’s say your manager gets instant feedback from the Board of Directors, which is conservative, but very slow feedback from the grant system. The feedback is so slow that she tends to forget why the grant did or didn’t go through. (Think of the way voters reward or punish a presidential candidate for the previous president’s policies, because economic feedback loops are so slow. Yes, it is perverse.) The squiggle-line you see on the influence diagram on the cover denotes delayed feedback. This diagram was meant to illuminate transparency from a federal agency. You can see that skill development for that kind of communication takes time, and maybe entails some fumbles. But management would tend to say ‘this isn’t working let’s not do it any more’ before they had had a chance to let the skills grow.